Bill Text: NJ S3097 | 2022-2023 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires reflective material on children's Halloween costumes.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-09-29 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Law and Public Safety Committee [S3097 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2022-S3097-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator M. TERESA RUIZ
District 29 (Essex)
SYNOPSIS
Requires reflective material on children's Halloween costumes.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning children's safety and supplementing Title 56 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. As used in this act:
"Child" means a person less than 18 years of age.
"Halloween costume" means a costume, garment, article of clothing, or fashion of dress appropriate to, marketed for, or intended for use on Halloween.
"Reflective material" means reflective tape, fabric, decorative patches or other material that is highly visible in low light.
b. (1) A person shall not sell or offer for sale a Halloween costume intended for use by a child that does not have reflective material attached to, or packaged and sold with, the costume.
(2) A person in violation of paragraph (1) of this subsection shall be subject to a penalty of not more than $500 for the first offense and not more than $1,000 for each subsequent offense, to be collected in a civil action by a summary proceeding under the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).
2. This act shall take effect immediately and apply to children's Halloween costumers sold on or after November 15 next following the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires children's Halloween costumes sold at retail to have reflective material that is 1) attached to the costume, or 2) packaged with the costume to be subsequently attached by the buyer. Reflective material increases visibility in unsafe situations and helps to reduce the risk of consequential accidents due to low visibility or darkness.
A person who sells a child's Halloween costume without reflective material would pay a penalty of not more than $500 for the first offense and not more than $1,000 for each subsequent offense.
The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) urges consumers to purchase or make costumes that are brightly colored and clearly visible to motorists. Consumers should decorate or trim costumes and treat bags with reflective tape that glows in the beam of a car's headlights. The commission also recommends that bags or sacks be brightly colored or decorated with reflective tape.
According to the CPSC, hundreds of Halloween-related injuries are reported each year. Incidents involve burns, lacerations from pumpkin-carving, falls related to ill-fitting costumes, and injuries from collisions due to impaired vision. Requiring reflective material on costumes marketed to and used by children improves the safety of trick-or-treaters and drivers on Halloween night.
