SENATE, No. 1682
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
INTRODUCED NOVEMBER 18, 1996
By Senators SINGER and ADLER
An Act concerning the licensing of public movers and warehousemen, amending and supplementing P.L.1981, c.311, and repealing section 14 of P.L.1981, c.311.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 2 of P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-2) is amended to read as follows:
2. As used in this act:
a. "Accessorial service" means the preparation of articles for shipment, including, but not limited to, the packing, crating, boxing and servicing of appliances, the furnishing of containers, unpacking, uncrating and reassembling of articles, placing them at final destination and the moving or shifting of articles from one location to another within a building, or at a single address;
b. "Board" means the State Board of Public Movers and Warehousemen established under [this act] P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-1 et seq.);
c. (Deleted by amendment, P.L.1993, c.365).
d. "Department" means the Department of Law and Public Safety;
e. "Household goods" means personal effects, fixtures, equipment, stock and supplies or other property usually used in or as part of the stock of a dwelling, when it is put into storage or when it is transported by virtue of its removal, in whole or in part, by a householder from one dwelling to another, or from the dwelling of a householder to the dwelling of another householder, or between the dwelling of a householder and a repair or storage facility, or from the dwelling to an auction house or other place of sale. The term "household goods" shall not apply to property moving from a factory or store, except property which the householder has purchased and which is transported at his request as part of the movement by the householder from one dwelling to another;
f. "Intrastate commerce" means commerce moving wholly between points within the State over all public highways, or at a single location; g. "License" means a license issued by the board;
h. "Motor vehicle" means any vehicle, machine, tractor, truck or semitrailer, or any combination thereof, propelled, driven or drawn by mechanical power, and used upon the public highways in the transportation of household goods, office goods and special commodities in intrastate commerce;
i. "Mover's services" means all of the services rendered by a public mover;
j. "Storage services" means all of the services rendered by a warehouseman;
k. "Office goods" means personal effects, fixtures, furniture, equipment, stock and supplies or other property usually used in or as part of the stock of any office, or commercial, institutional, professional or other type of establishment, when it is put into storage or when the property is transported by virtue of its removal, in whole or in part, from one location to another, but does not mean or include stock and supplies or other property usually used in or as part of the stock of any office, or commercial, institutional, professional or other type of establishment, when put into storage;
l. "Person" means any individual, copartnership, association, company, or corporation, and includes any trustee, receiver, assignee, lessee, or personal representative of any person herein defined;
m. "Place of business" means a business office located in New Jersey from which the mover or warehouseman conducts his daily business and where records are kept;
n. "Property" means all of the articles in the definition of household goods, office goods or special commodities;
o. "Public highway" or "highway" means any public street, road, thoroughfare, bridge and way in this State open to the use of the public as a matter of right for purposes of motor vehicular travel, including those that impose toll charges;
p. "Public mover" or "mover" means any person who engages in the transportation of household goods, office goods or special commodities by motor vehicle for compensation in intrastate commerce between points in this State, including the moving of household goods, office goods or special commodities from one location to another at a single address, and any person who engages in the performance of accessorial services; except that the term "public mover" or "mover" shall not apply to any person who engages in, or holds himself out to the general public as engaging in, the transportation of special commodities when such commodities are not transported by virtue of a removal, in whole or in part, and who does not engage, nor hold himself out to the general public as engaging in, the transportation of household or office goods;
q. "Special commodities" means uncrated or unboxed works of art, fixtures, appliances, business machines, electronic equipment, displays, exhibits, home, office, store, theatrical or show equipment, musical instruments, or other articles being put into storage or being moved, and which require the use of equipment and personnel usually furnished or employed by warehousemen or public movers, except that the provisions of P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-1 et seq.) shall not apply to any person engaged in the transportation or storage of special commodities when these commodities are not transported by virtue of a removal, in whole or in part;
r. "Storage" means the safekeeping of property in a depository for compensation;
s. ["Tariff" means a schedule of rates and charges for the storage or transportation of property in intrastate commerce on file with the board, which shall be used in computing all charges on the storage or transportation of property as of the date of the time in storage or transportation;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L., c. .)
t. "Warehouseman" means a person engaged in the business of storage;
u. "Removal" means the physical relocation, in whole or in part, of either household goods, office goods or special commodities from one location to another location, including internal relocations within the same room or facility, for compensation.
(cf: P.L.1993, c.365, s.1)
2. Section 6 of P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-6) is amended to read as follows:
6. The board shall, in addition to such other powers and duties as it may possess by law:
a. Administer and enforce the provisions of this act;
b. Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), to effectuate the purposes of this act;
c. Examine and pass on the qualifications of all applicants for license under this act, and issue a license to each qualified applicant; d. Establish professional standards for persons licensed under this act;
e. Conduct hearings pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.); except that the board shall have the right to administer oaths to witnesses, and shall have the power to issue subpoenas for the compulsory attendance of witnesses and the production of pertinent books, papers, or records;
f. Conduct proceedings before any board, agency or court of competent jurisdiction for the enforcement of the provisions of this act;
g. Annually publish a list of the names[,] and addresses [and tariffs] of all persons who are licensed under this act;
h. Establish reasonable requirements with respect to proper and adequate movers' and warehousemen's services and the furnishing of estimates, and prescribe a uniform system of accounts, records and reports;
i. Adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to protect the interests of the consumer, including, but not limited to, regulations concerning the contents of information brochures which a mover or warehouseman shall give to a customer prior to the signing of a contract for moving or storage services.
(cf: P.L.1993, c.365, s.3)
3. (New section) a. An applicant for licensure under P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-1 et seq.) shall not be eligible for licensure and any holder of a license under that act may have his license revoked if the board determines, consistent with the requirements and standards of P.L.1981, C.311 (C.45:14D-1 et seq.) and this 1996 amendatory and supplementary act, that criminal history record information exists on file in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Identification Division, or in the State Bureau of Identification in the Division of State Police, which would disqualify that individual from being licensed. An applicant shall be, and a holder of a license may be, disqualified from licensure if that individual's criminal history record check reveals a record of conviction of any of the following crimes:
(1) In New Jersey, any crime:
(a) Involving danger to the person, meaning those crimes set forth in N.J.S.2C:11-1 et seq., N.J.S.2C:12-1 et seq., N.J.S.2C:13-1 et seq., N.J.S.2C:14-1 et seq. or N.J.S.2C:15-1 et seq.; or
(b) Against the family, children or incompetents, meaning those crimes set forth in N.J.S.2C:24-1 et seq.; or
(2) In any other state or jurisdiction, of conduct which, if committed in New Jersey, would constitute any of the crimes described in paragraph (1) of this subsection.
b. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection a. of this section, no individual shall be disqualified from licensure on the basis of any conviction disclosed by a criminal history record check performed pursuant to this section if the individual has affirmatively demonstrated to the board clear and convincing evidence of his rehabilitation. In determining whether an individual has affirmatively demonstrated rehabilitation, the following factors shall be considered: (1) The nature and responsibility of the position which the convicted individual would hold;
(2) The nature and seriousness of the offense;
(3) The circumstances under which the offense occurred;
(4) The date of the offense;
(5) The age of the individual when the offense was committed;
(6) Whether the offense was an isolated or repeated incident;
(7) Any social conditions which may have contributed to the offense; and
(8) Any evidence of rehabilitation, including good conduct in prison or in the community, counseling or psychiatric treatment received, acquisition of additional academic or vocational schooling, successful participation in correctional work-release programs, or the recommendation of persons who have had the individual under their supervision.
4. (New section) An applicant and holder of a license shall submit to the board his name, address and fingerprints taken on standard fingerprint cards by a State or municipal law enforcement agency. The board is authorized to exchange fingerprint data with and receive criminal history record information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Division of State Police for use in making the determinations required by section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
5. (New section) a. Upon receipt of an applicant's or licensee's criminal history record information from the Federal Bureau of Investigation or the Division of State Police, as applicable, the board shall notify the applicant or licensee, in writing, of the applicant's or licensee's qualification or disqualification for licensure under P.L.1981, c.311 (C45:14D-1 et seq.). If the applicant or licensee is disqualified, the conviction or convictions which constitute the basis for the disqualification shall be identified in the written notice.
b. The applicant or licensee shall have 30 days from the date of written notice of disqualification to petition the board for a hearing on the accuracy of the criminal history record information or to establish his rehabilitation under subsection b. of section 3 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill). The board may refer any case arising hereunder to the Office of Administrative Law for administrative proceedings pursuant to P.L.1978, c.67 (C.52:14F-1 et al.).
c. The board shall not maintain any individual's criminal history record information or evidence of rehabilitation submitted under this section for more than six months from the date of a final determination by the board as to the individual's qualification or disqualification to be licensed pursuant to P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-1 et seq.).
6. Section 14 of P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-14) is repealed.
7. This act shall take effect 60 days following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill repeals section 14 of P.L.1981, c.311 (C.45:14D-14), and removes other references to tariffs in the "Public Movers and Warehousemen Licensing Act," (C.45:14D-1 et seq.) to eliminate the statutory requirement that public movers and warehousemen file tariffs. Under current law, the tariff, which is a schedule of rates and charges for the storage or transportation of property in intrastate commerce, must be used in computing all charges on the storage or transportation of property as of the date of the time in storage or transportation.
The bill also requires applicants for licensure and those persons already licensed under the provisions of the act to submit to a State and federal criminal history background check, to determine whether those persons are fit to be so licensed. The State Board of Public Movers and Warehousemen shall determine that an applicant for licensure is unfit to be licensed and may revoke the licensure of a person currently licensed if such person meets the criteria for disqualification as provided in the bill.
Revises licensure requirements and eliminates tariffs for public movers and warehousemen.