A4742

An Act concerning competitive eating and supplementing Title 26 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. a. Any entity that organizes a competitive eating competition that is held in New Jersey shall ensure that a basic life support ambulance, which shall be staffed by at least one emergency medical technician, is present and readily accessible during any period of active competition, and for a period of no less than one hour following the conclusion of all active competition, in order to render prompt assistance to any contestant who experiences a life-threatening emergency. The entity organizing or administering the competitive eating competition shall immediately suspend the active competition in the event that it reasonably appears that a contestant is experiencing a life-threatening emergency.

b. An entity that violates the requirements of subsection a. of this section shall be liable to a civil penalty of not less than $5,000 for a first violation, not less than $10,000 for a second violation, and not less than $20,000 for a third or subsequent violation. The penalty shall be collected in the name of the State in a court of competent jurisdiction in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).

c. As used in this section:

“Active competition” means any period of a competitive eating competition during which contestants are actively consuming food for the purpose of determining which contestant is able to consume the largest quantity of food within a set period of time. A competitive eating competition may be determined to have more than one period of active competition.

“Basic life support ambulance” means an emergency medical services vehicle licensed by the Department of Health pursuant to N.J.A.C.8:40-1.1 et seq. or an emergency medical services vehicle staffed by a volunteer or non-volunteer first aid, rescue, and ambulance squad. At a minimum, the vehicle shall be capable of providing emergency and non-emergency transportation services.

“Competitive eating competition” means an organized competition in which contestants consume food for the purpose of determining which contestant is able to consume the largest quantity of food within a set period of time. The term shall only apply to competitions for which an event permit is required.

"Emergency medical technician" means a person trained in basic life support services as defined in section 1 of P.L.1985, c.351 (C.26:2K-21) and who is certified by the Department of Health to perform these services.

“Life-threatening emergency” means any situation in which a prudent person could reasonably believe that immediate intervention is necessary to protect the life of an individual, including, but not limited to, situations in which an individual is demonstrating overt physical symptoms consistent with an obstructed airway, cardiac distress, or an allergic reaction.

2. The Commissioner of Health shall, pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), adopt rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

3. This act shall take effect 60 days after the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill requires that a basic life support ambulance staffed by at least one emergency medical technician be present at all competitive eating competitions during, and for at least one hour following the end of, all active competition, in order to render prompt assistance to any contestant who experiences a life-threatening emergency. The entity organizing or administering the competitive eating competition will be required to immediately suspend the active competition in the event that a contestant reasonably appears to be experiencing a life-threatening emergency. The requirements of the bill will apply to competitions for which an event permit is required.

An entity that violates the requirements of the bill will be subject to a civil penalty of no less than $5,000 for a first violation, no less than $10,000 for a second violation, and no less than $20,000 for a third or subsequent violation.

Competitive eating can result in serious or fatal injuries, including choking, asphyxiation, stomach perforations, ulcers, and long-term damage to the digestive system, and on April 2, 2017, a 20-year old New Jersey resident attending Sacred Heart University died while taking part in a school-sanctioned pancake eating contest. It is the sponsor’s belief that requiring trained emergency medical services providers to be on hand during competitive eating events will help prevent adverse and fatal events by allowing the prompt administration of emergency assistance and by ensuring that contestants experiencing a life-threatening emergency can be quickly transported to a licensed facility for appropriate treatment.