ASSEMBLY, No. 849

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 1996 SESSION

By Assemblymen COTTRELL and MALONE

An Act concerning special vehicle registration plates for county medical examiners 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 application by a county medical examiner or assistant medical examiner appointed pursuant to N.J.S.40A:9-47 or N.J.S.40A:9-48, the Director of the Division of Motor Vehicles shall issue for the motor vehicle owned or leased by the applicant special vehicle registration plates bearing the words "Medical Examiner." The plates shall be of a design approved by the director and shall include the vehicle registration number and other markings or identification prescribed by law. Only one set of special registration plates shall be issued to an applicant. The special plates shall be displayed only on the vehicle for which they were issued.

    b. The special vehicle registration plates authorized by this section shall be issued upon proof satisfactory to the director that the applicant meets the condition specified in subsection a. of this section. A person who has been issued special vehicle registration plates under this section shall return the special plates when that person no longer meets the qualification in subsection a. of this section.

    c. The fee for the motor vehicle registration plates issued under this section shall be $25, in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of motor vehicles.

    d. A person who violates a provision of this section shall be fined $50.

    e. The director may adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), governing the issuance and use of the special vehicle registration plates authorized by this section and providing for their return when the applicant no longer meets the condition specified in subsection a. of this section.

    f. The director shall retain from the fees collected pursuant to subsection c. this section such sums as are necessary to defray costs incurred by the division in the implementation of this act as certified by the director.

    2. This act shall take effect on the first day of the third month after enactment.

STATEMENT

    This bill authorizes the Director of the Division of Motor Vehicles in the Department of Law and Public Safety to issue special motor vehicle registration plates to county medical examiners and assistant medical examiners. The plates would bear the words "Medical Examiner" in addition to the vehicle registration number and other markings or identification required by law. The fee for the special plates would be $25, in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of motor vehicles. The special plates would be of a design approved by the director.

    The bill provides that the director would retain a portion of the fees collected under the bill sufficient to defray the division's costs in issuing the plates. The bill also provides that the special plates be returned if the person no longer meets the bill's qualifications.

Authorizes special license plates for county medical examiners.