Bill Text: NJ A5280 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Authorizes use of disability benefits for transportation provided by transportation network companies.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2019-05-13 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Human Services Committee [A5280 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-A5280-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman ROY FREIMAN
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
Assemblywoman YVONNE LOPEZ
District 19 (Middlesex)
Assemblywoman CAROL A. MURPHY
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Authorizes use of disability benefits for transportation provided by transportation network companies.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the use of disability benefits for services provided by transportation network companies and supplementing Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Department of Human Services shall authorize any recipient of disability benefits in the State to use those benefits to pay for transportation services provided by a transportation network company.
b. The Department of Human Services, in consultation with the Department of Transportation, shall develop and implement a public awareness campaign to inform the recipients of disability benefits of their transportation options under this section.
c. As used in this section:
"Disability benefits" means Social Security Disability Insurance benefits, temporary disability insurance benefits, benefits from the Catastrophic Illness in Children Relief Fund, assistance for the permanently and totally disabled, or any other monetary benefits received from the State or federal government as a result of permanent or temporary disability.
"Transportation network company" means the same as that term is defined by section 2 of P.L.2017, c.26 (C.39:5H-2).
2. The Commissioner of Human Services, in consultation with the Commissioner of Transportation, shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Department of Human Services to authorize any recipient of disability benefits to use those benefits to pay for transportation provided by a transportation network company. A transportation network company is any corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, or other entity that is registered as a business in the State, or that operates in the State, and which uses a digital network to connect a transportation network company rider to a transportation network company driver to provide a prearranged ride. Approved transportation network companies in New Jersey currently include Uber and Lyft.
The bill would also require the Department of Human Services, working in consultation with the Department of Transportation, to develop and implement a public awareness campaign to inform the recipients of disability benefits of their transportation options under the bill.
