Requires public institution of higher education to study cost drivers, administrative productivity, organizational structure, space utilization, and faculty productivity.

S3292

SENATE, No. 3292

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

�

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 2, 2026

Sponsored by:

Senator� KRISTIN M. CORRADO

District 40 (Bergen, Essex and Passaic)

SYNOPSIS

���� Requires public institution of higher education to
study cost drivers, administrative productivity, organizational structure,
space utilization, and faculty productivity.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

���� As introduced.

��

An Act
concerning higher education administration 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.��� A public institution of
higher education shall develop a cost diagnostic that clearly identifies the
factors that influence or contribute to the cost of providing higher education
services.� The cost diagnostic shall, for the most recent 10-year period:

���� a.���� identify key drivers of
costs and revenue at the institution by administrative function and academic
program;

���� b.��� account for ways in
which increases in cost are funded, with specific attention to the impact on
tuition and student fees;

���� c.���� detail the number and
classes of managers employed by the institution, including the average number
of� employees each class of manager supervises; and

���� d.��� identify priority areas
that offer the institution the best opportunities for efficiencies that will
minimize the cost passed on to students.�

���� 2.��� a.� The Secretary of
Higher Education shall develop a common measure of administrative productivity
that shall be used by a public institution of higher education.� The purpose of
the measure shall be to provide higher education administrators with better
performance data and supplement the body of information used by policymakers
when making resource allocation decisions.���

���� b.� A public institution of
higher education shall biennially analyze the administrative productivity rates
within its colleges, departments, and units using the common measure of
administrative productivity developed pursuant to subsection a. of this section.�
The institution shall report its findings to the secretary.�

���� 3.��� A public institution of
higher education shall biennially review its organizational structure to
identify opportunities to streamline and reduce costs.� The review shall
consider opportunities for shared business services among units or between
institutions of higher education, when appropriate, for fiscal services, human
resources, and information technology.�

���� 4.��� A public institution of
higher education shall biennially conduct a space utilization study of its
campuses.� The study shall identify opportunities to reduce energy,
maintenance, and other costs associated with suboptimal utilization of
facilities.

���� 5.��� A public institution of
higher education shall biennially report on the productivity of its faculty,
and shall make the report publicly available on the institution�s website.� The
report shall include:

���� a.���� the number of courses
taught by each faculty member or instructor;

���� b.��� the number of courses in
which the faculty member or instructor has one or more teaching assistants;�

���� c.���� the percentage of staff
time each faculty member spends on research; and

���� d.��� a list of faculty
publications and creative works.�

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

STATEMENT

���� This bill requires each public
institution of higher education to conduct multiple studies to assess the
efficiency of its administration. Under the bill, a public institution of
higher education is required to:

(1)���� develop a
cost diagnostic that clearly identifies the factors that influence or
contribute to the cost of providing higher education services;

(2)���� biennially
analyze the administrative productivity rates within its colleges, departments,
and units using the common measure of administrative productivity to be
developed by the Secretary of Higher Education.� Each institution will report
its findings to the secretary;

(3)���� biennially
review its organizational structure to identify opportunities to streamline and
reduce costs.� The review will consider opportunities for shared business
services among units or between institutions of higher education, when
appropriate, for fiscal services, human resources, and information technology;�

(4)���� biennially
conduct a space utilization study of its campuses. The study will identify
opportunities to reduce energy, maintenance, and other costs associated with
suboptimal utilization of facilities; and��

(5)���� biennially
report on the productivity of its faculty.� The report will include: the number
of courses taught by each faculty member or instructor; the number of courses
in which the faculty member or instructor has one or more teaching assistants;
the percentage of staff time each faculty member spends on research; and a list
of faculty publications and creative works.��