New Jersey-2012-A750-Introduced

An Act concerning parking and supplementing chapter 4 of Title 39 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. A person who owns or controls a parking area with 100 or more parking spaces which is open to the public or to which the public is invited shall provide parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles as follows:

a. A minimum of five percent of the total number of parking spaces shall be provided in an area of the parking facility which is most accessible and approximate to any building or feature which the facility serves, provided however that these spaces shall not be closer or more approximate to the building or feature than any parking spaces designated for use by handicapped persons.

b. Each space or group of spaces shall be outlined in green paint and shall be identified with a clearly visible sign displaying the following wording, printed in green: "Hybrid and Alternatives Parking Only."

c. Any parking space set aside pursuant to this section shall be separate and distinct from any parking space designated for use by handicapped persons.

2. a. The Chief Administrator of Motor Vehicles shall issue window stickers, of such size and design as shall be determined by the chief administrator, which shall be affixed to the driver's side of the vehicle's rear window to identify vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles, as follows:

(1) vehicles which use diesel fuel shall not be issued window stickers identifying them as vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles.

(2) within the first two years following the enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles which achieve a minimum fuel efficiency rating of 45 miles per gallon shall be eligible for window stickers identifying them as vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles. Window stickers issued pursuant to this paragraph shall only be valid until the first day of the third year following the enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

(3) on the first day of the third year following the enactment of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) and thereafter, only hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles which meet 163 percent of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards set by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shall be eligible for window stickers identifying them as vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles.

b. The list of vehicles which are eligible for window stickers identifying them as vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles shall be reviewed annually by the chief administrator, in order to add or remove vehicles manufactured by major automakers and ensure they meet the requirements. A driver of a vehicle that meets the requirements of subsection a. of this section may apply to the chief administrator to have that vehicle model added to the list of eligible vehicles, if that vehicle is not already included on the list.

3. No person shall park a vehicle in a parking space designated for parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles unless that vehicle is eligible for a window sticker identifying it as a vehicle which may be parked in such a designated spot and such a window sticker is affixed to the driver's side of the vehicle's rear window. Violations of this section shall be subject to a fine of not more than $250.

4. This act shall take effect on the first day of the nineteenth month following enactment, and shall remain in effect for ten years, during which time the chief administrator shall provide the legislature with information related to the implementation of this act for the purposes of its evaluation.

STATEMENT

This bill would establish a pilot program through which electric, hybrid, and alternative fuel vehicles would be eligible to be parked in special and convenient parking spaces.

Under this bill, a parking area with 100 or more parking spaces would have to include 5 percent designated parking spaces for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles. These spaces would be the most accessible, after those designated for use by handicapped persons. The spaces would have to be outlined in green paint and identified with a sign displaying "Hybrid and Alternatives Parking Only" in green.

The bill would direct the Chief Administrator of Motor Vehicles to issue window stickers to identify vehicles which may be parked in parking spaces designated for hybrid, electric, and alternative fuel vehicles, and outlines the standards for eligible vehicles. Drivers of vehicles parked in these spaces without such a sticker would be subject to a $250 fine.

The bill would be effective for 10 years, during which time the chief administrator would provide the legislature with relevant information for its evaluation.