ASSEMBLY COMMERCE AND MILITARY AND VETERANS' AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

ASSEMBLY, No. 2418

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED: FEBRUARY 3, 1997

      The Assembly Commerce and Military and Veterans' Affairs Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Assembly, No. 2418.

      This bill permits members of the Legion of Valor to obtain special license plates for their motor vehicles. Membership in the organization is open to holders of the Medal of Honor, the Distinguished Service Cross, the Navy Cross, or the Air Force Cross. There would be a fee of $25 for these special plates in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of motor vehicles. The bill requires the applicant to demonstrate by conclusive evidence that he is a bonafide member of the Legion of Valor.

COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS:

      The committee amended the bill to: impose a fee of $25 for the purchase of Legion of Valor license plates; eliminate a provision providing for placement of a multi-colored sticker denoting the member's highest decoration for valor; eliminate a provision allowing the surviving spouse of a member to continue to use the special license plates; provide that the promulgation of administrative rules to implement the bill's provisions would be at the discretion of the Director of the Division of Motor Vehicles; and provide that the bill will take effect on the first day of the seventh month after enactment (instead of on the first day of the fifth month) but that the director may take anticipatory action in advance of the effective date.