Bill > S1585

Introduced Session

This bill establishes a "Motor Vehicle Surcharge Community Service Program," in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development to allow certain applicants to perform community service in lieu of paying certain motor vehicle surcharges. The bill provides for the program to be administered by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development, and directs the commissioner to coordinate with the Chief Administrator of the Motor Vehicle Commission to waive certain motor vehicle surcharges imposed on applicants who complete a community service project in participating counties and municipalities. To be eligible to participate in the program, the bill requires an applicant to demonstrate to the commissioner that he or she: (1) is unemployed, (2) has been assessed and is unable to pay certain motor vehicle surcharges, and (3) is enrolled in a job training or education program or in the process of applying for a commercial driver license or endorsement. Under the bill, if the driving privilege of an applicant has been suspended for failure to pay surcharges, the chief administrator is required to reinstate the applicant's driving privilege when the applicant commences the community service program. If an applicant fails to complete a community service project, the applicant's total outstanding motor vehicle surcharges and any interest accrued become due immediately. In addition, the applicant's driving privilege is to be suspended until the applicant satisfies the outstanding surcharge assessment. The bill permits the governing body of any county or municipality to apply to the commissioner to participate in the program. The bill requires an application for participation in the program to be made in accordance with procedures and on forms prescribed by the commissioner, and to indicate the eligible projects for which volunteer labor is requested. Under the bill, eligible community service projects include "improvements" to county and municipal buildings, grounds, roads, streams, and other county or municipal property. The bill provides that the volunteer labor used by a municipality or county must not displace or remove from employment any paid public or private employee or in any way reduce the workforce within a county or municipality. The bill further provides that a qualifying applicant must not be denied participation in the program due to a lack of volunteer labor projects. After a person has completed a community service project under the program, the bill requires the chief administrator to waive all surcharges and interest levied for accumulated motor vehicle points, those levied for unsafe driving convictions, and those levied for motor vehicle violations or convictions for which points are not assessed. The bill provides that any driver whose outstanding surcharges include levies imposed for a drunk driving conviction or refusal to submit to a blood alcohol content test are not eligible to participate in this program. The bill takes effect on the first day of the sixth month following enactment.

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Committee Categories

Reed Gusciora (D)*,  Raj Mukherji (D)*,  Eliana Pintor Marin (D)*,  Ronald Rice (D)*,  Teresa Ruiz (D)*,  L. Grace Spencer (D)*,  Shavonda Sumter (D)*,  Benjie Wimberly (D)*,  Ralph Caputo (D),  JoAnn Downey (D),  John McKeon (D),  Sheila Oliver (D),  Brian Stack (D), 

Conditional Veto, Received in the Senate (on 02/06/2017)