Provides that State pay high school equivalency exam fees for low-income individuals.

A1929

ASSEMBLY, No. 1929

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2026 SESSION

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE QUIJANO

District 20 (Union)

Assemblyman STERLEY S. STANLEY

District 18 (Middlesex)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman Reynolds-Jackson

SYNOPSIS

���� Provides that State pay high school equivalency exam
fees for low-income individuals.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

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

��

An Act
concerning high school equivalency exam fees,
supplementing chapter 50A of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes, and amending
P.L.1992, c.43.

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

���� 1.��� (New section)� a.� No
later than six months following the effective date of P.L.��� , c.�� (C.���� )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill), the State Board of Education
shall establish a program to pay the fee of a high school equivalency exam on
behalf of a low-income individual.� The State board shall specify the manner in
which an individual may apply for the payment, including the documentation that
shall be used to verify the individual�s income.� The program established by
the State board shall not provide payment for more than one exam for an
individual.

���� b.��� As used in this section:

���� �High school equivalency exam�
means any adult education assessment approved by the State board as a basis for
qualifying for a State-issued high school diploma;

���� �Low-income individual� means
an individual who resides in a household in which the household income is less
than or equal to 185 percent of the most recent federal poverty guidelines
available.

���� 2.��� Section 9 of P.L.1992,
c.43 (C.34:15D-9) is amended to read as follows:

���� 9.� a.� A restricted,
nonlapsing, revolving Workforce Development Partnership Fund, to be managed and
invested by the State Treasurer, is hereby established to: provide employment
and training services to qualified displaced, disadvantaged and employed workers
by means of training grants or customized training services; provide for the
other costs indicated in subsection a. of section 4 of P.L.1992, c.43
(C.34:15D-4); provide for the New Jersey Innovation and Research Fellowship
Program as provided for in section 3 of P.L.2015, c.235 (C.34:15D-26); provide
for the Talent Network Program as provided for in section 2 of P.L.2019, c.125
(C.34:15D-29); and facilitate the provision of education and training to youth
by means of grants provided by the Youth Transitions to Work Partnership
pursuant to the provisions of P.L.1993, c.268 (C.34:15E-1 et al.).� All
appropriations to the fund, all interest accumulated on balances in the fund
and all cash received for the fund from any other source shall be used solely
for the purposes specifically delineated by this act.

���� b.��� During any fiscal year
beginning after June 30, 2001, of the total revenues dedicated to the program
during any one fiscal year:

���� (1) 25% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved to provide
employment and training services for qualified displaced workers, and through
fiscal year 2023, not less than 10% of the revenues deposited in that account
shall be reserved to provide employment and training services to qualified
displaced workers in the pursuit of industry-valued credentials under the pilot
program established pursuant to P.L.2019, c.252 (C.34:15D-30 et al.); and
during any fiscal year beginning after June 30, 2019, 0.5% shall be deposited
in an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for an
appropriated to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development for the
Apprenticeship Start-Up Grant Program created pursuant to section 3 of
P.L.2019, c.417 (C.34:15D-6.1);

���� (2) 6% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved to provide
employment and training services for qualified disadvantaged workers, and
through fiscal year 2023, not less than 10% of the revenues deposited in that
account shall be reserved to provide employment and training services to
qualified disadvantaged workers in the pursuit of industry-valued credentials
under the pilot program established pursuant to P.L.2019, c.252 (C.34:15D-30 et
al.);

���� (3) 37% prior to July 1, 2022,
and 35% after June 30, 2022 shall be deposited in an account of the Workforce
Development Partnership Fund reserved for and appropriated to the Office of
Customized Training;

���� (4) 5% prior to July 1, 2022,
and 7% after June 30, 2022 shall be deposited in an account of the Workforce
Development Partnership Fund reserved for the Youth Transitions to Work
Partnership created pursuant to P.L.1993, c.268 (C.34:15E-1 et seq.);

���� (5) 3% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for
occupational safety and health training;

���� (6) 5% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for and
appropriated to the Talent Network Program established pursuant to section 2 of
P.L.2019, c.125 (C.34:15D-29);

���� (7) 3% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for the New
Jersey Innovation and Research Fellowship Program established pursuant to
section 3 of P.L.2015, c.235 (C.34:15D-26);

���� (8) 10% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for
administrative costs as defined in section 3 of P.L.1992, c.43 (C.34:15D-3);

���� (9) 0.5% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for the State
Employment and Training Commission to design criteria and conduct an annual
evaluation of the program; and

���� (10) 5% shall be deposited in
an account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund to be used
,
pursuant to the provisions of P.L., c.��� (C.������ ) (pending before the
Legislature as this bill), to pay the fee for an adult education assessment
exam, and
, at the discretion of the commissioner, for any of the purposes
indicated in subsection a. of section 4 of P.L.1992, c.43 (C.34:15D-4).

���� c.��� Beginning January 1,
1995, through June 30, 2002, the balance in the fund as of the previous
December 31, as determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles, shall not exceed 1.5 times the amount of contributions deposited
for the calendar year then ended.� If the balance exceeds this amount, the
excess shall be deposited into the unemployment compensation fund within seven
business days of the date that the determination is made.

���� d.��� Beginning July 1, 2002,
and for any subsequent fiscal year, if the unexpended cash balance in any of
the accounts indicated in subsection b. of this section, except for the account
reserved for the Talent Network Program, less any amount awarded in grants but
not yet disbursed from the account, is determined to exceed 20% of the amount
of contributions collected for deposit in the account pursuant to this
subsection during the fiscal year then ended, the excess shall be regarded as
an unemployment compensation contribution and deposited into the unemployment
compensation fund within seven business days of the date that the determination
is made.� If the unexpended cash balance in the account reserved for the Talent
Network Program, less any amount awarded in grants but not yet disbursed from
the account, is determined to exceed 20% of the amount of contributions
collected for deposit in the account pursuant to this subsection during the
fiscal year then ended, the excess shall be deposited into the Workforce
Development Partnership Fund account reserved for the Office of Customized
Training.

���� e.��� $250,000 shall be
allocated to the Apprentice Assistance and Support Services Pilot Program
established pursuant to section 1 of P.L.2019, c.419 (C.34:15D-6.2) from the
$29,690,000 which was appropriated pursuant to the annual appropriations act
for State fiscal year 2019 from the Workforce Development Partnership Fund for
the purpose of funding Work First New Jersey Work Activities and Work First New
Jersey-Training Related Expenses, and, $1,100,000 shall be allocated to the
pilot program in each of fiscal years 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 from the
amounts appropriated pursuant to the annual appropriations act in those fiscal
years from the Workforce Development Partnership Fund for the purpose of
funding Work First New Jersey Work Activities and Work First New
Jersey-Training Related Expenses.� Of the funds allocated to the pilot program
pursuant to this subsection, 90% shall be dedicated to the Child Care Stipend
program and 10% to transportation reimbursement.

���� f.���� Upon the effective date
of P.L.2022, c.89 (C.34:15E-6 et al.) and notwithstanding the provisions of any
law or regulation to the contrary, in addition to the amount deposited in an
account of the Workforce Development Partnership Fund reserved for the Youth
Transitions to Work Partnership pursuant to subsection b. of this section,
$1,000,000 shall be allocated to the Youth Transitions to Work Partnership from
the $22,500,000 which was appropriated pursuant to the annual appropriations
act for State fiscal year 2022 from the Workforce Development Partnership Fund
for the purpose of funding the NJ Apprenticeship Network, the Career
Accelerator Internship Program, the Workforce Development Policy and Evaluation
Lab, the NJ Career Network, and such other priority workforce initiatives
recommended by the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.

(cf: P.L.2022, c.89, s.2)

���� 3.��� This act shall take
effect immediately.�

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires that the
State Board of Education, within six months of the bill�s effective date,
establish a program to pay the high school equivalency exam fees on behalf of
low-income individuals.� The bill defines a low-income individual as one who
lives in a household in which the household income is not greater than 185
percent of the most recent federal poverty guidelines.� The program would not
provide payment for more than one exam for an individual.� The State cost of
the fees would be paid from the portion of the Workforce Development
Partnership Fund.

����� This bill was pre-filed for introduction in the
2024-2025 session pending technical review.� As reported, the bill includes the
changes required by technical review, which has been performed.