Children First Foundation has been fighting state in federal court since MVC rejected its initial plate design 7 years ago
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie at the Statehouse in Trenton in this July 2010 file photo.TRENTON — An anti-abortion group wants Gov. Chris Christie to drop the state’s opposition to proposed specialty license plates that bear the slogan “Choose life.”
The New York-based Children First Foundation has been fighting the State of New Jersey in federal court since the Motor Vehicle Commission rejected its initial plate design seven years ago.
“We are asking Gov. Christie to ask his new (Motor Vehicle Commission) chief administrator, Ray Martinez, to approve our plate without further delay,” said Children First Foundation President Elizabeth Rex. “It would help the state resolve this issue. ... These plates do make money for the state without raising taxes or cutting spending.”
Although the group’s suit was dismissed in 2008, a panel of judges revived it in April after they appealed.
The plate features a doodle of a young boy and girl on top of the words “choose life,” spelled out in children’s handwriting. Although the state produces specialty plates for dozens of civic and alumni organizations, it does not permit political messaging. The state also has a line of “dedicated plates” that benefit cancer research, Pinelands preservation and organ donation, among other causes, but they must be established through legislation.
Rex reapplied for the plates in February, submitting 2,500 petition signatures and a check for $12,500 to cover the first run of 500. They would be available to members who donated $25 per year and are meant to encourage adoption as an alternative to abortion.
The group’s first plate design was rejected under the administration of former Gov. Jim McGreevey. Rex said she did not reapply for it under his two pro-abortion rights Democratic successors — former Govs. Dick Codey and Jon Corzine. Christie, a Republican, opposes abortion.
The proceeds from the plates would go to fund crisis pregnancy centers and maternity homes, Rex Said, adding that her group has 25 plates in other states, beginning with one in Florida 10 years ago.
Martinez is familiar with this fight. He ran New York State's DMV in 2004, when it rejected a similar license plate from the Children First Foundation, which also filed suit against that state.
A sample of the proposed New Jersey "Choose life" license plate design.Spokesmen for Christie and Martinez declined to comment.
Michelle Jaker, executive director of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of New Jersey, said her problem was not with the message on the license plate but where the proceeds would go. Crisis pregnancy centers, she said, trick women into thinking they’re getting legitimate counseling on whether to have abortions, when in fact they’re set up to advocate against it.
“They’re not health centers, and they’re very misleading. I think you can say they outright lie in some cases,” said Jaker. You’re not presented with the facts or any kind of health care information at all. So we would obviously have concerns with anything that is raising money towards these centers.”
