(TRENTON) – Assemblywoman Celeste Riley (D-Cumberland/Gloucester/Salem) has introduced legislation requiring the state Motor Vehicle Commission to provide Gold Star Family decals for license plates to family members in honor of soldiers who died while on active duty.
“These men and women made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. We may not know their individual stories, but their heroism should not go unrecognized,” said Riley. “This is another way for the state and the families of these fallen soldiers to recognize their courage and honor their memory.”
The bill (A-4242) requires the Chief Administrator of the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission to provide Gold Star Family decals to a family member of a member of the armed services who died while on active duty for the United States. The decals, which are to be in the shape of a gold star with the words “Gold Star Family,” are to be affixed to the existing license plates of a motor vehicle registered in the state in a manner approved by the chief administrator.
The bill requires the chief administrator to issue the decals within seven days of receipt of satisfactory proof that the person is the family member of a member of the armed services who died while on active duty. The bill requires the same documentation as is required for Gold Star Family license plates under current law. A family member is defined in the bill to mean, the spouse, parent, brother, sister, child, legal guardian or other legal custodian, whether of the whole or half blood, or by adoption, of a member of the armed services who died while on active duty for the United States.
“With so much going on in the world, we often forget about the soldiers who did not make it back home and the grieving families left behind,” said Riley. “These decals are not only a small way for these families to honor the bravery of their loved ones, but can also serve as a reminder to the rest of us about the momentous sacrifice made not just by our military men and women, but their families.”