Modifies Community College Opportunity Grant Program to permit adult students enrolled in postsecondary career and technical education programs to receive financial assistance.

A1782

ASSEMBLY, No. 1782

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman ANTHONY S. VERRELLI

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblywoman VERLINA REYNOLDS-JACKSON

District 15 (Hunterdon and Mercer)

Assemblyman WILLIAM B. SAMPSON, IV

District 31 (Hudson)

SYNOPSIS

���� Modifies Community College Opportunity Grant Program
to permit adult students enrolled in postsecondary career and technical
education programs to receive financial assistance.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

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

��

An Act

concerning student financial aid and amending
P.L.2021, c.26 (C.18A:71B-111 et seq.).

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

���� 1.��� Section 1 of P.L.2021,
c.26 (C.18A:71B-111) is amended to read as follows:

���� 1.��� As used in this act:

����
�Adult student� means a
postsecondary student who is enrolled in a postsecondary career and technical
education program that prepares the student to earn a license or
industry-recognized certification or to take a nationally-recognized exam.

���� "Annual adjusted gross
income" means:

���� a.���� for a dependent
student, the annual adjusted gross income of the student's parent or legal
guardian, as reported on the student's Free Application for Federal Student Aid
or other financial aid form; and

���� b.��� for an independent
student, the annual adjusted gross income of the student and, if applicable,
the spouse of the student, as reported on the student's Free Application for
Federal Student Aid or other financial aid form.�

���� "Approved educational
fees" means general education fees, registration fees, facility fees,
technology fees, laboratory fees, student service and activity fees, and
program and course fees, including fees associated with coursework in nursing, culinary,
and other career and technical education programs as determined by the Higher
Education Student Assistance Authority in consultation with the Office of the
Secretary of Higher Education , subject to the limit of funds appropriated or
otherwise made available for the program.�

���� "Authority" means
the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority established pursuant to
N.J.S.18A:71A-3.�

����
�County vocational school
district� means any entity established pursuant to article 3 of chapter 54 of
Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

���� "Out-of-county
college"
and �out-of-county vocational school district�
means a
county college
or a county vocational school district
that is outside of
a student's county of residence.�

���� "Program" means the
Community College Opportunity Grant Program created pursuant to section 2 of
this act.�

���� "Three plus one degree
program" means a baccalaureate degree program created pursuant to section
1 of P.L.2018, c.144 (C.18A:3B-78).�

(cf: P.L.2021, c.26, s.1)

���� 2.��� Section 2 of P.L.2021,
c.26 (C.18A:71B-112) is amended to read as follows:

���� 2.��� There is hereby created
the Community College Opportunity Grant Program.� The purpose of the program
shall be to provide financial aid grants to eligible county college
and
adult county vocational school district
students, to cover the costs of
tuition and approved educational fees that are not already covered by any other
State, federal, and institutional need-based grants or merit scholarships and
to provide county colleges with Student Success Incentive funding for outreach
and student success initiatives.� The financial aid grants distributed to
eligible students under the program shall be administered by the Higher
Education Student Assistance Authority, while the Student Success Incentive
funding distributed to county colleges under the program shall be administered
by the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education.�

(cf: P.L.2021, c.26, s.2)

���� 3.� Section 3 of P.L.2021,
c.26 (C.18A:71B-113) is amended to read as follows:

���� 3.� a.� To be eligible to
receive a financial aid grant under the Community College Opportunity Grant
Program, a student shall:

���� (1)�� be a legal resident of
the State in accordance with the provisions of N.J.S.18A:71B-2 or be eligible
for student financial aid pursuant to P.L.2018, c.12 (C.18A:71B-2.1)
.� A
student who otherwise meets the provisions of N.J.S.18A:71B-2 or P.L.2018, c.12
(C.18A:71B-2.1), except for any requirement under those provisions of law to be
enrolled in an eligible institution of higher education, shall be eligible to
receive a financial aid grant under the program if the student is an adult
student enrolled in a postsecondary career and technical education program
offered by a county vocational school district
;�

���� (2)�� be enrolled in at least
six credits at a county college established pursuant to chapter 64A of Title
18A of the New Jersey Statutes
or be an adult student enrolled in a
postsecondary career and technical education program of at least four months in
length at a county vocational school district
;

���� (3)� (a)� be enrolled at the
county college
or county vocational school district
that serves the
student's county of residence; or

���� (b)� be enrolled at an
out-of-county college, in which case the student, if otherwise eligible, shall
receive a grant under the program to cover the remaining costs of tuition and
approved educational fees, charged at the in-district rate for the county college
at which the student is enrolled, provided that the amount of a grant provided
to a student under this subparagraph does not exceed the amount of tuition and
approved educational fees actually charged to the student
. An adult student
enrolled in an out-of-county vocational school district, if otherwise eligible,
shall receive a grant under the program to cover the remaining costs of tuition
and approved educational fees, charged at the out-of-county rate of the county
vocational school district at which the student is enrolled
;

���� (4)�� not have an annual
adjusted gross income that is negative;

���� (5)�� have an annual adjusted
gross income between $0 and $65,000, except that the authority, in consultation
with the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education
[
and
]
,
the New Jersey Council
of County Colleges,
and the New Jersey Council of County
Vocational-Technical Schools,
may annually establish maximum annual
adjusted gross income eligibility limits of no less than $65,000;

���� (6)�� 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 subsection b. of section 1 of P.L.2018,
c.12 (C.18A:71B-2.1);�

���� (7)�� not owe a refund on a
grant or scholarship previously received from a State or federal program
through any institution or be in default on any loan made under any State or
federal student loan program at any institution, unless the student makes
arrangements with the authority to repay the debt; and

���� (8)�� be in good academic
standing and meet the minimum standards for academic performance and
satisfactory academic progress as defined by the county college
or county
vocational school

district
which the student is attending.

���� A county college
or county
vocational school district
shall not impose additional eligibility
requirements for the program, other than the requirements set forth in this
subsection.�

���� b.��� A grant under the
program may be renewed for a student who:

���� (1)�� annually completes and
submits 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 subsection b. of section 1 of P.L.2018, c.12 (C.18A:71B-2.1);

���� (2)��
(a)
meets the
standards for academic performance and satisfactory academic progress, as
defined by the county college

which the student is attending, to
determine eligibility for federal student aid programs under Title IV of the
Higher Education Act of 1965 or, in the semester immediately prior to receiving
an award, attains a minimum level of academic success as determined by the authority
;
or

����
(b)�� meets the standards
for academic performance and satisfactory academic progress as defined by the
county vocational school district which the student is attending
; and

���� (3)�� maintains all
applicable

eligibility requirements established pursuant to subsection a. of this section.

���� c.� (1) A student shall be
eligible for a grant under the program for up to five semesters, unless the
student is enrolled in a program regularly requiring at least six semesters for
completion, in which case the authority shall permit up to six semesters of
eligibility.�

���� (2)�� A student enrolled in a
three plus one degree program shall be eligible for a grant under the program
for up to six semesters.

���� (3)�� Semesters for which a
student is enrolled in at least six credits but less than 12 credits shall be
counted as one-half of a full-time semester.

����
(4)�� An adult student
enrolled in a postsecondary career and technical education program, who is
eligible for a financial aid grant pursuant to subsection a. of this section,
shall be eligible for a financial aid grant for up to two years.

���� d.��� A student may be
eligible for a grant under the program during a fall or spring semester in an
academic year.�

���� e.���� If a student, the
student's family,
[
or
]
a county
college
, or a county vocational school district
deems that the authority
made an unfair determination of eligibility, an appeal may be filed with the
authority within 60 days of initial notification of eligibility or
ineligibility.�

���� f.���� The county college
or
county vocational school district
which a student attends shall notify the
student of the student's eligibility for the program and the amount of the
grant.�

(cf: P.L.2021, c.26, s.3)

���� 4.��� Section 4 of P.L.2021,
c.26 (C.18A:71B-114) is amended to read as follows:

���� 4.��� a.� A grant distributed
to an eligible student under the Community College Opportunity Grant Program
shall cover the remaining cost of tuition and approved educational fees, which
is not covered by State, federal, or any other need-based grant or merit scholarship,
for up to 18 credits in any semester.� The full amount of State, federal, and
institutional need-based grant or merit scholarships received by an eligible
student shall be applied to the amount of tuition and approved educational fees
charged to an eligible student.� The remaining balance of tuition and approved
educational fees shall be covered by a grant under the program.�

���� b.��� A full award under the
program to a student at a county college
or an adult student enrolled in a
postsecondary career and technical education program at a county vocational
school district
shall be equal to the student's full cost of approved
tuition and approved educational fees, subject to the prior application of all
other State, federal, and institutional need-based grants and merit
scholarships against those costs, for up to 18 credits in any semester, for an
eligible student for a full-time semester in an associate's degree,
certificate,
[
or
]
three plus
one degree program
, or for up to the recognized equivalent number of credits
in a postsecondary career and technical education program as determined by the
authority
.� For an eligible student enrolled in at least six credits but
less than 12 credits in an associate's degree, certificate, or three plus one
degree program,
or for an adult student enrolled in the recognized
equivalent range of credits in a postsecondary career and technical education
program as determined by the authority,
a grant under the program shall be
pro-rated from the full-time approved tuition and approved educational fees
based on the number of credits for which that student is enrolled.�

���� c.���� The authority shall,
for each county college
and county vocational school district
, annually
establish a maximum individual grant amount awarded under the program.� The
maximum individual grant amount for each county college
and county
vocational school district
shall not increase by more than three percent
over the prior year.�

(cf: P.L.2021, c.26, s.4)

���� 5.��� This act shall take
effect immediately and shall first apply to the first academic year following
the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

���� This bill amends the law
establishing the Community College Opportunity Grant (CCOG) Program to permit
adult students enrolled in postsecondary career and technical education
programs at county vocational school districts to be eligible to receive financial
aid under the program.

���� Under current State law, the
CCOG Program provides last-dollar grants to eligible county college students,
to pay for the remaining costs of tuition and approved educational fees that
are not already covered by any other State, federal, and institutional
need-based grants and merit scholarships for which a grant recipient is
eligible.

���� Under the bill, an adult
student would be eligible for financial aid under the CCOG Program if the
student: is a legal resident of the State; is enrolled in a postsecondary
career and technical education program of at least four months in length
offered by a county vocational school district; is enrolled at the county
vocational school district that serves the student's county of residence or is
enrolled at an out-of-county vocational school district, in which case the
student, if otherwise eligible, would receive a grant under the program to
cover the remaining costs of tuition and approved educational fees, charged at
the in-district rate for the county vocational school district at which the
student is enrolled; does not have an annual adjusted gross income that is
negative; has an annual adjusted gross income between $0 and $65,000; has applied
for all other available forms of State, federal, and institutional need-based
grants and merit scholarships and submitted a financial aid form; does not owe
a refund on a grant or scholarship previously received from a State or federal
program through any institution or be in default on any loan made under any
State or federal student loan program at any institution, unless the student
makes arrangements with the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority to
repay the debt; and is in good academic standing and meets the minimum
standards for academic performance and satisfactory academic progress as
defined by county vocational school district which the student is attending.

���� An adult education student
enrolled in a postsecondary career and technical education program at a county
vocational school district, who is eligible for a financial aid grant under the
bill, would be eligible for a financial aid grant for up to two years.