The following items are taken from reports issued by legislators and other items of political concern.
Teacher loans
Legislation sponsored by Sen. Shirley Turner establishing a loan redemption program for certain teachers of STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) to help them pay off college debt has cleared the Senate Education Committee.
”New Jersey’s schools continually are some of the best performing schools in the country,” said Sen. Turner, D-Mercer, Hunterdon. “However, we face a shortage of teachers in the areas of science, technology, engineering and mathematics. “We need to do more to attract educators to teach our students critical STEM subjects and help us prepare tomorrow’s workforce. Our students need to learn 21st-century skills to fill jobs that require highly skilled workers and to allow New Jersey businesses to gain a competitive edge in the global marketplace.”
Currently, New Jersey issues loans through the New Jersey College Loans to Assist State Students program to help pay for college costs not already covered by other sources of grants, scholarships and loans. The program is run by the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority.
The legislation would provide loan redemption for educators who received loans through this program if they teach science, technology, engineering or mathematics.
In order to participate in the program, a person must have been an undergraduate student who received loans from NJCLASS and employed for three full years as a teacher of science or mathematics.
Under the bill, a STEM teacher in a former Abbott district could have all NJCLASS loans forgiven after seven years of service while STEM teachers in other districts and nonpublic schools could achieve total loan forgiveness after 10 years of service.
”This is an effective way to recruit and retain teachers in STEM subjects, however, it is also a way to attract more educators to urban school districts that often have greater difficulty hiring highly qualified teachers,” Sen. Turner said. “Allowing college graduates to wipe away some or all of the excruciating debt they owe for earning their college degrees will enhance the recruiting methods of poorer districts that pay lower salaries than wealthier districts.”
The bill (S1487) was passed 4-1 by the committee and now heads to the full Senate for consideration.
Overpayments
Legislation sponsored by Sen. Richard J. Codey, D–Essex, Morris, to help prevent the overpayment of unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation benefits in order to protect workers funds has received final approval in the state Senate.
”Failure to report a return to work is a main cause of unemployment insurance and workers’ compensation overpayment,” Sen. Codey said. “The state already receives information from employers when a worker is newly hired. There is no reason we shouldn’t use that documentation to help root out fraud in the system by cross-checking against benefits records. Making this verification system law will better ensure that our state funds are protected and available for those who are out of work and who really need them.”
The New Jersey Department of Human Services currently collects information regarding newly hired employees in the private and public sector for purposes of child support payment as required by federal law. The bill (S2740) would require information reported to DHS concerning employees to be shared with state agencies operating employment security and workers’ compensation programs.
This would allow state agencies to cross-check state records and would help prevent the continued payment of claims after an employee has returned to work. The legislation also would help to protect workers funds and would bring the state in line with guidance issued by the United States Department of Labor to insure the integrity of UI payments.
The legislation was approved by the Assembly with a vote of 78-2-0 in June, and the Senate passed it by a vote of 33-0. The bill now heads to the governor’s desk for his signature.
Compensation
The Senate has voted to accept Gov. Chris Christie’s changes to legislation intended to more fairly compensate innocent people who were wrongly convicted and imprisoned.
The bill, S1219, sponsored by Sen. Richard Codey, D-Essex, Morris, will increase financial compensation under the Wrongful Imprisonment Act and provide services to help those punished unjustly try to get their lives back.
The governor changed the bill to exclude those who took guilty pleas in order to avoid the risk of a lengthy prison sentence.
”Innocent people who are wrongly convicted and then lose years of their lives to imprisonment pay a heavy price for what are miscarriages of justice,” Sen. Codey said. “The lost years can’t be returned to them, and they will still face tough challenges as they try to rebuild their lives, but they deserve fair compensation and support services. When the justice system makes mistakes, it turns the innocent into victims.”
The bill will increase the financial compensation from $20,000 to $50,000 for each year of imprisonment or twice the amount of the claimant’s income the year prior to incarceration, whichever is greater. The bill also allows courts to award support services, such as vocational training, tuition assistance, counseling, housing assistance and insurance coverage.
Sen. Codey said he disagrees with the governor’s changes to disqualify those who accept a guilty plea, but the legislation still “makes real progress, even if it doesn’t deliver full justice.”
”If an innocent person is given the choice of risking a lengthy prison sentence or accepting a shorter term, they often can’t run the risk of going to trial,” Sen. Codey said. “That isn’t much of a choice. If they are innocent, that is what should matter most.”
Sen. Codey said he and other supporters of the bill will monitor the implementation of the changes and look to “undo the governor’s ‘conditions’ so the innocent are eligible for compensation even if they had accepted a guilty plea.”
The bill goes to the Assembly before being returned to the governor.
Illegal firearms
Legislation sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Loretta Weinberg to improve the reporting, tracing and collection of illegal firearms by requiring law enforcement to report certain information to interjurisdictional electronic databases has received final approval in the state Senate.
The bill is part of a legislative package put forward by Senate Democrats in recent months to combat gun violence in New Jersey and to make communities safer.
The measure (S2718) was conditionally vetoed by the governor, but maintains the main provisions that would require law enforcement officers seizing or recovering firearms follow a reporting procedure aimed at leveraging federal firearms databases to deter and solve gun crimes.
”It is critical that we utilize the federal resources that are available to track illegal gun activity through firearms that are abandoned, found at crime scenes or seized from criminals,” said Sen. Weinberg, D-Bergen. “Doing this will improve our ability to find illegal gun traffickers that are supplying weapons in our communities, to uncover patterns of straw purchasing and to develop investigative leads in cases of violent crimes. By ensuring that these systems are used uniformly by law enforcement going forward, we will help to the stem gun violence that is taking place in cities and towns across our state.”
The bill would require law enforcement to input firearm data into various electronic databases, in particular, into the National Crime Information Center System to determine whether a firearm has been reported stolen; the Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives E-Trace System to establish the identity of a firearm’s first purchaser where that firearm was purchased and when it was purchased; and the National Integrated Ballistics Identification Network to ascertain whether a particular firearm is related to any other criminal event or person.
Law enforcement would be required to complete a seized or recovered firearms incident report within 24 hours of entering the required information into the New Jersey Trace System or other required systems if the firearms are unlawfully possessed, used for an unlawful purpose, recovered at a crime scene or reasonably believed to have been used in or associated with a crime or found as abandoned or discarded weapons.
Additionally, the bill would require law enforcement to test fire the firearm if seizing or recovering firearms under one of the four categories and submit the results of that test fire to the NIBIN to determine whether the firearm is associated with a crime.
It also would require ballistics information be submitted to NIBIN when spent shell casings are found at a crime scene or are believed to be related to a crime or unlawful discharge of a firearm.
The governor conditionally vetoed a provision of the bill, which would have required the trace information be available to the public.
The Senate has given final approval to the revised bill. It now heads back to the governor for his signature.
Performance boosts
Assemblyman Troy Singleton, D-Burlington, has introduced a package of bills to create an innovative new approach to public education in New Jersey that would boost the performance of both students and teachers and attract quality educators to critical subject areas. “We know that we’re in an increasingly competitive global environment that begs us to step up our game,” Assemblyman Singleton said. “Where once we were competing against other states for jobs and commerce, we now face fierce competition from countries like China and India where a heavy educational emphasis is placed on science, math and technology. If we want to maintain our competitive advantage and prepare youngsters to succeed in the global economy, we need to focus our efforts on these critical areas.” To that end, the first bill (A4451) would establish a loan redemption program for public school teachers who meet certain academic requirements and who teach STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics) subjects or special education. Sen. Shirley Turner has introduced similar legislation, which has cleared the Senate Education Committee. Under Assemblyman Singleton’s bill, the program would be established in the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. To be eligible, participants must: • Have graduated in the top 20 percent of their high school graduating class or scored in the top 20 percent on the SAT or ACT examination. • Have graduated from an institution of higher education with a grade point average of at least 3.5. • Teach STEM subjects or special education. • Be a resident of New Jersey. The program would forgive up to $9,000 in student loans or the outstanding balance of the principal and interest of eligible student loan expenses, whichever is less, following the third consecutive year of full-time employment as a teacher of STEM subjects or special education in a public school. A program participant would not be required to teach at the same public school for three consecutive years. Assemblyman Singleton’s second bill (A4453) would establish a Flexible Pathways Initiative in the Department of Education to encourage and support the creativity of school districts in developing high-quality educational experiences for their students. “In order for a student to achieve their maximum potential, their education experience must take into account their unique needs and abilities,” Assemblyman Singleton said. “Obviously, each student has distinct interests, strengths and weaknesses, and all of these factors should be taken into account when carving out an educational plan that’s best for them. That is the essence of the Flexible Pathways proposal.” The bill would direct a school district to work with each student in kindergarten through grade 12 in an individualized planning process that culminates in the development of a personalized learning plan for each student. A personalized learning plan would identify the student’s emerging abilities and aptitude; include the participation of teachers, parents or guardians and the student, as age-appropriate; and guide decisions regarding the appropriate instructional approach and educational experiences for the student. Personalized learning plans then would be used by school districts to create opportunities for students to pursue flexible pathways to graduation and increase the likelihood students will pursue post-secondary education and training. School districts with one or more high school or middle school, would be required to develop additional policies that provide its students with a diverse array of flexible pathways to graduation as well as career development and post-secondary planning resources. The bill also would direct the commissioner of Education to develop an early college program that enables high-achieving 12th-grade students to complete high school while enrolled as a full-time student at a participating public institution of higher education. Lastly, the commissioner of Education would be responsible for providing a Flexible Pathways guidance document for use by school districts, which includes model policies and curriculum requirements as well as the necessary technical assistance to meet the bill’s requirements. Assemblyman Singleton’s third bill (A4452) would direct the State Board of Education, in consultation with an advisory board of educational professionals, to establish standards for the improvement of teacher preparation and certification programs and raise the bar for students looking to become teachers. “The quality of the teacher in the classroom is the single most important factor within a school related to student achievement,” Assemblyman Singleton said. “This fundamental point illustrates how vital our state’s teacher preparation programs are and why they must be continuously evaluated and prodded towards excellence.” Under the bill, every teacher preparation program would annually report its performance on the following benchmarks to the Department of Education, and the department would make the information available to the public on its website: • The attrition, retention and completion rates of candidates for teacher certification enrolled in the program. • The average score of candidates for teacher certification on the appropriate state test of subject matter knowledge required for each endorsement to the instructional certificate. • The percentage of candidates for teacher certification who complete the program who obtain a full-time or part-time teaching position. • The name of the school district, nonpublic school or other entity where the candidate obtained employment. Based on the reported information, the state board is to establish a rating system for teacher preparation programs and also will make those ratings available for public inspection on its website. All three bills were referred to the Assembly Education Committee.
Doctor loans
Legislation sponsored by Sen. Robert Singer, R-Ocean, that establishes a physician loan redemption program for certain specialties has been passed by the Senate Education Committee. The bill is based on a recommendation in a report issued by the New Jersey Council of Teaching Hospitals that said loan forgiveness is one of the top factors medical residents look for in determining a practice. “By providing these incentives, we can attract more doctors to needed specialties and assure New Jersey residents aren’t left with insufficient care,” Sen. Singer said. “With a growing demand for doctors and predicted shortage in many specialties in the next decade, we have to act now to attract the best-trained physicians.” According to a report issued by the New Jersey Council of Teaching Hospitals, New Jersey is facing significant future shortages in both primary care and several specialty areas. In 11 years, there is a projected 12 percent shortfall in the physician supply versus the likely population demand for services. The bill, S162, provides for redemption of qualifying loan expenses for physicians in specialties that are projected to experience a significant shortage in the state if they work in the state for 10 years in designated underserved areas. The Advisory Graduate Medical Education Council, in consultation with the New Jersey Council of Teaching Hospitals, would determine which specialties are projected to have a significant shortage. Underserved areas are those that have been ranked by the commissioner of Health and Senior Services on the basis of health status and economic indicators. “Perhaps more significantly, the demand for doctors is increasing because of the growing population of seniors,” Sen. Singer said. “It takes about seven years to train a physician so we need to begin now because, as the baby boom generation begins to retire, we need to ensure that we have enough doctors to care and provide for everyone’s medical well being.”
Jobs bill
The bipartisan Economic Opportunity Act sponsored by Sen. Joe Kyrillos, R-Monmouth, to create thousands of new private-sector jobs has been advanced by the Senate to Gov. Chris Christie for approval. “In the months that this act was unnecessarily delayed by poor Senate and Assembly leadership, New Jersey missed out on new job creation as other states such as North Carolina passed monumental measures to attract businesses,” Sen. Kyrillos said. “Now we can tell families and job creators that the anxious wait is over, and the Economic Opportunity Act is finally on the brink of enactment to help ensure New Jersey retains and attracts employers in the immediate future.” In addition to boosting the state’s private-sector economy, this comprehensive Act, A3680, will consolidate and expand the Grow New Jersey and Economic Redevelopment and Growth tax incentive programs while phasing out the Business Retention and Relocation Assistance Grant, the Business Employment Incentive and the Urban Transit Hub Tax Credit programs. “I thank my Democratic colleagues, namely Sen. Lesniak, for their efforts on this front,” Sen. Kyrillos said. “Hopefully, this Legislature will now be successful in coming together to revamp New Jersey’s economy for the long haul by addressing this state’s noncompetitive tax structure that forces families, employers, college students and innovators to leave for states with a reasonable and affordable cost. Once that happens, the need for complex job creation incentives will dissipate.”
