LEGISLATIVE FISCAL ESTIMATE
[First Reprint]
SENATE, No. 1000
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
DATED: NOVEMBER 20, 2024
SUMMARY
Synopsis: Requires MVC to place designation on motor vehicle’s registration
information indicating registrant is hard of hearing.
Type of Impact: Annual State expenditure increase.
Agencies Affected: New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission.
Office of Legislative Services Estimate
Fiscal Impact Annual
State Expenditure Increase Indeterminate
 The Office of Legislative Services (OLS) projects that the bill will result in indeterminate
initial development costs and ongoing administrative expenditures for the State. The
magnitude of any State cost increase will depend on implementation decisions made by the
New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission, which the OLS is unable to anticipate.
 It is not known what type of changes will be made to registration information or the cost to
make those changes; however, programming or design changes of this type can largely be
completed with the assistance of the Office of Information Technology, and the change orders
are expected to be comparable to other change orders that the commission has issued to its
vendors in the past. The bill’s requirements are not expected to significantly alter the existing
contract with document vendors.
BILL DESCRIPTION
This bill requires the Motor Vehicle Commission to add a designation on a motor vehicle’s
registration information indicating the registrant is deaf or hard of hearing if the person applies for
the designation. The designation would only appear when a law enforcement officer accesses the
motor vehicle’s license plate information through the commission’s online interface with law
enforcement agencies and is only to be used to alert the law enforcement officer that the person is
deaf or hard of hearing. The designation would be added to the applicant’s motor vehicle
registration information provided the applicant has a hearing loss as demonstrated by the pure tone
Office of Legislative Services Legislative Budget and Finance Office
State House Annex Phone (609) 847-3105
P.O. Box 068 Fax (609) 777-2442
Trenton, New Jersey 08625 www.njleg.state.nj.us
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average of 500, 1,000, and 2,000 Hertz, of 41 decibels or greater, in the better ear, aided or unaided.
As part of the application process, an otorhinolaryngologist (ENT) or an audiologist clinically
certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association or licensed by the State of New
Jersey is required to verify the applicant’s hearing ability.
FISCAL ANALYSIS
EXECUTIVE BRANCH
None received.
OFFICE OF LEGISLATIVE SERVICES
The OLS projects that implementing the bill will result in indeterminate initial development
costs and ongoing administrative expenditures for the State to develop and implement a motor
vehicle registration designation. The magnitude of any State cost increase will depend on
implementation decisions made by the commission, which the OLS is unable to anticipate.
Initial State Development Expenditures: The commission will be responsible for determining
how to designate hard of hearing on the driver’s registration information. The designation is
intended to assist a driver with a hearing impairment with law enforcement interactions. The
commission has existing staff capable of registration design work, but the changes will consume
commission staff hours. Once the manner of designation is decided, it may be necessary,
potentially assisted by the Office of Information Technology, to redesign the software that
produces driver’s registration information to incorporate those changes. The commission
periodically makes change orders of this type, but the OLS does not have access to the cost or
nature of these change orders, so it is not possible to determine an estimate from a comparable
change order for the various types of alterations that the commission may undertake. Once the
changes have taken effect, it will also likely be necessary for the commission to train staff on the
new registration designation, so that staff can provide proper assistance to members of the public
that may seek this designation.
Annual State Expenditures: The bill’s registration designation may add to annual commission
operating expenditures by an indeterminate amount and will depend on the commission’s
implementation decisions. Ongoing costs to the commission will be higher if incorporation of the
special registration designation requires notable additional data entry or additional customer
service time or the production of additional documents. Given the size of the State population,
small increases in back office data work or in-person customer service time can multiply rapidly,
especially if those changes apply to the entire registration system, rather than just the individual
registration information noting hearing impairment.
Section: Authorities, Utilities, Transportation and Communications.
Analyst: Michael D. Walker
Associate Fiscal Analyst
Approved: Thomas Koenig
Legislative Budget and Finance Officer
This legislative fiscal estimate has been produced by the Office of Legislative Services due to the
failure of the Executive Branch to respond to our request for a fiscal note.
This fiscal estimate has been prepared pursuant to P.L.1980, c.67 (C.52:13B-6 et seq.).