Bill Text: NJ S400 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires BPU to conduct pilot program to allow free parking for alternative fuel vehicles and alternative technology vehicles.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-01-10 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Environment and Energy Committee [S400 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-S400-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
215th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2012 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator DIANE B. ALLEN
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Requires BPU to conduct pilot program to allow free parking for alternative fuel vehicles and alternative technology vehicles.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act requiring the Board of Public Utilities to conduct a pilot program in volunteer communities to permit free parking for alternative fuel vehicles and alternative technology vehicles.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. The Board of Public Utilities, in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection, shall establish and administer a pilot program to permit free municipal parking for alternative fuel vehicles and alternative technology vehicles. The board shall solicit and select three volunteer municipalities to participate in the pilot program: one each from the northern, central and southern regions of the State. The purposes of the pilot program shall be to encourage wider local use of cleaner technology, lower emission vehicles by offering free parking incentives to owners of qualifying vehicles, and to determine the potential environmental and economic benefits to participating municipalities.
b. A qualifying vehicle shall be an alternative fuel vehicle or an alternative technology vehicle registered in New Jersey, provided the vehicle owner does not owe back State or local taxes or have outstanding parking or motor vehicle violation fines, as verified through the Motor Vehicle Commission, Division of Taxation, and Division of State Police. A vehicle owner shall be issued by the local law enforcement agency or parking authority, a non-transferable pass for each qualifying vehicle, to be placed on the qualifying vehicle's dashboard or hung from the rearview mirror, identifying the vehicle as eligible for free parking at any legal on-street parking space or municipal lot or garage within the issuing jurisdiction, in compliance with all other time and posted restrictions. If it is uncertain whether a particular vehicle is a qualifying vehicle, the entity authorized to issue these passes may make a determination as to whether the vehicle is a qualifying vehicle eligible for the pass. The pass shall expire one year after issuance.
c. The Board of Public Utilities shall conduct the pilot program established pursuant to this section for a period of 18 months, and shall stipulate reporting requirements for participating municipalities. The board shall evaluate the pilot program and report to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature within two years after the date that the program becomes operational, as to the effectiveness of the program. The effectiveness of the program shall be evaluated on the basis of data and other information developed with volunteer municipalities regarding the volume of qualifying vehicles using the parking incentives, any environmental or economic benefits associated with the program, and any recommendations as to whether the program should be continued, modified or expanded.
2. As used in this act:
"Alternative fuel" means any non-petroleum based fuel such as methanol, denatured ethanol, and other alcohols; any mixture containing 85% or more by volume of methanol, denatured ethanol and other alcohols, or fuels other than alcohol derived from animal, biological or vegetable materials, with gasoline and other fuels, including, but not limited to, certain blends of biodiesel; fuel other than alcohol derived from animal, biological or vegetable materials not mixed with gasoline or other fuels; and natural gas, propane, liquefied petroleum gas, hydrogen, coal-derived liquid fuels, electricity, and any other fuel designated by the Secretary of Energy as an alternative fuel. The term "alternative fuel" shall not include the reformulated gasoline required to be sold pursuant to the federal "Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990," 42 U.S.C. s.7403 et seq., or any fuel that is more than 15% petroleum-based by volume.
"Alternative fuel vehicle" means a motor vehicle capable of operating either primarily or exclusively on alternative fuel. The term "alternative fuel vehicle" includes both dedicated vehicles and dual fueled vehicles, and any type of vehicle designated as an alternative fuel vehicle by federal law or the United States Secretary of Energy.
"Alternative technology vehicle" means any motor vehicle that is certified to meet the California Air Resources Board ultra-low emissions vehicle standards for the applicable model year or cleaner standards, and operates through the use of technology that reduces the consumption of gasoline or diesel fuel by operating on an alternative fuel, such as electricity, at least part of the time during which the vehicle is operated, but has not been designated an alternative fuel vehicle by the United States Secretary of Energy. The term "alternative technology vehicle" includes hybrid electric vehicles, fuel cell vehicles or any other motor vehicle that operates partially on alternative fuel but has not been designated by federal law or the United States Secretary of Energy as an alternative fuel vehicle.
"Dedicated vehicle" means any motor vehicle that operates only on alternative fuel.
"Dual fuel vehicle" means any motor vehicle that is capable of operating on alternative fuel and gasoline or diesel fuel.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Board of Public Utilities (BPU), in cooperation with the Department of Environmental Protection, to establish a pilot program in three volunteer municipalities throughout the State to permit free municipal parking for alternative fuel vehicles and alternative technology vehicles. The board would solicit and select one municipality each from the northern, central, and southern regions of the State to participate in the pilot program. The purposes of the pilot program would be to encourage wider local use of cleaner technology, lower emission vehicles by offering free municipal parking incentives, and to determine the potential environmental and economic benefits to participating municipalities.
The bill identifies qualifying vehicles and owners that would be eligible for free municipal parking. Qualifying owners would be issued a non-transferable pass from the local law enforcement agency or parking authority, to be placed on the vehicle's dashboard or hung from the rearview mirror, and would be required to comply with all time and other posted parking restrictions. The pass would expire one year after its issuance.
The bill defines "alternative fuel," "alternative fuel vehicle," "alternative technology vehicle," "dedicated vehicle" and "dual fuel vehicle."
Furthermore, the bill would require the BPU to stipulate reporting requirements for participating municipalities, and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature, within two years after the date the program becomes operational, evaluating the effectiveness of the program, identifying any environmental or economic benefits of the program, and providing any recommendations as to whether the program should be continued, modified or expanded.
