Bill Text: NJ A3779 | 2016-2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes "Put Children First" license plates.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2016-05-23 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee [A3779 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2016-A3779-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman NICHOLAS CHIARAVALLOTI
District 31 (Hudson)
Assemblywoman PATRICIA EGAN JONES
District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)
Assemblywoman ANGELA V. MCKNIGHT
District 31 (Hudson)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes "Put Children First" license plates.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act authorizing the creation of "Put Children First" license plate and supplementing chapter 3 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Upon proper application, the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission shall issue special license plates supporting public education for any motor vehicle owned or leased and registered in the State. In addition to the registration number and other markings or identification otherwise prescribed by law, the license plate shall display appropriate images and the slogan "Put Children First." The chief administrator shall select the design and color scheme, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education. The Put Children First license plates shall be subject to the provisions of chapter 3 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes, except as hereinafter otherwise specifically provided.
b. Application for issuance of Put Children First license plates shall be made to the chief administrator on forms and in a manner prescribed by the chief administrator. In order to be deemed complete, an application shall be accompanied by a fee of $50, payable to the commission, which shall be in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of a motor vehicle. The chief administrator shall collect annually, subsequent to the year of issuance of the Put Children First license plate, a $10 fee for the license plate in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of a motor vehicle. The additional fees required by this subsection shall be deposited in the "Put Children First License Plate Fund" created pursuant to subsection c. of this section.
c. There is created in the Department of the Treasury a special non-lapsing fund to be known as the "Put Children First License Plate Fund." There shall be deposited in the fund the amount collected from all license plate fees collected pursuant to subsection b. of this section, less the amounts necessary to reimburse the commission for administrative costs pursuant to subsection d. of this section. Monies deposited in the fund shall be appropriated annually to the State Department of Education, to be used provide additional funding to public schools in this State. Monies deposited in the fund shall be held in interest-bearing accounts in public depositories as defined pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1970, c.236 (C.17:9-41), and may be invested or reinvested in securities approved by the State Treasurer. Interest or other income earned on monies deposited in the fund, and any monies which may be appropriated or otherwise become available for the purposes of the fund, shall be credited to and deposited in the fund for use as set forth in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
d. Prior to the deposit into the fund of the additional fees collected pursuant to subsection b. of this section, amounts thereof as are necessary shall be used to reimburse the commission for all costs reasonably and actually incurred, as stipulated by the chief administrator, for:
(1) designing, producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the availability of the Put Children First license plates; and
(2) any computer programming changes that may be initially necessary to implement the Put Children First license plate program established by P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), in an amount not to exceed $150,000.
The chief administrator shall annually certify to the State Treasurer the average cost per license plate incurred in the immediately preceding year by the commission in producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the availability of the Put Children First license plates. The annual certification of the average cost per license plate shall be approved by the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or its successor.
In the event that the average cost per license plate as certified by the chief administrator and approved by the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or its successor, is greater than the $50 application fee established in subsection b. of this section in two consecutive fiscal years, the chief administrator may discontinue the issuance of Put Children First license plates.
e. The chief administrator shall notify eligible motorists of the opportunity to obtain Put Children First license plates by publicizing the availability of the license plates on the website of the commission. The State Department of Education, and any other individual or entity designated by the department, may publicize the availability of Put Children First license plates in any manner the department deems appropriate.
f. The chief administrator and the Commissioner of Education shall develop and enter into a memorandum of agreement setting forth the procedures to be followed in carrying out their respective responsibilities under P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
g. The Commissioner of Education shall appoint a representative who shall act as a liaison between the department and the commission. The liaison shall represent the department in any and all communications with the commission regarding the Put Children First license plates established by P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
2. a. No State or other public funds shall be used by the commission for the initial cost of:
(1) designing, producing, issuing, and publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates; or
(2) any computer programming changes which may be necessary to implement the Put Children First license plate program established by P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
b. An individual or entity designated by the State Department of Education shall contribute monies in an amount to be determined by the chief administrator, not to exceed a total of $25,000, to be used to offset the initial costs incurred by the commission for designing, producing, issuing, and publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates, and any computer programming which may be necessary to implement the program. To further offset the initial costs incurred by the commission for the Put Children First license plates authorized by P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), other concerned organizations and individual donors may contribute monies to the department, or the individual or entity designated by the department, for this purpose. Any amount remaining after the payment of the initial costs shall be deposited in the "Put Children First License Plate Fund" established pursuant to subsection c. of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
c. The commission shall not begin designing, producing, issuing, or publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates, or making any necessary programming changes, until the following requirements have been met:
(1) The individual or entity designated by the department has provided the commission with the money necessary, as determined by the chief administrator pursuant to subsection b. of this section, to offset the initial costs incurred by the commission in establishing the Put Children First license plate program; and
(2) The liaison appointed by the Commissioner of Education pursuant to subsection g. of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) has provided the commission with not less than 500 completed applications for Put Children First license plates. These applications shall constitute the initial order for Put Children First license plates and shall be accompanied by a fee representing the total cost of the initial order. The fee shall be determined by multiplying the number of sets of license plates being ordered by the applicable initial fee for each set of license plates as set forth in subsection b. of section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
3. This act shall take effect immediately, but shall remain inoperative until the first day of the seventh month following the date on which the conditions set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection c. of section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) have been satisfied. The chief administrator may take anticipatory actions in advance of that date as may be necessary for the timely implementation of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall expire if the conditions set forth in paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection c. of section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) are not satisfied by the last day of the 12th month following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill authorizes the Chief Administrator (chief administrator) of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (commission) to issue special license plates which support public education.
The bill provides that the license plate display appropriate images and the slogan "Put Children First" and be designed by the chief administrator, in consultation with the Commissioner of Education for the State Department of Education (department). In addition to all fees otherwise required by law for the registration of a motor vehicle, there is an application fee of $50 and an annual renewal fee of $10 for the Put Children First license plates. After the deduction of the cost of designing, producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the plates and of any computer programming changes that are necessary to implement the license plate program, in an amount not to exceed $150,000, the additional fees will be deposited into a special non-lapsing fund known as the "Put Children First License Plate Fund." The proceeds of the fund are to be annually appropriated to the department, to be used to provide additional funding to public schools in this State.
The chief administrator is required to annually certify the average cost per license plate in producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the Put Children First license plates. If the average cost exceeds $50 for two consecutive fiscal years, the chief administrator may discontinue the issuance of the license plates.
The bill provides that no State or other public funds may be used by the commission for the initial cost of designing, producing, issuing, and publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates or any computer programming changes which may be necessary to implement the Put Children First license plate program.
The bill also requires that an individual or entity designated by the department, contribute monies in an amount to be determined by the chief administrator, not to exceed a total of $25,000, to be used to offset the initial costs incurred by the commission for designing, producing, issuing, and publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates, and any computer programming which may be necessary to implement the program.
The bill prohibits the commission from designing, producing, issuing, or publicizing the availability of Put Children First license plates, or making any necessary programming changes, until: (1) the individual or entity designated by the department has provided the commission with the money necessary to offset the initial costs incurred by the commission in establishing the Put Children First license plate program; and (2) the department, or its designee, has provided the commission with a minimum of 500 completed applications, including the application fees, for Put Children First license plates, upon the availability for purchase of those license plates.
The chief administrator is responsible for publicizing the availability of the license plates on the commission's website. The department, or any individual or entity designated by the department, may also publicize the availability of Put Children First license plates in any manner the department deems appropriate. The bill requires the Commissioner of Education to appoint a liaison to represent the department in all communications between the department and the commission concerning the license plates.
The provisions of the bill will remain inoperative until the appropriate applications and fees required to offset the initial costs incurred by the commission are provided by the individual or entity designated by the department. The bill expires after 12 months if sufficient applications and fees to offset the initial costs are not received.
