The summer is still young, but already crowds of partying teenagers have spurred some state lawmakers, as well as some local leaders, into action. A bill (A-5610) that would increase fines for underage drinking advanced out of the Assembly Judiciary Committee on Thursday despite heavy opposition, including from groups that typically find themselves at odds.
Civil liberties advocates warned that the measure would disproportionately affect kids from low-income households, whose parents may not be able to pay fines quickly. And police representatives told lawmakers the proposal would place a new burden on officers, who will have to determine if a suspected underage drinker is in fact under 21.
“The goal here is not to punish young people. The goal is to deter them from doing these things in the first place,” said Sen. Declan O’Scanlon (R-Monmouth).
Meanwhile in Ocean City, where scenes of teens swarming the beaches after dark on Memorial Day went viral, the city council approved a pair of new ordinances that create a new curfew for minors and ban backpacks on the beach and boardwalk.
