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A "no trespassing" sign in Sea Bright in 2006.

(Andrew Mills/The Star-Ledger)

TRENTON — For decades, visitors up and down the Jersey Shore have run into the same infuriating problem: not enough parking spaces, bathrooms, or even ways to get onto the beach.

But a bill inching its way through the state Legislature is intended to change that.

The state Senate Environment and Energy Committee voted 4-0 today to approve a measure (S183) that would require beach repair projects receiving state funds to provide easier public access.

The measure has the support of environmentalists who have fought to open larger portions of the 130-mile coastline to swimmers, surfers, and fishermen. They say the time is right to take up the prickly subject, with towns relying on state, federal and local funds to repair beaches battered by Hurricane Sandy.

"It’s public dollars for public projects," said Stacy McCormack, an official with the American Littoral Society, an advocacy group focused on the issue. "It’s not public dollars for projects the public will never reap the benefits of."

Jeff Tittel, director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, went so far as to say that if the measure were to become law, it would "double the amount" of beach that would be accessible to the public.

"This will allow more access to beaches that belong to all of us," Tittel said.

But the measure has a long way to go, and its fate is uncertain. It now goes to the full Senate, while companion legislation in the Assembly is still in committee. Even if both Democrat-controlled chambers eventually approve the bill, there is no assurance it will be signed by the Republican governor

Last year, the Senate and Assembly passed a similar measure, and although it did not include a provision requiring public access, Gov. Chris Christie vetoed it.

Beach access has long been a ticklish issue in New Jersey. Currently, there are no public restrooms in Bay Head. Parking in Mantoloking has a two-hour limit, and spaces are equally scarce in Sea Bright, Monmouth Beach and Loveladies and North Beach sections of Long Beach Township.

During Gov. Jon Corzine’s administration, the state mandated uniform beach access standards for the entire Jersey Shore, but those rules were struck down after a court challenge.

Then, in 2012, the state Department of Environmental Protection passed regulations that allowed towns to decide individually what level of access was appropriate.

"The governor is continually using money to bring tourism to the Jersey Shore after Sandy, to draw people in, to let them know we’re open for business," McCormack said. "But if people can’t actually get to the beaches, I’m not sure what they’re going to do."

Initially, the bill passed today would have only encouraged projects to provide public access. But after testimony from McCormack, the committee amended the measure to require greater beach access.

"Everybody agrees that access under the common law of New Jersey is an absolute right," said state Sen. Bob Smith (D-Middlesex), the committee chairman, said.

As Smith put it, "Our problem, to be candid, is the (state Department of Environmental Protection)."

He said the original bill did not include the access requirement out of fear that if the state "absolutely mandated" public access, some projects would not get finished.

Larry Ragonese, a spokesman for the state Department of Environmental Protection, said Sandy hit just a few weeks after the department’s new access rules were signed, adding that over the past 18 months, the state and beach towns have been "focused on recovery and not access."

He also noted that since Sandy struck in the fall of 2012, Loveladies has provided access to the beach, fishermen can get to Garfield Terrace in Long Branch, and a new fishing pier has been added in Cape May.

In addition, Ragonese said, the department has provided grants to 10 towns to develop new ways to get to the beach. "We have been dedicated to ensuring there is a viable Shore for people to access, and continue that massive effort," he said.

Star-Ledger staff writer MaryAnn Spoto and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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