Bill Text: NJ A5173 | 2026-2027 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: "Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Driver Communication and Disability Protection Act"; revises and establishes process for designating certain disorders through MVC.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-1)
Status: (Introduced) 2026-06-01 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee [A5173 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2026-A5173-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ANTWAN L. MCCLELLAN
District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)
Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON
District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)
SYNOPSIS
"Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Driver Communication and Disability Protection Act"; revises and establishes process for designating certain disorders through MVC.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning protections for drivers with certain disorders, designated as the "Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Driver Communication and Disability Protection Act," and amending P.L.2023, c.57.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2023, c.57 (C.39:3-10f8) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. The Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission shall allow the holder of a driver's license or non-driver identification card to indicate that the person has been diagnosed with:
(1) an autism spectrum disorder [or] ;
(2) a communication disorder, which shall include, but not be limited to, stuttering; or
(3) Tourette Syndrome.
b. Upon request by any person who has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder [or] , a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome, or by the parent, guardian, or caregiver of the person, and upon submission of any documentation required pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the chief administrator shall indicate the [autism spectrum disorder or communication disorder] applicable diagnosis by notating such information on the person's driver's license or non-driver identification card under the column designated for restrictions and, for the purposes of communicating with law enforcement officers pursuant to subsection f. of this section, on the person's motor vehicle registration information. However, the diagnosis notation shall be confined solely to the person's driver's license or non-driver identification card, and to the person's motor vehicle registration information, and shall not require issuance of a secondary document.
c. The chief administrator shall, in consultation with the Commissioner of Human Services, establish the documentation required to be produced by a person who has been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder [or] , a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome, or by the parent, guardian, or caregiver of the person, in order to receive [a driver's license or non-driver identification card with] the diagnosis notation authorized pursuant to subsection b. of this section.
d. The Commissioner of Human Services and the Attorney General, in consultation with the Superintendent of the Division of State Police within the Department of Law and Public Safety and at least one organization that advocates on behalf of persons who have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder [or] , a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome, shall jointly develop guidance to assist law enforcement officers in effectively communicating with a person who has been diagnosed with [an autism spectrum disorder or communication] any such disorder. The Attorney General shall ensure that a copy of the written guidance, and any other related materials developed to facilitate compliance with the guidance, is distributed to each police department in the State.
e. When the chief administrator receives a request for a diagnosis notation pursuant to subsection b. of this section, the chief administrator shall permit the person making the request to submit emergency contact information for the person diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome.
f. The commission shall ensure that law enforcement agencies in the State have access to the diagnosis notation on a person's motor vehicle information, issued pursuant to subsection b. of this section, and any emergency contact information for that person, submitted pursuant to subsection e. of this section, during a traffic stop when a law enforcement officer accesses the motor vehicle's license plate information through the commission's online interface with law enforcement agencies. The information shared with law enforcement agencies pursuant to this subsection shall only be used by law enforcement officers to communicate during a traffic stop with a person diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome.
g. The commission may adopt, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations as necessary to implement the provisions of this section.
(cf: P.L.2023, c.57, s.1)
2. This act shall take effect on the 180th day after the date of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill, which is designated as the "Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Driver Communication and Disability Protection Act," amends current law to: revise the process for a person seeking to notate an autism spectrum disorder or a communication disorder diagnosis on a driver's license or non-driver identification card through the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (commission); and expand that process to include diagnosis notations for individuals with Tourette Syndrome and to include such diagnosis notations on a person's motor vehicle registration information for the purposes of communicating with law enforcement during traffic stops. Specifically, the bill clarifies that a communication disorder, under current law, is to include stuttering. In addition, the bill provides that the diagnosis notation is to be limited to a person's driver's license or non-driver identification card, and to a person's motor vehicle registration information, and is not to require the issuance of secondary documentation. The bill also requires the commission to permit a person seeking a diagnosis notation to submit emergency contact information for the person diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome. Under the bill, the emergency contact information, in addition to a person's diagnosis notation on their motor vehicle registration information, is to be accessible to law enforcement during a traffic stop when the law enforcement officer accesses the motor vehicle's license plate information through the commission's online interface with law enforcement agencies. This information is to be exclusively available to law enforcement officers for the purposes of communicating during a traffic stop with a person diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder, a communication disorder, or Tourette Syndrome.
