Bill > A5336

Introduced Session

This bill establishes the New Jersey County College Remissible Student Loan Program. Under the program, the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority is to make loans available to eligible students to cover a portion of the remaining cost of tuition, approved educational fees, and textbooks not covered by grants or scholarships. The program is to provide loan redemption to eligible students who complete an associate degree program in three academic years or less. To be eligible to apply for a loan under the program, a borrower is required to: (1). be a United States citizen, national or legal resident of the United States or be in the United States for other than temporary purposes and intend to become a permanent resident; (2) be a resident of the State; (3) be enrolled at least on a part-time basis in a county college; and (4) have applied for all other available forms of State, federal, and institutional need-based grants and merit scholarships and, in accordance with annually established deadline dates, have completed and submitted a Free Application for Federal Student Aid, other financial aid form, or, as applicable, a State financial aid form as required by the authority pursuant to current law. The bill provides for the discharge of loans issued under the program in the event of the death of an eligible student borrower or if the student borrower becomes totally and permanently disabled. The bill also requires the authority to grant a deferment of payment of loan principal and interest in the event that a student borrower becomes temporarily disabled. The bill establishes the "New Jersey County College Remissible Student Loan Program Fund" in which the following funds are to be deposited: (1) all moneys appropriated for the purpose of the fund; (2) all funds contributed to the authority by private sources, to be used for the purposes of the fund; (3) all moneys repaid to the fund by eligible borrowers; (4) any return on investment of moneys deposited in the fund; and (5) any other moneys or funds of the authority that may be available for the purposes of the fund. Moneys in the New Jersey County College Remissible Student Loan Program Fund are to be held and applied to make loans under the program and to pay for the costs of administering the program. Finally, the bill stipulates that loan redemption under the program is to equal the cumulative outstanding balance of loans issued under the program. Interest paid or due on the loans is to be considered eligible for reimbursement under the program.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Jessica Ramirez (D)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Higher Education Committee (on 02/20/2025)

Official Document