Bill > S766

Introduced Session

This bill requires the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) to establish an income-driven repayment option and a loan rehabilitation program for borrowers under the New Jersey College Loans to Assist State Students (NJCLASS) Loan Program. Under the bill, HESAA is directed to establish an income-driven repayment option for an NJCLASS Loan Program loan. An income-driven repayment option is a student loan repayment plan that sets a borrower's monthly student loan payment at an amount that is intended to be affordable based on the borrower's income. The bill provides that the income-driven repayment option for an NJCLASS Loan Program loan will: (1) limit a borrower's monthly payment amount to no more than 10 percent of discretionary income; (2) discharge any remaining debt after 20 years of payments; and (3) provide $0 monthly payments for borrowers with incomes at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty guideline for their family size. The bill also directs HESAA to establish a loan rehabilitation program for NJCLASS Loan Program loans for the purpose of rehabilitating a defaulted loan and removing it from default status. Under the program, in order to be eligible for rehabilitation of a defaulted loan, the borrower must voluntarily make at least nine of the 10 payments required under a monthly loan rehabilitation repayment agreement entered into with HESAA. The payment amount under the loan rehabilitation repayment agreement will be determined by HESAA at 15 percent of the borrower's discretionary income, but the borrower may appeal that determination. All required payments must be made voluntarily, be for the full amount required under the agreement, and be received within 20 days of the due date for the payment. Within 30 days of the successful completion of the loan rehabilitation repayment agreement, HESAA will remove the loan from default status and notify national credit bureaus to which it reported the loan default, that the loan is no longer in default status and is paid on time or paid as agreed.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Sandra Cunningham (D)*,  Robert Gordon (D)*,  Bob Singer (R)*,  Chris Brown (R),  Nilsa Cruz-Perez (D),  Patrick Diegnan (D),  Linda Greenstein (D),  Nellie Pou (D),  Teresa Ruiz (D),  Brian Stack (D), 

Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee (on 04/05/2018)