Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CLEOPATRA G. TUCKER
District 28 (Essex)
SYNOPSIS
Makes consent to register with Selective Service part of driver's license application process for males under age 26.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning Selective Service registration and supplementing Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that the penalties for young men who disregard their duty to register with the United States Selective Service System are severe, including steep fines and imprisonment. Failure to register also may permanently preclude a young man from obtaining a variety of federal benefits such as federal employment, federal student financial assistance, participation in federally funded job training programs, and eligibility for United States citizenship for immigrants seeking naturalization. In addition, men who fail to meet the registration requirement forfeit the ability to obtain certain benefits such as State-funded student loans.
Therefore, in recognition of the harsh consequences of non-compliance and the importance of ensuring that any future draft is fair and equitable, it is the intent of the Legislature to notify New Jersey residents of their responsibility to register with Selective Service, and to provide them with the opportunity to register concurrently with applying for a driver's license or permit or a nondriver identification card.
2. A male United States citizen or immigrant who applies for a special learner's permit, an examination permit, a provisional driver's license, a basic driver's license, or a nondriver identification card issued pursuant to P.L.1980, c.47 (C.39:3-29.3 et seq.), or for renewal of any license or identification card, and who is less than 26 years of age, shall consent to his registration in compliance with the requirements of the "Military Selective Service Act," 50 U.S.C. App. 453.
3. The chief administrator shall forward in an electronic format the personal information required for registration of applicants pursuant to section 2 of this act to the Selective Service System. The applicant's submission of the application shall serve as an indication that he has already registered with the Selective Service or that he is authorizing the chief administrator to forward to the Selective Service the necessary information for such registration.
4. The chief administrator shall provide written notice on the application that its submission shall serve as the applicant's consent to be registered with the Selective Service System pursuant to federal law. The chief administrator shall provide for the following statement to be printed on the application for a special learner's permit, an examination permit, a provisional driver's license, a basic driver's license, or a nondriver identification card:
"By submitting this application, I am consenting to registration with the Selective Service System if so required by Federal law. If under 18 years of age, I understand that I will be registered as required by Federal law when I attain the age of 18 years."
5. The provisions of this act shall apply to male citizens of the United States and immigrants under the age of 26 years who are applying for the initial issuance, renewal or a duplicate of a special learner's permit, an examination permit, a provisional driver's license, a basic driver's license, or a nondriver identification card on or after the effective date of this act.
6. The chief administrator may promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the provisions of this act pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).
7. This act shall take effect on the first day of the seventh month after enactment, except that section 6 shall take effect immediately, and the chief administrator, prior to the effective date, may take any needed anticipatory action required for the act's effective implementation.
STATEMENT
This bill requires every male United States citizen or immigrant under age 26 who applies for a special learner's permit, an examination permit, a provisional driver's license, a basic driver's license, or a nondriver identification card, or for renewal of a license or identification card, to consent to his registration for the draft in compliance with the requirements of the "Military Selective Service Act," 50 U.S.C. App. 453.
The bill requires the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) to electronically forward the personal information required for draft registration to the Selective Service System. Submission of an application to the MVC would serve as an indication that the applicant has already registered with the Selective Service or that he is authorizing the chief administrator to forward to the Selective Service the necessary information for registration.
The chief administrator is required to print a statement on the application for a permit, driver's license, or nondriver identification card stating that the applicant is consenting to Selective Service registration if required by Federal law or, if under age 18, registration upon attaining age 18.
Failure to register or otherwise comply with the "Military Selective Service Act" is punishable by a fine of up to $250,000, imprisonment for up to five years, or both. In addition, violators may be precluded from obtaining student financial aid, job training, government employment and U.S. naturalization. As of June, 2012, at least 40 states, four territories and the District of Columbia had enacted driver's license laws supporting Selective Service registration.