Bill Text: NJ S1594 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes Veterans State Government Fellowship program.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-01-09 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee [S1594 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S1594-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
221st LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2024 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Senator ANDREW ZWICKER
District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)
SYNOPSIS
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.
An Act establishing the Veterans State Government Fellowship program, supplementing chapter 11 of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. There is established the Veterans State Government Fellowship program at the Eagleton Institute of Politics of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. A veteran may be selected to participate in the program if the veteran: (1) is a resident of the State; (2) was not dishonorably discharged from the Armed Forces of the United States, or a Reserve component thereof, or the New Jersey National Guard; (3) was discharged within the 10 years prior to selection to participate in the program; and (4) had a pay grade at or below E-9 for enlisted members or O-5 for officers at the time of discharge. The purpose of the program shall be to foster and encourage education and training in the executive and legislative processes for veterans who have an interest in law, public policy, and politics.
b. Eight veterans shall be selected to participate in the program. Four veterans shall be assigned to the New Jersey Legislature as follows: one fellow shall be assigned to the Senate Majority Office; one fellow shall be assigned to the Senate Minority Office; one fellow shall be assigned to the General Assembly Majority Office; and one fellow shall be assigned to the General Assembly Minority Office.
Four veterans shall be assigned to participating State departments or agencies.
The chief executive or a designee of a State department or agency shall elect to participate in the fellowship program and the chief executive or a designee shall renew such election each year for which the department or agency participates in the program.
c. The Director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics of Rutgers University shall appoint a director for the Veterans State Government Fellowship who shall administer the program.
The director shall contact State departments and agencies, and solicit participation in the fellowship to ensure sufficient placements for program fellows.
Program fellows shall be selected by the director from among the list of program applicants.
Each fellow assigned to a legislative agency shall serve during the annual session of the Legislature. Each fellow assigned to an executive department or agency shall serve for a year, with the start date to be set by the director of the program.
Each fellow shall receive a stipend during the period of fellowship. Fellows shall be paid an amount commensurate with other paid annual fellowships at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.
d. The Legislature shall appropriate from the State General Fund to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, $600,000 annually for the purposes of this section. The amount of the appropriation shall be re-evaluated every three years.
2. This act shall take effect on October 1 next following enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill creates the Veterans State Government Fellowship program within the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey. The purpose of the program is to foster and encourage education and training in the executive and legislative processes for veterans who have an interest in law, public policy, and politics.
The program will be administered by the Eagleton Institute. Eight veterans will be selected to serve as fellows. The fellows will be selected by the director of the program.
Each veteran fellow will be paid a stipend and will work for the Legislature in either the Senate Majority Office, Senate Minority Office, General Assembly Majority Office, or General Assembly Minority Office, or for a participating State department or agency.
An annual appropriation of $600,000 will be made to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey for the purposes of this bill.
