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Belmar council discusses local ban on unregulated vape and cannabis vending machines
Summary
Councilmembers and staff debated whether to draft a local ordinance to prohibit unregulated vending machines and flavored nicotine products after reports of a cannabis vending machine removed from a store near a school; staff will draft options (zoning, direct prohibition, vending ban) for future review.
Belmar council members spent a portion of their workshop discussing options to curb the sale of unregulated nicotine and cannabis products, including vending machines that some said have appeared in town.
"This year, no one heard, we actually had a cannabis vending machine taken out of one of our stores," Councilman De Blasio said, describing a recent removal he said was near an elementary school. Council members and staff discussed three legal approaches: use zoning to restrict locations (with the drawback of grandfathering existing uses), adopt a local ordinance to ban vending machines or unregulated substances outright, or craft umbrella language to capture synthetic and unregulated products. Attorney/consultant George advised that zoning can be slow and that an ordinance specifically outlawing vending machines or unregulated products would allow direct local enforcement.
Supporters of local action said state law restricting characterizing flavors in nicotine products leaves enforcement gaps at the local level. Opponents cautioned the borough may be duplicating state authority and could face legal challenges; one council member said, "the state covers an awful lot of it, and we're just duplicating it in my opinion." The council asked staff to draft ordinance language and analysis of enforceability and likely legal risks for future consideration.
Next steps: staff will prepare draft ordinance options (zoning approach, vending-machine prohibition, and umbrella language for synthetic substances) for council review and legal analysis.
