Editing Somerville, New Jersey (section)

===Regulation concerns===
Numerous local and national media publications reported on how the state of New Jersey had eased regulations allowing for home baked goods to be made and sold from a home, but how Somerville in particular still suffers from, "...[a] draconian ordinance that creates a contradiction between Somerville's zoning policies and New Jersey's home baking law..." making it difficult for a [[small business]] owner or entrepreneur to try and earn a living in this fashion in Somerville.<ref>Intersimone, Jenna. [https://www.mycentraljersey.com/story/money/business/2022/06/22/somerville-home-baking-cottage-food-laws-institute-for-justice/7617915001/ "NJ home bakers can now sell their goodies, but Somerville is saying no"], ''[[Courier News]]'', June 22, 2022. Accessed July 2, 2022. "Somerville resident Maria Winter is exactly the type of home baker that New Jersey's new law permitting the sale of home-baked goods was supposed to benefit.... Her application for a home business zoning permit, which would allow her to sell the sugar cookies from her 150-square-foot kitchen, was denied by Somerville for the first time in February. Winter was told by borough officials that she needed a zoning variance, pay a $1,000 application fee, deposit $4,000 into a borough escrow account, publish a public notice in the newspaper and notify all property owners within 200 feet of her home that there would be a public hearing on her application."</ref> In order to be able to make her cookies and sell them from her home kitchen was required "... to pay a $1,000 application fee and put $4,000 into a borough escrow account", in addition to notifying neighbors, placing a public notice advertisement and having a public hearing on the application.<ref>Harrigan, Fiona. [https://reason.com/2022/06/27/a-new-jersey-town-wants-to-charge-this-woman-5000-to-sell-cookies/ "A New Jersey Town Wants To Charge This Woman $5,000 To Sell Cookies Somerville still has costly regulations on the books even though New Jersey has legalized the sale of home-baked items."], ''[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]'', June 27, 2022. Accessed July 2, 2022.</ref>