Sponsored by:
Assemblyman REGINALD W. ATKINS
District 20 (Union)
Assemblywoman ANGELA V. MCKNIGHT
District 31 (Hudson)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblymen Sampson, Spearman, Mukherji, Kennedy, Assemblywoman Carter, Assemblymen Conaway and S.Kean
SYNOPSIS
Allows persons diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease to receive parking privileges reserved for persons with disability.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning parking for persons with a disability and amending P.L.1949, c.280.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.1949, c.280 (C.39:4-204) is amended to read as follows:
1. The phrase "person with a disability" means:
a. any person who has lost the use of one or more limbs as a consequence of paralysis, amputation, or other permanent disability or who has a permanent disability as to be unable to ambulate without the aid of an assisting device or whose mobility is otherwise limited as certified by a physician with a plenary license to practice medicine and surgery in this State or a bordering State; a podiatrist licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state; a physician stationed at a military or naval installation located in this State who is licensed to practice in any state; a chiropractic physician licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state; a physician assistant licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state; or a nurse practitioner licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state ; [or]
b. any citizen and resident of this State honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service in any branch of the Armed Forces of the United States who is adjudicated by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, or its successor, as being permanently 100 percent disabled; or
c. any person who has been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease as certified by a physician with a plenary license to practice medicine and surgery in this State or a bordering State; a physician stationed at a military or naval installation located in this State who is licensed to practice in any state; a physician assistant licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state; or a nurse practitioner licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state.
(cf: P.L.2017, c.166, s.1)
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill permits a person who has been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease, as certified by a physician with a plenary license to practice medicine and surgery in this State or a bordering State; a physician stationed at a military or naval installation located in this State who is licensed to practice in any state; a physician assistant licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state; or a nurse practitioner licensed to practice in this State or a bordering state, to park a motor vehicle in parking spaces reserved for persons with a disability. Under the bill, persons diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease are eligible to receive from the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission a person with a disability identification card, a vehicle identification placard, and license plates that display the national wheelchair symbol.
People living with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease often suffer from the debilitating urgency to use a restroom immediately. In addition, the chronic nature of these conditions can result in certain mobility issues, such as difficulty walking, standing, or traveling for long periods of time. This bill would help to alleviate some of the obstacles facing people who have been diagnosed with Irritable Bowel Disease, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or Crohn’s Disease.