TRENTON, N.J. (AP) — The proposal has received some ridicule, but a new poll shows a majority of New Jersey voters support the idea of requiring pets to be in crates or safety restraints when they ride in cars.

A Fairleigh Dickinson University PublicMind released Tuesday found 45 percent of registered voters in favor of the law and 40 percent opposed.

Assemblywoman Grace Spencer, a Democrat from Newark, introduced the bill in July. People letting their dogs or cats run free in their vehicles could be fined $20.

The poll found just over half of Democrats support it, while just over one-third of Republicans back the idea.

The telephone poll of 901 voters was conducted from Sept. 6-12 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.

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