Establishes Veterans State Government Fellowship program.

A1658

ASSEMBLY, No. 1658

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman MITCHELLE DRULIS

District 16 (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset)

Assemblywoman TENNILLE R. MCCOY

District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblymen Freiman and Venezia

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes Veterans State Government Fellowship
program.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative
Counsel.

��

An Act
establishing the Veterans State Government Fellowship
program, supplementing chapter 11 of Title 52 of the Revised Statutes.

����
Be It
Enacted
by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

���� 1.� a.� There is established
the Veterans State Government Fellowship program at the Eagleton Institute of
Politics of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey.� A veteran may be
selected to participate in the program if the veteran: (1) is a resident of the
State; (2) was not dishonorably discharged from the Armed Forces of the United
States, or a Reserve component thereof, or the New Jersey National Guard; (3)
was discharged within the 10 years prior to selection to participate in the
program; and (4) had a pay grade at or below E-9 for enlisted members or O-5
for officers at the time of discharge.� The purpose of the program shall be to
foster and encourage education and training in the executive and legislative
processes for veterans who have an interest in law, public policy, and
politics.

���� b.� Eight veterans shall be
selected to participate in the program.� Four veterans shall be assigned to the
New Jersey Legislature as follows: one fellow shall be assigned to the Senate
Majority Office; one fellow shall be assigned to the Senate Minority Office;
one fellow shall be assigned to the General Assembly Majority Office; and one
fellow shall be assigned to the General Assembly Minority Office.�

���� Four veterans shall be
assigned to participating State departments or agencies.

���� The chief executive or a
designee of a State department or agency shall elect to participate in the
fellowship program and the chief executive or a designee shall renew such
election each year for which the department or agency participates in the
program.

���� c.� The Director of the
Eagleton Institute of Politics of Rutgers University shall appoint a director
for the Veterans State Government Fellowship who shall administer the program.

���� The director shall contact
State departments and agencies, and solicit participation in the fellowship to
ensure sufficient placements for program fellows.

���� Program fellows shall be
selected by the director from among the list of program applicants.

���� Each fellow assigned to a
legislative agency shall serve during the annual session of the Legislature.�
Each fellow assigned to an executive department or agency shall serve for a
year, with the start date to be set by the director of the program.

���� Each fellow shall receive a
stipend during the period of fellowship.� Fellows shall be paid an amount
commensurate with other paid annual fellowships at Rutgers, The State
University of New Jersey.

���� d.� The Legislature shall
appropriate from the State General Fund to Rutgers, The State University of New
Jersey, $600,000 annually for the purposes of this section.� The amount of the
appropriation shall be re-evaluated every three years.

���� 2.� This act shall take effect
on October 1 next following enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill creates the Veterans
State Government Fellowship program within the Eagleton Institute of Politics
at Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey.� The purpose of the
program is to foster and encourage education and training in the executive and
legislative processes for veterans who have an interest in law, public policy,
and politics.

���� The program will be
administered by the Eagleton Institute.� Eight veterans will be selected to
serve as fellows.� The fellows will be selected by the director of the program.

���� Each veteran fellow will be
paid a stipend and will work for the Legislature in either the Senate Majority
Office, Senate Minority Office, General Assembly Majority Office, or General
Assembly Minority Office, or for a participating State department or agency.

���� An annual appropriation of
$600,000 will be made to Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey for the
purposes of this bill.