SENATE, No. 1620

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

218th LEGISLATURE

 

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 5, 2018

 

 

Sponsored by:

Senator  JEFF VAN DREW

District 1 (Atlantic, Cape May and Cumberland)

 

 

 

 

SYNOPSIS

     Provides tuition benefits at public institutions of higher education for dependents of certain veterans.

 

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

     As introduced.

  

An Act concerning higher education benefits for the dependents of certain veterans and supplementing chapter 62 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

 

     Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

 

     1.    For the purposes of this act:

     "Child" means an individual between the ages of 17 and 26 who is the child of a veteran.

     "Partner" means a veteran's partner in a civil union as defined in section 2 of P.L.2006, c.103 (C.37:1-29), or a veteran's domestic partner as defined in section 3 of P.L.2003, c.246 (C.26:8A-3).

     "Permanently and totally disabled" means a veteran who has been honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service and who has been declared by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs or its successor to have a service-connected total or 100 percent permanent disability.

     "Student fee" means any amount, other than tuition, which appears on a student tuition bill as a separately assessed item and which is a mandatory charge of the institution.

     "Veteran" means a citizen and resident of this State who served on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States, a Reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States, the National Guard, or a Reserve component of the National Guard.

 

     2.    a.  A spouse, partner, or child of a veteran who was killed in the line of duty during active military service, or who has been declared to be a prisoner of war or a person missing in action by the United States Department of Defense, or who is permanently and totally disabled, or who has died from a service-connected disability after being honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service, shall be eligible to receive free undergraduate tuition and student fees at a public institution of higher education, provided that:

     (1)   the veteran was a resident of New Jersey at the time of entry into active duty;

     (2)   the spouse, partner, or child is a resident of New Jersey;

     (3)   the spouse, partner, or child has been accepted to pursue a course of undergraduate study at a public institution of higher education and is enrolled as an undergraduate student in good standing at that institution; and

     (4)   the spouse, partner, or child has applied for all available State student grants and scholarships and all available federal student grants and scholarships for which the spouse, partner, or child is eligible.

     The maximum tuition benefit under this act for an eligible individual attending a public four-year institution of higher education shall not exceed the total number of credits necessary to complete a baccalaureate degree program at the institution, as determined by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. The maximum tuition benefit under this act for an eligible individual attending a county college shall not exceed the total number of credits necessary to complete an associate degree program at the college, as determined by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority.

     b.    In the case of a spouse or partner of a veteran, eligibility for benefits under this act shall be limited to a period of 10 years from the date of the death, determination of permanent and total disability, or determination of prisoner of war or missing in action status of the veteran.  A spouse or partner of a veteran is ineligible for benefits upon a remarriage or entry into a new civil union or domestic partnership.

 

     3.    The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, in consultation with the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, shall develop procedures to determine the eligibility of an applicant for benefits under this act.  Upon the approval of an application for benefits, the authority shall notify the applicant and the public institution of higher education at which the applicant is enrolled of eligibility.

 

     4.    The State shall reimburse a public institution of higher education for the cost of tuition and student fees which have been waived for each eligible spouse, partner, or child of a veteran pursuant to the provisions of this act.

 

     5.    The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority shall adopt regulations pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), necessary to effectuate the provisions of this act.

 

     6.    This act shall take effect immediately and shall first apply to the first full academic year beginning after the effective date of this act.

 

 

STATEMENT

 

     This bill provides free undergraduate tuition and student fees at public institutions of higher education to the child, spouse, civil union partner or domestic partner of certain New Jersey veterans. The benefits will apply to a child, spouse, civil union partner or domestic partner of a New Jersey resident who served on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United States or a Reserve component, or the National Guard or a Reserve component, and who: (1) was killed in the line of duty during active military service; (2) has been declared to be a prisoner of war or a person missing in action by the United States Department of Defense; (3) has been honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service and has been declared by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs to have a service-connected total or 100 percent permanent disability; or (4) has died from a service-connected disability after being honorably discharged or released under honorable circumstances from active service.  The maximum tuition benefit under the bill for an eligible individual attending a public four-year institution of higher education will not exceed the total number of credits necessary to complete a baccalaureate degree program at the institution, as determined by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA).  The maximum tuition benefit for an eligible individual attending a county college will not exceed the total number of credits necessary to complete an associate degree program at the college, as determined by HESAA. 

     In order for a child, spouse, or partner of a veteran to be eligible for benefits under the bill, the following conditions must be met: (1) the veteran was a resident of New Jersey at the time of entry into active duty; (2) the spouse, partner, or child is a resident of New Jersey; (3) the spouse, partner, or child has been accepted to pursue a course of undergraduate study at a public institution of higher education and is enrolled as an undergraduate student in good standing at that institution; and (4) the spouse, partner, or child has applied for all available State and federal student grants and scholarships for which he is eligible.

     The child of a veteran must be between the ages of 17 and 26 to be eligible for benefits under the bill.  In the case of a spouse, civil union partner, or domestic partner of a veteran, eligibility for benefits is limited to a period of 10 years from the date of the death, determination of permanent and total disability, or determination of prisoner of war or missing in action status of the veteran.  A veteran's spouse or partner is ineligible for benefits upon a remarriage or entry into a new civil union or domestic partnership. 

     The bill provides that HESAA, in consultation with the Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, will develop procedures to determine the eligibility of an applicant for benefits. The State will reimburse a public institution of higher education for the cost of tuition and student fees that have been waived for each eligible spouse, partner, or child of a veteran pursuant to the bill's provisions.