TRENTON — Teenagers who want to emulate the cast of "Jersey Shore" by jumping into tanning beds will have to wait until they’re 18 under a bill moving rapidly through the Legislature. The Senate and Assembly health committees Monday approved bipartisan legislation (S2119) banning salons from letting minors use the beds — even if they have their parents’ permission....
Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi in this March 2011 photo. Teenagers who want to tan in tanning salons like the cast of Jersey Shore would not be able to under a new N.J. law that would prevent minors from using tanning beds. TRENTON — Teenagers who want to emulate the cast of "Jersey Shore" by jumping into tanning beds will have to wait until they’re 18 under a bill moving rapidly through the Legislature.
The Senate and Assembly health committees Monday approved bipartisan legislation (S2119) banning salons from letting minors use the beds — even if they have their parents’ permission.
Under current law, teenagers from 14 through 17 can use them with permission from their parents or guardians, while those under 14 can’t use them at all.
"No amount of ultraviolet exposure from tanning devices is safe," said Dr. Robert Paull, chairman of the legislative committee for the Dermatological Society of New Jersey.
The bill was approved by a 6-1 vote in the Assembly panel and 9-0 in the Senate committee.
In 2009, the International Agency for Research on Cancer placed tanning beds in their top cancer risk category, and found a 75 percent rise in skin cancer risk among those who use tanning beds before age 30.
The agency put tanning beds in the same category of tobacco products.
"Just like cigarettes do not cause lung cancer in everyone, tanning beds will not cause skin cancer in everyone who uses them," said Paull.
Under the measure, tanning salons will also have to post a sign informing minors that they’re not allowed to tan. Salons that violate the law face a $100 for a first offense and $200 for each additional offense.
Still, teenagers will have one last summer to use the tanning beds; even if approved by lawmakers and signed by the governor, the new law will not go into effect for 120 days.
Representatives of the tanning salon industry said the bill would further hurt their businesses, which are already struggling under a new federal tax and a weak economy.
They also cautioned that the measure could lead teenagers to spend more time soaking up dangerous ultraviolet rays from the sun without anyone advising them and no control except the sunset.
"If you approve this legislation today, parents will not have the right to determine what’s best for their children," said Jennifer Neumayer, who owns three Beach Bum tanning salons in New Jersey. "In addition, small business owners who are already struggling through a tough economy will find it even more difficult to make ends meet."
She emphasized that tanning salons are already subject to strict federal and state regulations and limitations on ultraviolet output.
Neumayer said about 6 percent of her salons’ revenue comes from teenagers under 18 — usually just before their proms.
"I still have rent as my overhead," she said. "I still have payroll as my overhead. So basically, I would be taking that much of a pay cut, and I have to tell you I don’t make that much."
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