(TRENTON) – Legislation sponsored by Assembly Higher Education Chair Celeste Riley (D-Cumberland/Gloucester/Salem) and Assemblyman John S. Wisniewski (D-Middlesex) to create a task force charged with studying different ways to help make college more affordable for New Jersey students was approved Monday by an Assembly panel.
“Too many students are being forced to choose between taking on overwhelming amounts of debt to pay for a degree or avoiding college altogether,” said Riley. “A college education should not be a luxury. Providing students with different options that could help lessen the financial hardship could mean the difference between putting off college and getting that degree.”
“Rising tuition costs are placing unbearable financial burdens on New Jersey college students and families. We should be working to make college more accessible, not less,” said Wisniewski. “This has the potential to open doors for students who otherwise could not afford it. Making higher education more affordable not only helps these students, but the state which would benefit from a well-educated workforce.”
The bill (A-4444) establishes a College Affordability Study Commission for the purpose of examining issues and developing recommendations to increase the affordability of higher education in New Jersey. The commission would consist of 10 members, including the Secretary of Higher Education, or a designee, the executive director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, or a designee, and eight members appointed by the Governor as follows: the president of a public research university or a designee; the president of a state college or university or a designee; the president of a county college or a designee; one member of the faculty of a public institution of higher education in the state, appointed upon the joint recommendation of the American Association of University Professors, the New Jersey Education Association and AFT New Jersey; one student who is enrolled in a public institution of higher education in the state; one public member appointed upon the recommendation of the Senate President; one public member appointed upon the recommendation of the Speaker of the General Assembly; and one public member appointed upon the joint recommendation of the Minority Leaders of the Senate and the General Assembly.
The commission will be charged with studying issues related to increasing the affordability of higher education in the state, including:
- the creation of an Accelerated Degree Pilot Program which would offer high performing high school students interested in pursuing a medical degree or graduate-level science or engineering degree the opportunity of receiving that degree earlier than would be possible under a traditional program;
- the creation of an Affordable Degree Pilot Program which would allow students to earn a baccalaureate degree at a discounted tuition rate through a degree program partnership between a county college and a four-year public institution of higher education, with the student completing the first two years of the program at the participating county college;
- the creation of a Pay It Forward Pilot Program to replace the current system of charging students tuition and fees for enrollment at public institutions of higher education and allow students to instead pay back a percentage of their income for a certain number of years;
- methods to increase the performance of the New Jersey Better Educational Savings Trust (NJBEST), N.J.S.18A:71B-35 et seq., including, but not limited to: setting specific high standards for the selection of the investment manager to ensure that the program is ranked nationally as one of the best based on rate of return, expense ratios, and other relevant criteria; improving investment options available to the investor, such as options that permit customers more flexibility to customize their portfolios; determining possible alternatives to the NJBEST Scholarship, such as an annual State matching amount per beneficiary without the requirement of the beneficiary attending a State institution of higher education; and allowing a gross income tax deduction for amounts contributed to NJBEST accounts;
- changes to the New Jersey College Loans to Assist State Students (NJCLASS) Loan Program, N.J.S.18A:71C-21 et seq., that will increase disclosure and make the program more consumer-friendly for student and parent borrowers including, but not limited to: advertisement of the Annual Percentage Rate for NJCLASS loans in addition to the interest rate; options for a borrower to choose either a co-signer or guarantor on a loan; an option for deferred loan payment of principal and interest while in school with a 10-15 year repayment period; and NJCLASS loan consolidation interest rates that more closely reflect market conditions; and
- any other proposals that the commission believes would increase the affordability of higher education in the state.
The bill directs the commission to issue a report of its findings and recommendations to the Governor, the Senate Higher Education Committee, and the Assembly Higher Education Committee, or their successor committees, no later than 12 months after the commission organizes. The bill would take effect immediately, and the commission would expire 30 days after the submission of its report.
The bill was released by the Assembly Higher Education Committee.