Sponsored by:
Senator KRISTIN M. CORRADO
District 40 (Bergen, Essex and Passaic)
SYNOPSIS
Requires Division of Travel and Tourism to establish marketing and advertising campaign to promote athletics; appropriates $250,000.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act establishing a marketing and advertising campaign to promote athletics, supplementing P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-45 et seq.), and making an appropriation.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. The State of New Jersey has an extensive and rich sports history and has been home to a plethora of distinguished sports figures.
b. The State holds a prominent place in the overall landscape of sports history, being home to the first organized baseball game held in Hoboken on October 6, 1845. In addition, the first intercollegiate football game was played between Rutgers University and Princeton University in New Brunswick on November 6, 1869.
c. In addition to these historic firsts, the State has hosted the Super Bowl for the National Football League and the Stanley Cup Finals for the National Hockey League. The State will continue its excellence as a prime location for hosting significant sports events as it has been selected to be the location for the FIFA World Cup Finals in soccer in 2026.
d. The State has also produced numerous athletes that have gone on to have impactful careers in their respective sports, including: Major League Baseball Hall of Fame player Larry Doby; Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Joe Flacco; two-time Major League Baseball All-Star Todd Frazier; National Football League Hall of Fame player Franco Harris; long-time United States mens national soccer team goalie Tim Howard; two-time Major League Baseball World Series champion Al Leiter; nine-time Olympic Gold Medalist in track and field Carl Lewis; two-time FIFA Womens World Cup Champion in soccer Carli Lloyd; Olympic gold medalist and 400-meter hurdles world record holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone; three-time National Football League Pro Bowl player Greg Olsen; two-time Super Bowl Champion Isiah Pacheco; National Collegiate Athletic Association All-American honoree in football Kenny Pickett; two-time FIFA Womens World Cup Champion in soccer Christie Pierce; four-time National Basketball Association All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns; three-time Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Mike Trout; 15-year National Hockey League veteran James van Riemsdyk; National Hockey League Stanley Cup Champion Trevor van Riemsdyk; and countless others.
e. In the interest of continuing New Jerseys impressive history in a variety of sports and encouraging increased participation in sports programs, it is appropriate to promote the benefits, as well as the overall importance and competitive nature, of the States interscholastic and collegiate athletic programs.
2. a. The Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State shall annually develop a marketing and advertising campaign, the purpose of which shall be to promote interscholastic and collegiate athletics in the State. In addition to other activities that the division may deem appropriate, the campaign shall:
(1) encourage increased participation in interscholastic athletics;
(2) emphasize the physical, mental, social, and educational benefits of participating in interscholastic athletics;
(3) promote attendance at interscholastic and collegiate athletics games, tournaments, and other events;
(4) highlight the competitive landscape of New Jersey interscholastic athletics; and
(5) further New Jerseys prominence as a State that fosters the development of high-caliber collegiate and professional athletes.
b. The marketing and advertising campaign established pursuant to this section shall be in compliance with the New Jersey Fair Play Act, P.L.2020, c.83 (C.18A:3B-86 et seq.), as well as applicable federal law governing the use of a students name, image, or likeness and all applicable rules of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association and the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
3. There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State the sum of $250,000 to implement the provisions of this act.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State to annually develop a marketing and advertising campaign, the purpose of which is to promote interscholastic and collegiate athletics in the State. In addition to other activities that the division may deem appropriate, the campaign is to:
(1) encourage increased participation in interscholastic athletics;
(2) emphasize the physical, mental, social, and educational benefits of participating in interscholastic athletics;
(3) promote attendance at interscholastic and collegiate athletics games, tournaments, and other events;
(4) highlight the competitive landscape of New Jersey interscholastic athletics; and
(5) further New Jerseys prominence as a State that fosters the development of high-caliber collegiate and professional athletes.
The bill appropriates $250,000 from the General Fund to the division to implement the bills provisions.