New Jersey-2010-A4016-Introduced

An Act establishing flat digital "Striped Bass" license plates 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. Upon proper application, the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission shall issue "Striped Bass" license plates for any motor vehicle owned or leased and registered in the State. The "Striped Bass" license plate shall be a flat digital license plate. For the purposes of this act, the term "flat digital license plate" shall mean a smooth license plate that is produced by a printer utilizing digitally controlled print heads. In addition to the registration number and other markings or identification otherwise prescribed by law, the license plate shall display the words "Striped Bass" and an emblem indicating support for, or interest in, marine fisheries in New Jersey. The license plate shall be designed by the chief administrator in consultation with the Director of the Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Environmental Protection. "Striped Bass" license plates shall be subject to the provisions of chapter 3 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes, except as hereinafter otherwise specifically provided.

2. Application for issuance of a "Striped Bass" license plate shall be made to the chief administrator on forms and in a manner prescribed by the chief administrator. In order to be deemed complete, an application shall be accompanied by a fee of $50, payable to the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, which shall be in addition to the fee otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of motor vehicles. The chief administrator shall collect annually, subsequent to the year of issuance of the "Striped Bass" license plate, a $10 fee for the license plate in addition to the fees otherwise prescribed by law for the registration of a motor vehicle. The additional fees required by this subsection shall be deposited in the "Striped Bass License Plate Fund" created pursuant to section 3 of this act.

3. a. There is created in the Department of the Treasury a special non-lapsing fund to be known as the "Striped Bass License Plate Fund." There shall be deposited in the fund the amount collected for all license plate fees collected pursuant to section 2 of this act, less the amounts necessary to reimburse the commission for administrative costs pursuant to section 4 of this act.

b. Monies deposited in the fund shall be used by the Division of Fish and Wildlife in the Department of Environmental Protection, in consultation with the Marine Fisheries Council, to support a State registry program for saltwater recreational anglers modeled on the registry program established by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Monies deposited in the fund shall be held in interest-bearing accounts in public depositories as defined pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1970, c.236 (C.17:9-41), and may be invested or reinvested in such securities as are approved by the State Treasurer. Interest or other income earned on monies deposited in the fund, and any monies which may be appropriated or otherwise become available for the purposes of the fund, shall be credited to and deposited in the fund for use as set forth in this act.

c. The State Treasurer shall provide an annual report to the Division of Fish and Wildlife on the status of the fund, and the commission shall provide an annual report to the State Treasurer documenting expenditures of monies from the fund.

4. Prior to the deposit of the additional fees collected pursuant to section 2 of this act into the fund, amounts thereof as are necessary shall be used to reimburse the commission for all costs reasonable and actually incurred, as stipulated by the chief administer, for:

(1) producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the availability of the "Striped Bass" license plates; and

(2) any computer programming changes that may be initially necessary to implement the "Striped Bass" license plate program established by this act, in an amount not to exceed $150,000.

The chief administrator shall annually certify to the State Treasurer the average cost per license plate incurred in the immediately preceding year by the commission in producing, issuing, renewing, and publicizing the availability of the "Striped Bass" license plates. The annual certification of the average cost per license plate shall be approved by the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or its successor.

In the event that the average cost per license plate as certified by the chief administrator and approved by the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or its successor, is greater than the $50 application fee established in section 2 of this act in two consecutive fiscal years, the chief administrator may increase the fee for a "Striped Bass" license plate to an amount which, as certified by the administrator and approved by the Joint Budget Oversight Committee, or its successor, is no greater than the average cost per license plate, or the administrator may discontinue the issuance of the "Striped Bass" license plates.

5. The chief administrator shall notify eligible motorists of the opportunity to obtain "Striped Bass" license plates by including a notice with all motor vehicle registration renewals and by posting appropriate posters or signs in all Motor Vehicle Commission facilities and offices. The notices, posters, and signs shall be designed by the commission after consultation with the Division of Fish and Wildlife.

6. The chief administrator, the State Treasurer, and the Director of the Division of Fish and Wildlife shall develop and enter into an interagency memorandum of agreement setting forth the procedures to be followed in carrying out their respective responsibilities under this act.

7. This act shall take effect immediately, but shall remain inoperative until the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission certifies that the commission is able to issue the "Striped Bass" license plate as a flat digital license plate, but not later than the first day of the seventh month after enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill would authorize the production and distribution of a "Striped Bass" license plate. An initial application fee of $50 and an annual registration fee of $10 would be applied to support a State registry program for saltwater recreational anglers modeled on the registry program established by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The "Striped Bass" license plate would be a flat digital license plate.

In 2007, Congress reauthorized the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Public Law 109-479), and included requirements for revising the Marine Recreational Fisheries Statistics Survey and directing NOAA to establish a National Saltwater Angler Registry Program. Congress also authorized NOAA to collect a fee from saltwater anglers, beginning in the year 2011, to cover administrative costs associated with this registry. The purpose of the federal registry is to identify all saltwater anglers who can be contacted to obtain more accurate recreational fishery information to improve fisheries management.

The National Saltwater Angler Registry exempts anglers from the federal registry and its fee requirement if their state has its own registration or licensing system. New Jersey enacted legislation in February 2011 (P.L.2011, c.23) creating such a registry. Revenues from "Striped Bass" license plates will help to cover costs associated with the State saltwater fishing registry which is free for registrants.

In the event the cost of the license plate exceeds the application fee in two consecutive fiscal years, the chief administrator is authorized to either increase the fee or discontinue the plate's issuance.