Establishes Chronic Absenteeism Task Force.

A1733

ASSEMBLY, No. 1733

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblywoman LINDA S. CARTER

District 22 (Somerset and Union)

Assemblywoman CARMEN THERESA MORALES

District 34 (Essex)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywomen Murphy, McCoy, Bagolie and Assemblyman Moen

SYNOPSIS

���� Establishes Chronic Absenteeism Task Force.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

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

��

An Act
establishing the Chronic Absenteeism Task Force.

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

���� 1.��� a. There is established
the �Chronic Absenteeism Task Force,� to assess chronic absenteeism in the
State�s public schools.�

���� b.��� The task force shall
consist of 20 members as follows:

���� (1)�� the Commissioner of
Education, ex officio, or a designee;

���� (2)�� four members of the
public, each of whom has specialized knowledge or expertise in issues related
to the work of the task force.� One of the public members shall be appointed by
the Senate President, one shall be appointed by the Senate Minority Leader, one
shall be appointed by the Speaker of the General Assembly, and one shall be
appointed by the Assembly Minority Leader; and

���� (3)�� 15 public members
appointed by the Governor, who shall include: one member of the State Board of
Education;
two
members upon the recommendation
of the New Jersey Education Association; two members upon the recommendation of
the American Federation of Teachers New Jersey; one member upon the
recommendation of the New Jersey School Boards Association; two members upon
the recommendation of the New Jersey Principals and Supervisors Association;
two members upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Association of School
Administrators; one member upon the recommendation of the Statewide Parent
Advocacy Network; one member upon the recommendation of the New Jersey Public
Charter Schools Association; one member upon the recommendation of the Jobs for
America�s Graduates New Jersey; one member upon the recommendation of the
Princeton Area Community Foundation; and one member upon the recommendation of
the Garden State Coalition of Schools.

���� c.���� The appointments to the
task force shall be made within 30 days of the effective date of this act.�
Vacancies in the membership of the task force shall be filled in the same
manner as the original appointments were made.� Members of the task force shall
serve without compensation, but shall be reimbursed for necessary expenditures
incurred in the performance of their duties as members of the task force within
the limits of funds appropriated or otherwise made available to the task force
for its purposes.

���� d.��� The task force shall
organize as soon as practicable, but no later than 30 days following the
appointment of its members.� The task force shall choose a chairperson from
among its members.� The chairperson shall appoint a secretary who need not be a
member of the task force.

���� e.���� The Department of
Education shall provide stenographic, clerical, and other administrative
assistants, and any professional staff as the task force requires to carry out
its work.� The task force shall also be entitled to call to its assistance and
avail itself of the services of the employees of any State, county, or
municipal department, board, bureau, commission, or agency as it may require
and as may be available for its purposes.

���� 2.��� It shall be the duty of
the Chronic Absenteeism Task Force to:

���� a.���� examine and compare
current and pre-pandemic data on chronic absenteeism in the State;

���� b.��� analyze the root causes
of chronic absenteeism, which may include, but are not limited to, barriers to
attendance, aversion to school, disengagement from school, and misconceptions
about the impact of absences;

���� c.���� examine the role of
mental health and school climate in chronic absenteeism rates;

���� d.��� analyze and develop
recommendations regarding the impact of absences due to exposure to COVID-19
and student discipline policies;

���� e.���� research best practices
that other states have implemented to address chronic absenteeism that may be
replicated in the State; and

���� f.���� develop recommendations
on the most effective ways for school districts to promote family engagement to
combat chronic absenteeism.

���� 3.��� The Chronic Absenteeism
Task Force shall issue a final report to the Governor, and the Legislature
pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), no later than six
months after the organization of the task force.� The report shall contain the
task force�s findings and recommendations, including any recommendations for
legislation that it deems appropriate.

���� 4.��� This act shall take
effect immediately, and the task force shall expire 30 days after the issuance
of its final report.

STATEMENT

���� This bill establishes the
�Chronic Absenteeism Task Force� to assess chronic absenteeism in the State�s
public schools.�

���� The task force is to consist
of 20 members as follows: the Commissioner of Education, or a designee; four
members of the public, each of whom has specialized knowledge or expertise in
issues related to the work of the task force, with one each appointed by the
Senate President, the Senate Minority Leader, the Speaker of the General
Assembly, and the Assembly Minority Leader; and 15 members of the public representing
the education community appointed by the Governor.

���� Under the bill, the Chronic
Absenteeism Task Force is to:

�

examine and compare current and pre-pandemic data on chronic
absenteeism in the State;

�

analyze the root causes of chronic absenteeism, which may include
barriers to attendance, aversion to school, disengagement from school, and
misconceptions about the impact of absences;

�

examine the role of mental health and school climate in chronic
absenteeism rates;

�

analyze and develop recommendations regarding the impact of
absences due to exposure to COVID-19 and student discipline policies;

�

research best practices that other states have implemented to
address chronic absenteeism that may be replicated in the State; and

�

develop recommendations on the most effective ways for school
districts to promote family engagement to combat chronic absenteeism.

���� The bill directs the Chronic
Absenteeism Task Force to issue a final report to the Governor and the
Legislature no later than six months after the organization of the task force.�
The task force is to expire 30 days after the issuance of its final report.

���� Pursuant to State law, a
student that is absent for 10 percent or more of the days that the student is
enrolled during the 180-day school year is considered chronically absent.� Data
from the school performance reports indicate that the rate of chronic absenteeism
rose to 16.6 percent in the 2022-2023 school year.� More than one-fifth of New
Jersey students missed more than 15 days of school in the 2022-23 school year.�
Before the pandemic, the State�s chronic absenteeism rate in the 2018-19 school
year was 10.6 percent.� Chronic absence can result in students having
difficulty learning to read by the third-grade, achieving in middle school, and
graduating from high school.