ASSEMBLY, No. 789

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION

By Assemblywoman FARRAGHER and Assemblyman ARNONE

An Act concerning the registration of motor vehicles and amending R.S.39:3-30.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. R.S.39:3-30 is amended to read as follows:

    39:3-30. a. Upon the transfer of ownership or the destruction of any motor vehicle its registration shall become void. If the motor vehicle is sold the original owner shall remove the license plates therefrom, and, within 48 hours, notify the director of the name and address of the purchaser.

    [The original owner may, by] The director shall, upon a proper sworn application submitted by the original owner on a form to be furnished by the division, register another motor vehicle for the unexpired portion of the registration period of the original vehicle, upon payment of a fee of $4.50 if the vehicle is of a weight or other classification equal with or less than the one originally registered, and upon the payment of a fee of $4.50 and the difference between the fee originally paid and that due if the new motor vehicle is properly registerable in a higher class.

    The director, in implementing this requirement, shall permit a passenger automobile registered under R.S.39:3-8 or a noncommercial truck registered pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1968, c.439 (C.39:3-8.1) to be registered for the unexpired term of the registration period of the original vehicle if the original vehicle was a passenger automobile registered under R.S.39:3-8 or a noncommercial truck registered pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1968, c.439 (C.39:3-8.1). The director shall permit the registration of a passenger automobile for the unexpired term of the registration period of a noncommercial truck or the registration of a noncommercial truck for the unexpired registration term of a passenger automobile. This subsection shall not apply if either the original or new vehicle, or if both vehicles, are registered as commercial motor vehicles.

    Unless the original license plates have been destroyed, the owner shall be assigned the license number previously issued to him and shall receive a new registration certificate. If the original license plates have been destroyed, replacement of the plates will be made under the provisions of R.S.39:3-32.

    b. The surviving husband, wife, child or children of a deceased registered owner of any motor vehicle in whom title thereto shall vest by virtue of the terms of the will of such deceased owner, or otherwise, shall, upon application to the director, and upon the payment of a fee of $4.50, be entitled to have the registration of such vehicle transferred to his or her name.

    c. The registered owner of any motor vehicle shall, upon application to the director, and payment of a fee of $4.50, be entitled to have the vehicle registered jointly in the name of the registered owner and the spouse of said owner. The registration certificate and certificate of ownership shall be amended accordingly without the payment of any additional fee.

(cf: P.L.1978, c.96, s.1)

    2. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill requires the Director of the Division of Motor Vehicles to register, at the owner's request, a new passenger automobile or noncommercial truck for the unexpired portion of the registration period of the passenger automobile or noncommercial truck originally owned by the registered owner. This permits the owner to transfer the registration plates from the original vehicle to the new vehicle without having to obtain a new registration period or new registration plates from the division.

    Although R.S.39:3-30 appears already to permit the registration of a new vehicle for the unexpired term of the original vehicle, the Division of Motor Vehicles has interpreted and applied this provision to permit the transfer of registrations and license plates only if the new and original vehicles are within the same registration category. This interpretation, however, is too restrictive and results in unnecessary additional paperwork and confusion for the vehicle owner.

    This bill would clarify and emphasize the Legislature's intent that any new passenger automobile or noncommercial truck may be registered by the owner for the unexpired term of the registration period of the original passenger automobile or noncommercial truck.

Requires DMV to register new passenger automobile or noncommercial truck for the unexpired registration term of original passenger automobile or noncommercial truck.