Readers have had a visceral reaction to a recent Asbury Park Press article that examined the rising number of tickets issued for windshield and license plate obstructions since 2015.

"Nothing but a money grab," Christopher Raulf wrote on Facebook. "Nothing to do with your safety."

Under state law 39:3-74, it's illegal to put anything on your windshield – or hang something from a car's rear-view mirror – that obstructs the driver's view. That includes anything from parking passes to fuzzy dice and air fresheners.

Along the same lines, statute 39:3-33 prohibits any license plate frame that obscures any of the markings on a license plate. But it's not just the registration number: A driver can be ticketed if their frame even partially covers up the words "New Jersey" or "Garden State."

RELATED: NJ windshield, license plate tickets on the rise

Many Press readers were already familiar with the violations – which have netted the state more than $21 million since 2015 – either as a "warning" issued by police officers instead of a speeding ticket or the pretext for a motor vehicle stop, especially involving minority drivers.

"These regulations exist so police can pull you over for speeding or some other minor violation but give you one of these tickets knowing you'll just pay it (because) you're getting a break and avoiding a court appearance," Shaun Moran wrote on Facebook. "All about the revenue."

Here's our attempt at answering a few of the many questions and comments about license plate and windshield obstructions:

Story continues after poll.

Why is this law even on the books?

The earliest amendment to the statute came in 1943, but New Jersey has been issuing license plates since the turn of the 20th century. But those early plates didn't look like the bright yellow plates we've grown accustomed to seeing the last 25 years.

In the 1940s, license plates were short and stocky – shaped like a brick rather than a shoebox. In addition to identifying numbers, letters and state, the license plates featured another important descriptor: The year the plates were issued.

Until the late 1950s, New Jerseyans were required to get new license plates each year, as they were the only record of a vehicle's registration status. And if that year was covered up, police would be unable to identify whether the car was registered.

In 1959, the state began imprinting "Garden State" on license plates but the original law – the one motorists are still fined for nearly 60 years later – was never updated.

If they're illegal, why do car dealers installlicense plate frames on new vehicles?

Dealer frames are a common sight on New Jersey roadways. Sometimes, they will simply include a name and phone number for the automobile dealer where the car was purchased. Others are more outlandish.

But, according to the New Jersey Coalition of Automotive Retailers – or NJ CAR, which represents the state’s 530 car dealers – the vast majority are legal.

MORE: Inside NJ's municipal court cash machine

NJ CAR, through a subsidiary, sells dealer frames to about three-quarters of the state’s car dealers, NJ CAR President Jim Appleton said. And those frames are perfectly legal under state law, he said.

“The majority of dealers in the state purchase their plate frames from us or another vendor who have compliant frames,” Appleton said. “I’ve seen a handful of dealer frames which are clearly not compliant. They’re making a judgment about the value of the advertising.”

You can't even hang a (state-issued) handicapped parking placard from the rear-view mirror?

That's right: A driver can be ticketed for obstructing their windshield, even if the "obstruction" is a handicapped parking placard issued by the state.

It's plainly written on the Motor Vehicle Commission's application: "The placard must be displayed on the rear-view mirror of the vehicle whenever such vehicle is parked in a designated wheelchair symbol parking space and must be removed when the vehicle is in motion."

LETTER: Difficult to get NJ handicapped parking placard

If you can't obstruct the windshield or the license plate, why isn't it illegal to use an E-ZPass?

E-ZPass is seemingly a conundrum for motorists. The truth? A properly-affixed E-ZPass isn't against the law.

The E-ZPass user agreement notes that motorists should attach the transponder "approximately one inch below the top of your windshield above your rear-view mirror.

License plate transponders were first issued in 2001, after certain vehicle manufacturers introduced new windshields with a type of metal that would prevent tollbooth scanners from reading the E-ZPass transponder.

As a result, the company introduced the license plate transponder – which, if affixed properly, would cover up "New Jersey" on the plate.

BUT WAIT THERE'S MORE: NJ E-ZPass drivers ripped off at NYC bridges, tunnels

Former Attorney General John Farmer saw this coming. In December 2000, he issued a directive calling on police officers to refrain from pulling over vehicles due to a license plate obscured by an E-ZPass transponder.

Seventeen years later, that directive is still in place, said Peter Aseltine, a spokesman for the New Jersey Attorney General's office.

"As the directive states, the exterior mounted E-ZPass tag results in a violation of the statute," Aseltine said in an email. "However, the directive mandates that law enforcement throughout New Jersey shall not enforce it as a violation."

Has anyone tried to change the law?

Since 1996, only one bill has been proposed that would change the state's license plate frame law. Sponsored by former Sens. Henry McNamara, R-Bergen, and Andrew Ciesla, R-Ocean, the law would have allowed dealer frames that partially obscured license plate – provided the actual registration numbers and letters were still clearly visible.

Despite receiving unanimous support in the Senate, McNamara and Ciesla's bill never received a committee hearing in the Assembly.

EDITORIAL: New AG should examine license plate, windshield laws

Criminal defense attorney Ian Goldman, a former Ocean County prosecutor, advocated for this action in the recent Press article.

"The real injustice is that these charges are there to begin with," he said. "If these statutes are abused to any extent, the bottom line is the Legislature needs to get rid of them."

Mike Davis: 732-643-4223; mdavis@gannettnj.com