"College Mental Health Services Act"; establishes grant program for public institutions of higher education and requires public institutions of higher education to report certain information concerning mental health treatment and suicides.

S3286

SENATE, No. 3286

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 2, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� KRISTIN M. CORRADO

District 40 (Bergen, Essex and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� �College Mental Health Services Act�; establishes
grant program for public institutions of higher education and requires public
institutions of higher education to report certain information concerning
mental health treatment and suicides.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning mental health on college campuses and
supplementing chapter 62 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.�

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

���� 1.��� This act shall be known
and may be cited as the �College Mental Health Services Act.��

���� 2.��� a.� There is established
in the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education the �College Mental Health
Services Grant Program.�� The purpose of the program shall be to allocate grant
moneys to public institutions of higher education to improve access to mental
health services on the campuses of the institutions.�

���� b.��� A grant received by a
public institution of higher education under the program shall be specifically
used for efforts to improve student access to, and the timeliness of the
provision of, mental health services and supports.� The grant may be used for,
but is not limited to:

���� (1)� developing initiatives to
reduce wait times for students seeking mental health services and supports;�

���� (2)� hiring additional mental
health professionals to provide mental health services and supports to students
at the institution;

���� (3)� contracting with
independent public or private entities to provide mental health services and
supports;

���� (4)� creating methods to
enhance the identification of students who may be experiencing personal,
school, or family difficulties impacting the student�s mental health;� and

���� (5)� implementing efforts to
increase awareness among students of existing on-campus and community resources
for students experiencing mental health difficulties.�

���� c.���� To be eligible for
consideration for a grant award, a public institution of higher education shall
submit an application to the Secretary of Higher Education, in accordance with
application procedures and requirements prescribed by the secretary.� A grant
application shall include a complete description of the institution�s specific
plans and objectives for the use of the grant funds and any other information
specified by the secretary.�

���� d.��� The secretary shall
establish selection criteria for the awarding of grant funds under the
program.� The secretary shall establish the amount for each grant that is
approved.�

���� 3.��� a.� There is created
within the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education a fund to be known as
the �College Mental Health Services Grant Fund.�� The fund shall be used to
provide grants to New Jersey public institutions of higher education under the
�College Mental Health Services Grant Program� established pursuant to section
2 of this act.�

���� b.��� The fund shall annually
be credited with moneys appropriated by the State, any moneys received by the
State from corporate donors or other private sector support, and any federal
funds which may become available for higher education and mental health services
and supports purposes.�

�����
4.��
a.

Beginning with the first full academic year following the date
of enactment
of this act
, a public
institution of higher education shall provide for public inspection on its
Internet website information on:

�����
(1) �the ratio of
students to mental health professionals at the institution;�

���� (2) �the total number of
students who had appointments with a mental health professional at the
institution;

���� (3)�� the number of students
who had only one appointment with a mental health professional at the
institution;

���� (4) �the number of students
who had three or more appointments with a mental health professional at the
institution;

���� (5) �the total number of
appointments made by students with mental health professionals at the
institution;�

���� (6) �the average number of
appointments for those students who had more than one appointment with a mental
health professional at the institution;

���� (7) �the average wait time for
students to meet with a mental health professional at the institution;�

���� (8) �the number of students
who were referred to outside mental health services; and

���� (9) �the number of students
who were referred to emergency care due to mental health concerns.

���� The information required
pursuant to this
subsection
shall be
recorded for each semester and shall be posted no more than 60 days following
the end of each semester.� The information shall be posted on the institution�s
Internet website in a prominent and easily accessible location.�

���� b.�
Beginning with the first full academic year following the date of enactment of
this act, a public institution of higher education shall report to the
Secretary of Higher Education on:

���� (1)
�� the
total number of students enrolled in the institution who committed suicide in
the previous academic year; and

���� (2)�� the total number of
students enrolled in the institution who attempted to commit suicide in the
previous academic year.

���� The secretary shall report the
total number of student suicides and student suicide attempts at all public
institutions of higher education combined
to
the Governor, and to the Legislature pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1).
The secretary may authorize limited disclosure of the
data collected pursuant to this subsection for use in medical, academic, or
policy studies.

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

STATEMENT

���� This bill, known as the
�College Mental Health Services Act,� establishes in the Office of the
Secretary of Higher Education the �College Mental Health Services Grant
Program.�� The purpose of the program will be to allocate grant moneys to
senior public institutions of higher education and county colleges in the State
to establish or improve access to mental health services on the campuses of the
institutions.�

���� A grant received by a public
institution of higher education under the program is to be specifically used
for efforts to improve student access to, and the timeliness of the provision
of, mental health services and supports.� The grant may be used for, but is not
limited to: developing initiatives to reduce wait times for students seeking
mental health services and supports; hiring additional mental health
professionals to provide mental health services and supports to students at the
institution; contracting with independent public or private entities to provide
mental health services and supports; creating methods to enhance the
identification of students who may be experiencing personal, school, or family
difficulties impacting the student�s mental health; and implementing efforts to
increase awareness among students of existing on-campus and community resources
for students experiencing mental health difficulties.�

���� The bill also requires public
institutions of higher education to post on their Internet websites the
following information for each semester: the ratio of students to mental health
professionals at the institution; the total number of students who had
appointments with a mental health professional at the institution; the number
of students who had only one appointment with a mental health professional; the
number of students who had three or more appointments with a mental health
professional; the total number of appointments made by students with mental
health professionals; the average number of appointments for those students who
had more than one appointment with a mental health professional; the average
wait time for students to receive appointments with a mental health
professional; the number of students who were referred to outside mental health
services; and the number of students who were referred to emergency care due to
mental health concerns.� The information will be updated no more than 60 days
following the end of each semester and will be posted on the institution�s
website.

���� The bill also requires each
public institution of higher education to annually report to the Secretary of
Higher Education on the total number of students enrolled in the institution
who committed suicide in the previous academic year, and ����������� the total
number of students enrolled in the institution who attempted to commit suicide
in the previous academic year.� The secretary must report the total number of
student suicides and student suicide attempts at all public institutions of
higher education combined to the Governor, and to the Legislature.� The
secretary may also authorize limited disclosure of the collected data in
medical, academic, or policy studies.