New Jersey Senate Panel OKs Lower Vehicle Fines

A bill advanced by the Senate Transportation Committee on this week gives some New Jersey drivers a break.

The bill reduces the maximum fine for driving without a license, registration or insurance card if the driver can prove he or she was legal at the time of the stop.

Sen. Kip Bateman, a Somerset County Republican who is sponsoring the bill, says soccer moms running late to a game shouldn’t have to pay $180 if they forget their licenses.

He said the measure gives discretion to judges, but shrinks the maximum possible fine to $100, from $150 plus court costs.

Bateman, who first introduced the bill two years ago, called it consumer friendly legislation.

No companion legislation has been introduced in the Assembly.

Topics Auto Politics New Jersey