Bill Text: NJ S731 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Increases funding of Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Program.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 10-2)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-12 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Transportation Committee [S731 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-S731-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
214th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2010 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator NICHOLAS J. SACCO
District 32 (Bergen and Hudson)
Senator JEFF VAN DREW
District 1 (Cape May, Atlantic and Cumberland)
Co-Sponsored by:
Senators Madden, Buono, Vitale, Haines, S.Kean, Stack, Sarlo, Girgenti and Gordon
SYNOPSIS
Increases funding of Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Program.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning the funding of "The Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Assistance Program" and amending P.L.1983, c.578.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 4 of P.L.1983, c.578 (C.27:25-28) is amended to read as follows:
4. a. The board shall establish and administer a program to be known as "The Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Assistance Program" for the following purposes:
[a.](1) To assist counties [(1)] to develop and provide accessible feeder transportation service to accessible fixed-route transportation services where such services are available, and accessible local transit service to senior citizens and the disabled, which may include but not be limited to door-to-door service, fixed route service, local fare subsidy, and user-side subsidy, which may include [by] but not be limited to private ride or taxi fare subsidy; and [(2)] to coordinate the activities of the various participants in this program in providing the services to be rendered at the county level and between counties[.]and;
[b.](2) To enable the corporation [(1)] to develop, provide and maintain capital improvements that afford accessibility to fixed route and other transit services in order to make rail cars, rail stations, bus shelters and other bus equipment accessible to senior citizens and the disabled; [(2)] to render technical information and assistance to counties eligible for assistance under this act; and [(3)] to coordinate the program within and among counties.
b. In the State fiscal year beginning July 1 following the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) and in each fiscal year thereafter, there shall be appropriated to the corporation from the revenues deposited in the Casino Revenue Fund established pursuant to section 145 of P.L.1977, c.110 (C.5:12-145) a sum equal to 8.5% of the revenues deposited in the fund during the preceding fiscal year, as determined by the State Treasurer, to effectuate the purposes and provisions of P.L. 1983, c.578 (C.27:25-25 et seq.).
(cf: P.L.1983, c.578, s.4)
2. Section 7 of P.L.1983, c.578 (C.27:25-31) is amended to read as follows:
7. a. Moneys under this program shall be allocated by the corporation in the following manner:
(1) 85% shall be available to be allocated to eligible counties for the purposes specified under paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 4 of this act.
(2) 15% shall be available for use by the corporation for the purposes specified under paragraph (2) of subsection [b.]a. of section 4 of this act and for the general administration of the program, but no more than 10% of the total moneys allocated under this program shall be used for the general administration of the program.
b. The amount of money which each eligible county may receive shall be based upon the number of persons resident in that county of 60 years of age or older expressed as a percentage of the whole number of persons resident in this State of 60 years or older, as provided by the U.S. Bureau of the Census. As similar data become available for the disabled population, such data shall be used in conjunction with the senior citizen data to determine the county allocation formula. No eligible county shall receive less than $150,000.00 during a fiscal year under this program, except that during the first fiscal year no county shall receive less than $50,000.00 nor more than $150,000.00.
c. The governing body of an eligible county, or a group or groups designated as an applicant or as applicants by the county after a public hearing in which senior citizens and the disabled shall have the opportunity to comment on the appropriateness of such designation, may make application to the board for moneys available under subsection b. of this section. The application shall be in the form of a proposal to the board for transportation assistance and shall specify the degree to which the proposal meets the purposes of the program under paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 4 of this act and the implementation criteria under the program guidelines and the proposal shall have been considered at a public hearing. The board shall allocate moneys based upon a review of the merits of the proposals in meeting the purposes of the program, and the implementation criteria, under the program guidelines. The governing body of an eligible county shall schedule a public hearing annually for interested parties to provide the governing body with any facts, materials, or recommendations that would be of assistance regarding the efficacy of the program established under paragraph (1) of subsection a. of section 4 of this act.
(cf: P.L.1995, c.350, s.1)
3. Section 11 of P.L.1983, c.578 is amended to read as follows:
11. There is appropriated to the New Jersey Transit Corporation from the revenues deposited in the Casino Revenue Fund established pursuant to section 145 of P.L.1977, c.110 (C.5:12-145) the sum of $3,000,000.00 to effectuate the purposes and provisions of this act during the first fiscal year in which this legislation is enacted. In the fiscal year following the effective date of this legislation there shall be appropriated to the New Jersey Transit Corporation from the Casino Revenue Fund to effectuate the purposes and provisions of this act a sum of $10,000,000.00[, and in each subsequent fiscal year there shall be appropriated to the corporation from the Casino Revenue Fund a sum equal to 7.5% of the revenues deposited in the Casino Revenue Fund during the preceding fiscal year, as determined by the State Treasurer].
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill increases the annual appropriation requirement for "The Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Program" from 7.5% to 8.5% of the revenues deposited in the Casino Revenue Fund. Section 2 of the bill revises references to the program to reflect the amendments in section 1 of the bill.
The language providing for the annual appropriation level of 7.5% for the program is contained in a section of the "Senior Citizen and Disabled Resident Transportation Assistance Act," P.L.1983, c.578 (C.27:25-25 et seq.), which was not codified. This bill removes the annual appropriation language from the uncodified section and places it, at the increased level, in a section of the act which is codified in order to make the annual appropriation language easier to locate.
