4th of July fireworks show at Central Park of Morris County on July 3, 2016

The 2016 fireworks show at Central Park of Morris County in Morris Plains-Parsippany. (Matt Smith | For NJ Advance Media)

A state Senate committee has taken the first step toward legalizing some fireworks for New Jersey residents, voting to allow those aged 16 and older to buy non-exploding devices such as sparklers and smoke bombs, Politico New Jersey reported.

The measure passed by the Senate Law and Public Safety Committee must be approved by the entire state Senate and Assembly and be signed into law by the governor before it can become law.

It would legalize "sparkling devices and novelties," including sparklers, "snakes and glow worms, smoke devices, and trick noisemakers, which include party poppers, snappers, and drop pops," according to a text of the legislation.

"Lots and lots of people buy stuff in Pennsylvania and bring it over anyway -- might as well let our economy have a little bit of a jump," the bill's sponsor, state Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union) told New Jersey radio station WKXW-FM, which calls itself New Jersey 101.5.

New Jersey is currently one of just three states with an absolute ban on fireworks, the station said.

The American Pyrotechnics Association, the trade group for the fireworks industry, said sales for the Independence Day holiday had been expected to reach $800 million last year.

Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.