SENATE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

with committee amendments

SENATE, No. 3705

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  DECEMBER 6, 2021

      The Senate Transportation Committee reports favorably and with committee amendments Senate Bill No. 3705.

      As reported, this bill prohibits a person from leaving a shopping cart in a handicap parking space and imposes a fine.

     Specifically, under the provisions of this bill, a person is prohibited from placing a shopping cart in a parking space which has been designated as a restricted space for use by persons who have been issued special vehicle identification cards by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.  Under the bill, any person who violates this provision is liable to a fine of $250.

     In addition, the bill provides that any sign erected after the bill’s effective date to notify the public that parking in a space is reserved for persons with disabilities is also required to state the penalties for placing a shopping cart in a reserved space pursuant to the bill’s provisions.  The bill requires signs that were erected prior to the effective date to be modified within 12 months to include the penalty information for placing a shopping cart in a handicap parking space.