Bill Text: NJ S3696 | 2024-2025 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires institutions of higher education and certain proprietary institutions to notify Higher Education Student Assistance Authority of approved federal borrower defense loan discharge.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-10-10 - Reported from Senate Committee with Amendments, 2nd Reading [S3696 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2024-S3696-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH P. CRYAN
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Requires institutions of higher education and certain proprietary institutions to notify certain entities of approved federal borrower defense loan discharge.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning student loan discharge and supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. An institution of higher education or a proprietary institution licensed to offer academic degrees which receives notice from the United States Department of Education that a former or current student is approved for borrower defense loan discharge pursuant to federal law shall promptly notify the Executive Director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority and the Secretary of Higher Education. The institution shall also inform the executive director and secretary if the student was a resident of the State at the time of the student's enrollment in the institution.
2. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires institutions of higher education and proprietary institutions licensed to offer academic degrees to notify the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority and the Secretary of Higher Education of approved federal borrower defense loan discharge.
Under the bill, an institution which receives notice from the United States Department of Education that a former or current student is approved for borrower defense loan discharge under federal law is required to promptly notify the Executive Director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority and the Secretary of Higher Education. The institution is also required to inform the executive director and secretary if the student was a resident of the State at the time of the student's enrollment in the institution.
Under federal law, borrower defense to repayment is a legal ground for discharging federal Direct Loans. A borrower may have a defense to repayment if an institution engaged in certain misconduct related to the making of a federal loan or the educational services provided by the institution which caused harm to a student warranting a full discharge of the student's applicable federal Direct Loans.
