Burlington County, NJ Public Conduct: Public Alcohol Use (2026)

Rule 5, under the heading 'Alcoholic Beverages,' states flatly that no person shall possess or consume alcoholic beverages, drugs, or narcotics, or possess drug paraphernalia in any Parks System property, nor shall any person be permitted within a Parks System property under the influence of intoxicating beverages, drugs, or narcotics. The ban applies to every Parks System property, meaning every County-managed park, trail, natural resource area and building, not just a subset like playgrounds. There is no BYOB carve-out printed in the rule, and any exception would have to come through the Board's general waiver power in Rule 1, which lets the Board modify or waive any of the Parks System Rules and Regulations at its discretion, or through the Facility Use Policies referenced in Rule 7 for a permitted private group reservation.

Absent that written permission, possessing an open or closed container of alcohol, or drinking it, is a violation regardless of age. A person found under the influence of alcohol in a County park is separately in violation even without a container present. Enforcement runs through the general Parks System discipline rules at the end of the document: Rule 36 bars remaining in a park against Board-posted conditions, Rule 37 treats a Parks System rule violator as a disorderly person who will be escorted from the park, and Rule 38 lets County staff prosecute anyone who refuses to leave as a defiant trespasser to the fullest extent of the law.