Bill > S3507

Introduced Session

This bill requires additional information to be included in the annual report on the New Jersey College Loans to Assist State Students (NJCLASS) Loan Program. Current law requires the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) to annually submit to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the General Assembly a report on the NJCLASS Loan Program. This bill requires the report to include additional information on: the total number of NJCLASS loans that are in delinquency for each income level and the number that entered delinquency in the prior year for each income level; the number of delinquent loans that did not go into default as a result of collections through administrative wage garnishment; the number of administrative wage garnishment orders HESAA initiated in the prior year against NJCLASS borrowers; the number of administrative wage garnishment orders issued; and the total and median amount received by HESAA from administrative wage garnishment orders. The bill also requires that certain information reported by HESAA on the NJCLASS loan program be reported for each income level. The bill requires that "income level" be defined, and periodically updated, by the executive director of the authority in a manner that is consistent with the quintile income levels established by the United States Census Bureau in its reports on income. Currently, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that in 2020:· households in the lowest quintile had incomes of $27,026 or less; · households in the second quintile had incomes from $27,027 to $52,179; · households in the third quintile had incomes from $52,180 to $85,076; · households in the fourth quintile had incomes from $85,077 to $141,110; and · households in the highest quintile had incomes of $141,111 or more. Under current law, HESAA can pursue administrative wage garnishment during loan delinquency. The current annual NJCLASS loan program's reporting requirements provide information on loans in default and collection actions taken on those loans, but does not currently provide information on loans in delinquency or collections actions taken as a result. The sponsor's intent is to update the reporting requirements to provide this information. Additionally, the bill requires loan debt statistics to be reported by income bracket in addition to the aggregate numbers currently reported. The sponsor's intent is to ensure HESAA and the Legislature can fully understand the NJCLASS loan program's impact by class, and ensure the program is successfully serving individuals in all income brackets.

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Andrew Zwicker (D)*, 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Higher Education Committee (on 01/26/2023)

Official Document