A5097

An Act establishing a tourism attraction trail sign program and a historic site and historic district sign program and supplementing Title 27 of the Revised Statutes.

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

1. a. The Department of Transportation, in consultation with the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State, shall establish a New Jersey Tourism Attraction Trail Sign Program. The purpose of the program shall be to provide awareness of and directional guidance to tourism attractions in the State through roadway signs, and support a trail-like path through signage which allows persons to find and visit various indoor and outdoor attractions in an efficient and reasonable manner, and promote these locations within New Jersey.

b. In identifying specific tourism attractions to be included on the trail, special consideration shall be given to tourism attractions that are in close geographic proximity to one another or thematically linked by surrounding arts, cultural, historical, entertainment, or other tourism destinations or exhibits of interest to tourists. The locations selected as part of the trail shall be geographically representative of the entire State.

A person may apply to the Department of Transportation to have trail signs installed to identify and direct persons to tourism attractions throughout the State.

c. The New Jersey State Council on the Arts in the Department of State shall establish a visual arts competition for aesthetically pleasing, original art to be displayed on the trail signage. The council shall establish the terms of the competition, including the rules of the competition and submission requirements. The council shall select the artwork to be displayed, which at a minimum shall be:

(1) submitted in accordance with the rules of the competition, established pursuant to this subsection;

(2) reflective of the intent of this section; and

(3) reproducible on roadway signage.

The council shall publicize the competition in such a manner so as to attract artwork submissions, and to that end the council may expend any funds as may be appropriated or otherwise made available for that purpose. The final selection of artwork shall be selected by the council and reported to the Department of Transportation.

d. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, and consistent with federal law, the Department of Transportation shall install an approved trail sign as soon as practicable.

The Department of Transportation shall produce, install, and maintain the trail signs. The Department of Transportation may place trail signs on all eligible roads, including State roads.

The Department of Transportation shall be responsible for any cost associated with the sign programs established in this section.

The signs shall be produced, located, installed, and maintained in accordance with the standards and guidance of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices issued by the Federal Highway Administration.

2. a. The Department of Transportation, in consultation with the Division of Parks and Forestry in the Department of Environmental Protection, the Historic Preservation Office in the Department of Environmental Protection, the New Jersey Historic Trust in the Department of Community Affairs, the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State, and the New Jersey Historical Commission, shall develop a common design for roadway signs that indicate a historic site or historic district. The signs shall include, but not be limited to, an identifiably historic theme and a color code to indicate what war or historic time-period relates to the site or district.

b. Notwithstanding any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, and consistent with federal law, the Department of Transportation shall install an approved sign as soon as practicable.

The Department of Transportation shall produce, install, and maintain the signs. The Department of Transportation may place signs on all eligible roads, including State roads.

c. As used in this section:

“Historic district” means one or more historic sites and intervening or surrounding property significantly affecting or affected by the quality and character of the historic site or sites.

“Historic site” means any real property, man-made structure, natural object or configuration or any portion or group of the foregoing of historical, archeological, cultural, scenic or architectural significance.

3. a. The Department of Transportation shall be responsible for any cost associated with the sign programs established in sections 1 and 2 of P.L. , c. (C. )(pending before the Legislature as this bill). The department shall be authorized to raise funds, through direct solicitation or other fundraising events, alone or with other groups, and may accept monetary donations, gifts, grants, and bequests from individuals, corporations, foundations, governmental agencies, public and private organizations, and institutions, to defray the department's administrative expenses and for the purposes of producing, installing, and maintaining the signs.

b. The Department of the Treasury shall establish a dedicated, non-lapsing fund to be known as the Department of Transportation Sign Programs Fund. The fund shall have two subaccounts. One subaccount shall hold the deposits of donations, gifts, grants, and bequests received for the program established pursuant to section 1 of P.L. , c. (C. )(pending before the Legislature as this bill) and one subaccount shall hold the deposits of donations, gifts, grants, and bequests received for the program established pursuant to section 2 of P.L. , .c (C. )(pending before the Legislature as this bill).

The Department of the Treasury shall deposit and maintain the donations, gifts, grants, and bequests received pursuant to subsection a. of this section in each appropriate subaccount.

c. The money in each subaccount shall be appropriated annually to the Department of Transportation for the sole purpose of sections 1 and 2 of P.L. , c. (C. )(pending before the Legislature as this bill), respectively. The subaccounts shall be credited with any interest income that may be earned on the investment of moneys in the fund. Any funds remaining at the end of the fiscal year shall be carried forward into subsequent fiscal years and appropriated solely for the purposes of sections 1 and 2.

4. This act shall take effect on the 90th day after the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill establishes a tourism attraction trail sign program to provide awareness of, and directional guidance to, tourism attractions throughout the State through roadway signs. The location of the signs will support a trail-like path throughout the State of various indoor and outdoor tourism attractions.

The Department of Transportation, in consultation with the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State, will operate the trail sign program. Special consideration will be given to tourism locations that are in close geographic proximity with one another in order to create an easily accessible trail for visitors to travel from one attraction to the next. A person may apply to the Department of Transportation to have a trail sign installed to identify and direct persons to their business.

The New Jersey State Council on the Arts in the Department of State will establish a visual arts competition to gather original artwork to be placed on the trail signs. The council will establish the terms of the competition, including submission requirements and selection. After the completion of the design competition, the council will report the final selection of artwork to the Department of Transportation.

This bill also establishes a sign program for historical sites or historical districts to be operated by the Department of Transportation in consultation with the Division of Parks and Forestry in the Department of Environmental Protection, the Historic Preservation Office in the Department of Environmental Protection, the New Jersey Historic Trust in the Department of Community Affairs, the Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State, and the New Jersey Historical Commission. The signs may include an identifiably historic theme and a color code to indicate what war or historic time-period relates to the site or district.

The Department of Transportation will be responsible for any cost associated with the sign programs established by this bill. The bill authorizes the department to raise funds, through direct solicitation or other fundraising events, alone or with other groups, and may accept donations, gifts, grants, and bequests from individuals, corporations, foundations, governmental agencies, public and private organizations, and institutions, to defray the department's administrative expenses and for the purposes of producing, installing, and maintaining the signs.