What States Have DMV Reciprocity With New Jersey?
by Jason Blankenship
Many states in the United States have agreed to punish poor driving not only in their own state but also in other states. One of the methods to ensure proper driving behavior was the elimination of multiple driver licenses assigned to one individual. In order to hold drivers responsible for their own behavior, many states have signed reciprocity agreements to punish those who break traffic laws out-of-state. New Jersey has signed the two major reciprocity agreements; The Driver License Compact and The Nonresident Violator Compact.
The Driver License Compact
This compact, in short, requires that states penalize their drivers who committed motor vehicle violations in other states. This was an attempt to add uniformity across states and espoused the idea of one driver license and one driver record. Most of the states in the U.S. have signed this compact. The only states not included in this compact are Georgia, Massachusetts, Michigan, Tennessee and Wisconsin. New Jersey follows this, but only assesses 2 points to your license rather than the point cost if the same crime had been committed in New Jersey.
The Nonresident Violator Compact
The states adopted The Nonresident Violator Compact in 1977. This compact stipulates that if an out-of-state motorist is ticketed and refuses to pay or deal with the ticket, that the home state will suspend their license until the situation is resolved. It also ensures that nonresidents have due process and gives them the same rights as residents. It doesn’t cover parking, standing, highway weight limit, and Hazmat violations. Most states have signed this, with only Alaska, California, Michigan, Montana, Oregon and Wisconsin not being signatories.
The Nonresident Violator Compact
The National Driver Registry tracks serious traffic offenses. All states, regardless of the compacts, use this system. If a state suspends your license for a serious traffic violation, your name will be on this list. Examples of crimes that will get your license put on the National Driver Registry are conviction of Driving Under the Influence (DUI) or Driving While Intoxicated (DWI).
In Conclusion
New Jersey has signed both the Driver License Compact and the Nonresident Violator Compact and, as such, New Jersey honors any infractions in a signatory state. However, just because a state is not signatory to one of the compacts does not mean that New Jersey will ignore traffic violations in those states. New Jersey may have bilateral reciprocity agreements with this state outside of the compact framework.
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Writer Bio
Jason Blankenship has been writing professionally since 2010. He specializes in models, video games, politics, religion and movies. Blankenship earned his Master of Arts in security studies from Georgetown University, as well as a Bachelor of Science in political science and international relations from Northern Illinois University.
