Bill Text: NJ S933 | 2018-2019 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Prohibits four-year public and independent institutions of higher education from increasing New Jersey resident undergraduate tuition and fees for nine continuous semesters following student's initial enrollment.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2018-01-16 - Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee [S933 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2018-S933-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Senator JOSEPH P. CRYAN
District 20 (Union)
SYNOPSIS
Prohibits four-year public and independent institutions of higher education from increasing New Jersey resident undergraduate tuition and fees for nine continuous semesters following student's initial enrollment.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning undergraduate tuition and fees at public and independent institutions of higher education and supplementing chapter 3B of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. a. Notwithstanding the provisions of any law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, a four-year public or independent institution of higher education shall not increase the tuition and fees of a New Jersey resident undergraduate student for nine continuous semesters following the student's initial enrollment in the institution or, in the case of a student enrolled in an undergraduate program regularly requiring more than four academic years to complete, for the number of semesters required for completion.
b. In the event that a New Jersey resident undergraduate student is approved for a leave of absence from the institution for a period of more than one year, upon re-enrollment in the institution, the student shall not be eligible for the New Jersey resident undergraduate tuition and fees charged to the student during the student's initial semester of enrollment.
c. The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to an independent institution of higher education having a total endowment of more than $1,000,000,000.
2. When the governing board of a four-year public or independent institution of higher education adopts the tuition and fees for the upcoming academic year, the board shall also prepare a nonbinding document that discloses the governing board's estimate of the tuition and fees for the next four cohorts of students who will initially enroll in the institution in each of the four academic years following the upcoming academic year.
3. This act shall take effect immediately and shall first apply to students who initially enroll in four-year public or independent institutions of higher education in the 2018-2019 academic year.
STATEMENT
This bill prohibits a four-year public or independent institution of higher education from increasing the tuition and fees of a New Jersey resident undergraduate student for nine continuous semesters following the student's initial enrollment in the institution or, in the case of a student enrolled in an undergraduate program regularly requiring more than four academic years to complete, for the number of semesters required for completion.
Under the bill, if a student is approved for a leave of absence from the institution for a period of more than one year, the student will no longer be eligible for the undergraduate tuition and fees charged to the student during the student's initial semester of enrollment.
The bill also provides that when the governing board of the institution adopts the tuition and fees for the upcoming academic year, the board will also prepare a nonbinding document that discloses the governing board's estimate of the tuition and fees for the next four cohorts of students who will initially enroll in the institution in each of the four academic years following the upcoming academic year.
The provisions of this bill are not applicable to an independent institution having a total endowment of more than $1,000,000,000.
