On the Governor’s Desk
The full General Assembly held a voting session on Thursday, May 22. One measure intended to protect student privacy now sits on the governor’s desk. The remaining bills head to the Senate for further consideration. A rundown of each education-related measure follows.
Protecting Student Data A-5469/S-4162 would amend current law to limit the disclosure of financial information. The amended law would require that a waiver template or form developed by the New Jersey Department of Education (NJDOE), a board of education, or a board of trustees of a charter school would provide only the student’s name, telephone number, email address, and the date and signature of the person submitting the waiver. Under the bill, school districts and charter schools are prohibited from using or disclosing the waiver submitted under P.L.2023, c.295, or any personal information contained within the waiver, without the informed consent of the student or the student’s parent or guardian. The 2023 law requires high school students to complete financial aid forms (e.g., FAFSA) as a prerequisite to graduate.
The New Jersey School Boards Association supports the bill, which was passed by the Senate in March.
Passed by Assembly, Sent to Senate
Other bills passed by the Assembly that are relevant to boards of education include the following:
No-Fee Option for School Lunch Payments A-5263/S-3961 would require boards of education to offer a no-fee option to parents and guardians for making school lunch and other types of payments. The no-fee option would need to be provided at a time and place convenient for students’, parents’ and guardians’ use. The bill would also require any payment processing platform used by a school district to provide users with certain information on user fees and would require any school-based communications requesting payment for school meals, field trips, activity fees or other goods or services to include information on the fees associated with use of a payment processing platform that may be used to make the payment.
The NJSBA is monitoring the bill. It was passed by the Senate in February, but following amendments in the Assembly, it will head back to the Senate for a concurrence vote before being ready for the governor’s signature.
School Counselor Certification A-3424 would establish several requirements related to school counselor certification and employment. The bill defines the role of a school counselor as someone who recognizes and responds to the need for mental health services that promote social and emotional wellness and development for all students and is tasked with designing and delivering a comprehensive program for school counseling that promotes the achievement of students. The bill would require:
- Each school counselor employed by a district to provide certain school counseling services including, but not limited to, specific services enumerated in the legislation.
- School counselors to complete professional development in relevant areas, such as the promotion of mental health awareness and trauma-informed counseling.
- School counseling certification programs at institutions of higher education to incorporate the American School Counselor Association’s national model for comprehensive school counseling programs or a state-approved model.
- The commissioner of education to appoint a state school counselor liaison to work with school districts to facilitate best practices and serve as a resource expert for school counselors.
The NJSBA supports the bill, which has not yet moved in the Senate.
Water Safety Fact Sheet A-4763 would require the education commissioner to develop an educational fact sheet on water safety, in consultation with water safety organizations. The commissioner would be required to make the fact sheet available to school districts and nonpublic schools, and districts would be required to distribute the fact sheet to parents and guardians. Additionally, as amended, the bill would require NJDOE to develop, and update annually, a list of locations where swimming lessons and age-appropriate courses providing instruction to promote water safety are offered, including courses and lessons that are offered for free or reduced prices. School districts would be required to provide access to the list on their websites.
In previous committee testimony, the NJSBA supported the bill as amended. The NJSBA also successfully obtained the amendment to direct the NJDOE to develop a statewide list of locations where swimming lessons and safety courses are offered rather than having each district create their own lists. The bill has not yet moved in the Senate.
Nonpublic Auxiliary and Remedial Aid A-4854 would amend laws governing the allocation of state aid for auxiliary services and remedial services to nonpublic school students. It would require the commissioner of education to establish a process by which school districts are to be reimbursed for costs that are incurred to provide those services. The maximum per-service aid amounts established by the commissioner would be calculated by dividing the amount annually appropriated to provide services by the average number of documented services delivered in the prior three school years. The method by which the commissioner establishes the maximum per service aid amounts is required to ensure that, to the greatest extent possible, the amounts annually appropriated for auxiliary services and remedial services are fully exhausted by the end of the school year for which the maximum amounts are established. Finally, the bill would require the commissioner to conduct a survey, in the second full school year following the date of the bill’s enactment and every third school year thereafter, to collect information necessary to calculate the average and range of costs incurred to provide services.
The NJSBA is monitoring the bill, which has not yet moved in the Senate.To view the full text of any of the bills summarized above, please visit the New Jersey Legislature’s website.
