If a motorist in the State of New Jersey is convicted of DWI, does he/she incur State surcharges? The answer is an overwhelmingly, YES. In fact, the surcharges imposed by the State, via New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC), are substantial!
The imposition of surcharges for traffic violations such as DWI are governed by N.J.S.A. 17:29A-35. The aforementioned New Jersey statute states, in pertinent part:
“(b) Surcharges shall be levied for convictions (i) under R.S.39:4-50 for violations occurring on or after February 10, 1983, and (ii) under section 2 of P.L.1981, c. 512 (C.39:4-50.4a), or for offenses committed in other jurisdictions of a substantially similar nature to those under R.S.39:4-50 or section 2 of P.L.1981, c. 512 (C.39:4-50.4a), for violations occurring on or after January 26, 1984. Except as hereinafter provided, surcharges under this subparagraph (b) shall be levied annually for a three-year period, and shall be $1,000.00 per year for each of the first two convictions, for a total surcharge of $3,000 for each conviction, and $1,500.00 per year for the third conviction occurring within a three-year period, for a total surcharge of $4,500 for the third conviction. If a driver is convicted under bothR.S.39:4-50 and section 2 of P.L.1981, c. 512 (C.39:4-50.4a) for offenses arising out of the same incident, the driver shall be assessed only one surcharge for the two offenses.”
According to the reference New Jersey Statute, if you are convicted of a first or second offense DWI in the State of New Jersey you are required to pay $3,000.00 in surcharges over a 3 year period. A third offense DWI/DUI conviction will increase the surcharge to $4,500.00 over a three year period.
A conviction for DWI/DUI in the State of New Jersey is a serious and costly event, call Dan T. Matrafajlo, Esq to discuss possible defenses to your DWI charge.
