Even if these bills pass, you probably shouldn’t take sparklers to the DMV
By Alan Bauer
The Sun
Will there be cake? That’s all we want to know. Oh, and balloons and a clown would be nice, too.
A bill making its way through the Legislature changes when driver’s licenses expire. Currently, licenses expire every four years on the last day of the month. The new bill would have them expire on the driver’s birthday.
Yes, if the bill passes, more likely when the bill passes, procrastinators who wait until the last minute to renew their driver’s licenses will be celebrating their birthdays at the DMV.
What’s next? Making property taxes due on Christmas?
Actually, this is a good move that, with any luck, will make the often long lines at the DMV a bit shorter by spreading the expiration dates over an entire month. So, yes, make this a law.
But it’s depressing to think about the poor souls who, after gathering their stack of identification documents, will spend their special day waiting in line only to be told they can’t even smile when their photo is taken.
In addition to birthdays, lawmakers also are looking to tweak other big days — such as the Fourth of July and New Year’s Eve. Another bill winding through the Legislature would allow certain types of fireworks — and we use that term loosely — to be sold in New Jersey. The state currently has a complete ban on fireworks and, as we all know, nobody from here drives to Pennsylvania to buy fireworks. Never happens, right?
Well, of course it does, which means New Jersey is missing out on money. But, before you get too excited, the bill would legalize only “non-exploding, non-aerial” (those are the exact words) fireworks. In other words, you could buy some sparklers here.
Sure, let’s pass this one, too. While we don’t think it completely will stem the treks over the bridge to buy bottle rockets, maybe the state can keep a few dollars closer to home.
No word on any bills impacting Groundhog Day or your wedding anniversary. Yet.
