Politics & Government

NJ Assemblyman Introduces 'Snookiville Law'

According to Assemblyman Ronald S. Dancer, the bill would give municipalities the right to regulate reality television as a business.

If hindsight is 20/20, then a law governing the regulation of reality television shows in New Jersey must be positively eagle-eyed.

Dubbed the “Snookiville Law,” bill A-3273, would give municipalities “clear permission to act in the interest of taxpayers and public safety during the filming of reality television shows,” according to a press release from New Jersey Assemblyman Ronald S. Dancer (R, 12th legislative district).

The bill would allow local governments to set specific conditions on the filming of reality TV shows within their community borders. If, for example, additional police may be needed for crowd control—or to handle the bar brawls that result from too much Ron-Ron Juice—Dancer’s bill would allow local governments to write in the cost of such an agreement with producers prior to filming.

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On the flip side, he told Patch, production companies would be assured that if they are in compliance with the conditions of the license that they won’t have to worry about being shut down or ridden out of town by public outcry. The law would work on an opt-in basis; communities could choose to exercise its protections or not.

“Basically, this legislation is going to provide New Jersey towns with an option to prevent a situation—pardon the pun—in which taxpayers could get ‘snookered’ or public safety could get compromised in filming these reality shows,” Dancer told Patch.

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Not one to shy away from irony, the assemblyman agreed that although the bill comes too late to curb some of the vitriol from residents of communities in which MTV’s Jersey Shore was filmed, shows like Cake Boss and The Real Housewives of New Jersey demonstrate that the need for such regulation isn’t a one-off.

“We certainly learn by experience, and we do know there have been some positive experiences and some negative occurrences with these events,” Dancer said. “You may not always eliminate negative side-effects, but you may minimize them, and you usually minimize them with proper planning.

“[These shows] do attract onlookers and curiosity seekers, and that can be very beneficial to a community and its businesses,” Dancer said.

“If these events could be planned at the discretion of a local community in agreement with these local businesses during off-peak time, which would attract more people to the area, more business customers, this could be done with the least disruption,” he said.

Dancer said his proposal has gotten lots of positive feedback among his fellow lawmakers. Although he claims not to have a favorite reality TV program, he said that he has kept abreast of “the accounts where there have been municipal court appearances of reality TV stars who have been charged with drunkenness and disorderly conduct.

“[Nicole] Snooki [Polizzi] herself has certainly gained national attention, and I think that to a certain degree, naming the law ‘the Snookiville law’ does provide a branding to this type of legislation,” Dancer said.

He hopes that if the bill passes, that same name recognition will remind local residents and businesses “that there is a state law that does permit them to license and regulate [reality television].”

Dancer said the bill should have a committee assignment within the next 24 to 48 hours, and that he will seek bipartisan sponsorship for it as it progresses to an Assembly vote.


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