By Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul

We support public access to all of our state’s natural resources. In New Jersey, our coastal municipalities are responsible for covering the costs of lifeguards, beach cleaning, and facility maintenance in order to provide clean, safe beaches. To fund these costs, they charge a user fee, otherwise known as a beach badge.   

We don’t see these two concepts as being in conflict. But there is a need to provide clarity.

Residents have been calling our Legislative District 11 office with questions about whether surfers and people fishing in the ocean have a right to access the water without buying beach badges.

The conversation about whether surfers and fishers have to pay to use the state’s coastal beaches has gone on for decades. New Jersey is blessed with many beautiful natural resources from the Pinelands and the northern forests, to its lakes, rivers, and the ocean beaches that stretch along more than 130 miles of our coastline. We need to protect the public’s right to enjoy these resources. There is confusion, however, over whether fishing or surfing would require a beach badge.  

That’s why we have introduced legislation that would allow fishers and surfers to access the wet sandy beach below the mean high tide line for the exclusive purpose of surfing or fishing, without having to purchase municipal beach passes.   

The right of fishers and surfers to use the beach for free goes back to the Public Trust Doctrine, a principle which establishes that the state’s tidal waters and shorelines belong to the public to be used for recreation. 

The Public Trust Doctrine is recognized as a “common law” by state and federal courts. It was codified into state law in 2019 in New Jersey as the “Public Access Law.” The 2019 law gave the Department of Environmental Protection the ability to enforce and protect the public’s access to tidal waters and shorelines for navigation, commerce, and recreation, including bathing, swimming, and fishing.

However, there are still inconsistencies between the DEP’s policy allowing surfers and fishers to have free access to the water below the mean high tide line and the ordinances passed by some shore municipalities, their enforcement, and knowledge of proper procedures. Keep in mind that coastal beaches in New Jersey are managed by municipalities.

This has created uncertainty and misinformation among the surfing and fishing communities.

Our bill’s primary sponsor, Assemblywoman Donlon, brought a unique perspective of being both a legislator and an avid surfer for 20 years to writing the legislation. The bill has been referred to the Assembly Tourism, Gaming and the Arts Committee.

New Jersey’s natural resources are a source of enjoyment to residents and visitors alike. They provide opportunities for exercise and to experience the beauty of nature close up. 

By clarifying how the Public Trust Doctrine protects the rights of surfers and fishers, our legislation protects the rights of all people to access New Jersey’s natural resources and will help keep our state safer and fairer for everyone.

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