Beaches aren't free in New Jersey. We have a system of beach badging where the people that use the beach in the summer pay for its maintenance by purchasing daily permits to visit. The public trust doctrine requires that the sand up to the high water line be accessible to everyone, but people may not actually sit down during peak summer hours unless they have paid to.

Ocean Grove beaches must remain open on Sunday mornings, says New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection this week. The department ends the 150 year tradition by ruling that closing the beach amounts to a violation of New Jersey's Public Trust Doctrine. The owners of the land in Ocean Grove, the Ocean Grove Camp Meeting Association, have the option to appeal through New Jersey courts and have not yet issued a statement about the recent ruling.