On March 21 Assembly Bill 2936 was introduced in the New Jersey Legislature to institute statewide tanning salon restrictions. An identical bill, SB 1225, was introduced Jan. 30. Passage of the bills would prohibit minors under the age of 14 from using tanning facilities and would prohibit minors between ages 14 and 18 from using tanning facilities without written authorization of a parent or legal guardian. The prohibition would not apply to emancipated minors.
The bills also would require that a tanning facility operator conspicuously post a sign in the reception area stating: "PERSONS UNDER AGE 14 SHALL NOT BE PERMITTED TO USE THIS TANNING FACILITY. PERSONS BETWEEN 14 AND 18 YEARS OF AGE SHALL NOT BE PERMITTED TO USE THIS TANNING FACILITY WITHOUT WRITTEN AUTHORIZATION OF A PARENT OR LEGAL GUARDIAN."
Penalties for violating the provisions of these bills would be the same as for other violations of N.J.S.A.26:2D-81 et seq.--$100 for the first offense and $200 for each subsequent offense.
The bills also include technical amendments to update references to the Department of Health and Senior Services resulting from the Governor's Reorganization Plan No. 001-1996 and reference to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999."
Currently, New Jersey does not have an age restriction for using tanning facilities.
The bills have yet to receive Assembly or Senate consideration.
For more information on these bills or for a list of the bills' sponsors, visit http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/Default.asp, or for a complete listing of Legislative hotline numbers visit http://tanningtraining.com/reginfo/numbers.html.
