No municipality in Essex County may ban pit bulls or any breed. New Jersey's dangerous-dog law (N.J.S.A. 4:19-36) supersedes any local ordinance targeting a specific breed. Dangerous dogs are handled individually by behavior, not breed.
New Jersey bars breed-specific legislation statewide. N.J.S.A. 4:19-36 provides that the state dangerous-dog act supersedes any law, ordinance, or regulation concerning a specific breed of dog inconsistent with the act enacted by any municipality, county, or board of health. As a result no Essex County town, nor the county, may ban pit bulls, Rottweilers, or any other breed. Individual dogs are addressed by conduct: N.J.S.A. 4:19-17 et seq. lets a municipal court declare a dog potentially dangerous or vicious based on unprovoked bites. A potentially dangerous dog owner must obtain a special municipal license, a red tag, and maintain a secure enclosure. Private landlords and HOAs may still impose breed terms in leases, since preemption applies only to government rules.
There is no breed-based offense in Essex County; a local breed-ban ordinance is void under N.J.S.A. 4:19-36. Enforcement is behavior-based: after an unprovoked attack a municipal court can declare a dog potentially dangerous and order enclosure and a special license.
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