OCEAN CITY — With the summer season winding down and more and more businesses reducing hours, resort police this week encouraged business owners to sign up for an established program that allows officers to intervene on private property.
With the offseason nearing, the Ocean City Police Department (OCPD) is encouraging business owners to sign up for the Trespass Enforcement Authorization Program, or TEAP. Businesses that are not open seven days a week, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year this week were encouraged to sign up for TEAP.
Many businesses have already signed up for the TEAP program, which as the name suggests, authorizes OCPD officers to go on private property when a business is closed to take enforcement action when necessary. It allows law enforcement to effectively and efficiently address peace and good order issues on private property, such as trespassing, for example.
The TEAP program is especially important during nighttime hours when contacting business owners or managers is inherently problematic and inconvenient. Without TEAP registration, a business owner or designated representative has to be contacted in order to allow the OCPD and other local law enforcement agencies to go on private property to enforce violations.
TEAP signs are posted on participating private properties alerting the OCPD and its allied partners on which properties they are authorized to enter and handle situations without the consent of the owner or manager. Often, locating a property owner or resident agent can create challenges during real-time incidents or violations. It also provides a safety net for business or property owners who are not onsite at all hours of the night and day.
While TEAP participation is in effect once a property or business owner is registered and the protections afforded under the program are always available, it really has its genesis in some of the motorized vehicle special events, including the troublesome pop-up rally each late September.
As the pop-up car rally in September grew, participation in the TEAP increased in kind. Prior to last year’s event, roughly 150 businesses had signed up and that number is expected to grow. According to the OCPD release this week, the goal is to get every property that is not open 24 hours, seven days a week to join the TEAP. In order to expedite membership in TEAP, the OCPD is waiving the cost of the signs for new participants. To register, visit the town’s website.