New Fireworks Law Brings More Options To Pennsylvanians

A change in Pennsylvania law now allows residents to buy and set off any consumer grade firework that was previously illegal.

Until the change in law last month, Pennsylvania residents could only buy smaller based fireworks like sparklers, spinners and smoke bombs but residents from other states could purchase more powerful fireworks at Pennsylvania stores.Now, new licenses for fireworks retailers are being issued that allow customers to buy more powerful consumer-grade pyrotechnics.

“Pennsylvania residents have been coming into our stores for years and didn’t really understand why they couldn’t buy real fireworks,” explained Joe VanOudenhove, a regional manager for Sky King Fireworks, a fireworks chain with a Morrisville location.

The change isn’t totally taking the reigns off. To set off fireworks in Pennsylvania, you must be 18, sober and at least 150 feet away from an occupied building.

For Sky King and other retailers, the new law opens up a whole new audience to sell their products to in the new year. Sky King has always used direct and indirect marketing in the region. Billboards along the Pennsylvania Turnpike and I-95, radio advertisements and television commercials make sure that fireworks marketing blend into the conscious of Pennsylvania residents. According to VanOudenhove, these strategies likely will not change, but direct mailers could go to Pennsylvania households now.

“Prior to the legislative amendment, we were often faced with Pennsylvania customers who were upset and disappointed, only to find they were not able to purchase the good stuff.  The change in the law will allow Sky King to make all customers happy now that there is no restriction on what Pennsylvanians are able to purchase.”

Sky King was busy on over the weekend and customers streamed through the retail store.

“Once I heard about the law, I decided that New Year’s Eve would be a great chance to take advantage,” explained Chuck, a resident from the Doylestown area who traveled to Morrisville to pick up some fireworks.

“I like fireworks, and now I don’t have to go so far to get them,” he said.

While novelty and consumer fireworks will be legal for purchase in the state, larger professional display-grade fireworks and larger explosive devices remain prohibited. In addition, local municipalities often have fireworks laws already on the books. In Philadelphia, the city only allows for sparklers to be lit due to safety concerns.

Until recently, New Jersey prohibited all fireworks, but a new law in the nearby Garden State allows residents to purchase novelty items like sparklers and noisemakers. Only Delaware and Massachusetts have complete prohibitions on fireworks.

Many states across the country have lessened their regulation on fireworks in recent years and demand has increased, according to the American Pyrotechnic Association.

Federal data indicates that two-thirds of all fireworks injuries happen between mid-June and mid-July. While injuries have increased, they have declined from their peak in the 1980s.

Stricter regulations and the federal Hazardous Substances Act has been credited with helping avoid many serious fireworks injuries. The federal law bans powerful items like M-80s and cherry bombs.

Management at Sky King, which operates other locations in the state, has not seen disappointment with the change of the law but, VanOudenhove explained, the people coming in to shop are those who are in favor of fireworks.

“There aren’t too many people complaining about this, it’s like the end of prohibition,” he said.

The biggest disappointment comes when customers see the 12 percent excise tax, which is added to the normal sales tax, VanOudenhove said.

The excise tax, according to a fiscal note from the state, could bring in $2.6 million in additional tax revenue in the first year and grow to $9.3 million the next.

The new law is set up so that up to two percent of the fireworks tax revenues can be set aside from firefighter training and grants for emergency medical service providers.