To help ensure timely completion of financial aid applications for college students who are dependents, legislation that would require parents of a student enrolled at a New Jersey college or university to provide the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) with a completed financial aid application was signed into law Monday.
The new law (formerly bill A-3628) will require institutions to notify HESAA of parents who neglected to complete the information needed for their child’s financial aid application. Written notification will then be sent to parents to give them an opportunity to respond.
Bill sponsor, Assemblywoman Yvonne Lopez (D-Middlesex), released the following statement:
“Post-secondary education is one of the most reliable pathways to economic security. By reinforcing the importance to parents of dependent students the need to complete applications for financial aid thoroughly and on-time, this law takes a critical step to ensure New Jersey students do not face needless and preventable barriers to further education.”