A1978

An Act establishing the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program, supplementing chapter 71B of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes and making an appropriation.

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 "Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program Act."

2. The Legislature finds and declares that:

a. This State is experiencing a critical shortage in its nursing workforce, which is expected to worsen in the next two decades.

b. As of 2007, New Jersey had a 17 percent shortfall of nurses. The 111,440 actively licensed RNs in the State are not enough to meet the demand. In a 2007 Statewide study of registered nurses, 53 percent of direct care nurses reported there were not enough nurses on staff in their institution to provide quality patient care. Although the nursing shortage has seemed to temporarily decrease in today’s struggling economy, the long-term workforce projections for New Jersey still show a shortfall of at least 40,000 nurses by 2020.

c. The demand for nurses at all levels of training and in all health care settings, including hospitals, nursing homes, veterans homes and home health care and community-based programs, is increasing as the population gets older, but the number of students entering nursing education programs has been declining since 1997.

d. The average age of New Jersey's registered professional nurses and licensed practical nurses is increasing each year; in 2000, the average age was 43 for registered professional nurses and approximately 45 for licensed practical nurses.

e. Recent nurse workforce projections conclude that, in the absence of new measures to retain existing nurses and attract new nurses into the profession, the number of nurses likely to retire in the next decade will far exceed the number of nurses likely to enter the profession in the next decade.

f. As the current workforce gets older and closer to retirement age, there is an urgent need to address the shortage of nurses by providing incentives to increase enrollment in the State's nursing education programs through a loan and loan redemption program, as established in this bill, to ensure that the State is able to maintain a sustained pool of qualified nursing professionals.

3. As used in this act:

"Approved course of study" means a nursing education degree or diploma program offered by an approved institution of higher education, a nursing education program offered by a hospital school of nursing or a nursing education program offered by a county vocational school. The authority shall establish a list of approved courses of study for the program.

"Approved employment" means postgraduate, full-time employment as a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse with an employer located in this State. The term shall not include a paid student internship, a paid fellowship, volunteer service or employment before graduation.

"Approved institution" means a two-year or four-year public or independent institution of higher education, a hospital school of nursing located in this State that offers an approved course of study, and a county vocational school that offers an approved course of study and has been approved by the authority as an institution in which students may enroll to participate in the program.

"Authority" means the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority established pursuant to N.J.S.8A:71A-3.

"Executive director" means the Executive Director of the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority.

"Participant" means a person who is enrolled as a part-time or full-time student in an approved institution under the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program.

"Program" means the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program established pursuant to this act.

4. There is established within the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program.

The purpose of the program is to address the current and projected critical shortage of nurses in the State by providing an incentive for persons to enter nursing education programs and for persons already trained as nurses to advance their training in the profession so as to ensure that the State's hospitals, nursing homes, veterans facilities and home care services and community care programs will have sufficient, trained nursing staff in the future to provide quality health care services to the residents of this State.

The program shall provide loans and loan redemption to finance the undergraduate study of eligible students enrolled in an approved course of study in exchange for full-time employment as a licensed practical nurse or registered professional nurse in the State following completion of the nursing education program.

Eligible participants shall include, but not be limited to, a certified nurse aide, personal care assistant or homemaker-home health aide who seeks to become a licensed practical nurse or registered professional nurse, a licensed practical nurse who seeks to become a registered professional nurse, a registered professional nurse who graduated from a two-year degree program or a hospital school of nursing who seeks to obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing, as well as a person who is not currently engaged in nursing activities but seeks to become a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse.

5. To be eligible to participate in the program, an applicant shall:

a. be a resident of the State and maintain domicile in the State during participation in the program;

b. be enrolled in an approved course of study;

c. maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or higher on a scale of 4.0, or its equivalent, while enrolled in an approved course of study; and

d. enter into a written contract with the authority to commence employment in this State as a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse, as applicable, within one year after completion of an approved course of study. The contract shall specify the duration of the applicant's required service and the total amount of eligible student loan expenses to be redeemed by the State in return for service. A full-time student shall be required to be employed as a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse, as applicable, for a period of one year for each year the student received a loan under the program. The work requirement for a part-time student shall be prorated by the authority based on the amount of the loan received each year by the student.

6. a. A student may apply to the authority for a loan in such manner as prescribed by the authority and shall include all information and documentation required by the authority.

b. Within the limits of available appropriations, a loan of up to a maximum of $10,000 per year for a full-time student, or a prorated amount as established by the authority for a part-time student, shall be awarded to an eligible participant enrolled in an approved course of study at a four-year institution of higher education. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount shall not exceed $40,000 for a participant in an approved course of study at a four-year institution.

c. Within the limits of available appropriations, a loan of up to a maximum of $10,000 per year for a full-time student, or a prorated amount as established by the authority for a part-time student, shall be awarded to an eligible participant enrolled in an approved course of study at a hospital school of nursing. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount shall not exceed $30,000 for a participant in an approved course of study at a hospital school of nursing.

d. Within the limits of available appropriations, a loan of up to a maximum of $4,000 per year for a full-time student, or a prorated amount as established by the authority for a part-time student, shall be awarded to an eligible participant enrolled in an approved course of study at a two-year institution of higher education. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount shall not exceed $8,000 for a participant in an approved course of study at a two-year institution.

e. Within the limits of available appropriations, a loan of up to a maximum of $3,000 per year for a full-time student, or a prorated amount as established by the authority for a part-time student, shall be awarded to an eligible participant enrolled in an approved course of study at a county vocational school. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount shall not exceed $3,000 for a participant in an approved course of study at a county vocational school.

f. A loan shall cover the cost of attendance which includes tuition, books and other necessary fees and expenses related to the approved course of study. In no academic year shall a participant be eligible for a loan under the program greater than the total cost of attendance less the total value of all other scholarships and grants received by the participant for that academic year.

g. A loan shall not bear interest or finance charges during the time the participant is enrolled in an approved course of study or is engaged in approved redemption service pursuant to this act.

7. a. A loan awarded pursuant to section 6 of this act shall be redeemed by a participant pursuant to a contract between the participant and the executive director.

b. A participant who has entered into a redemption contract with the authority may nullify that contract by submitting written notification to the authority and assuming full responsibility for repayment of the full amount of the loan or that portion of the loan that has not been redeemed by the State in return for partial fulfillment of the contract. The interest on the loan shall be at the prevailing market rate at the time the loan was made. A participant seeking to nullify the contract shall be required to repay the loan or the unredeemed portion thereof in accordance with a schedule determined by the authority.

c. In the case of a participant's death or total or permanent disability, the authority shall nullify the service obligation of the participant, thereby terminating the participant's obligation to repay the unpaid balance of the loan; or where continued enforcement of the contract may result in extreme hardship, the authority may nullify or suspend the participant's service obligation.

8. The authority shall annually submit to the Governor, the chairman of the Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee, the chairman of the Assembly Appropriations Committee, the chairmen of the Senate and Assembly Education Committees, and the chairmen of the Senate and Assembly Health Committees, a report on the program. The report shall be submitted no later than August 1 of each year and shall include, but not be limited to, the following information for the prior fiscal year:

a. the total number of participants receiving loans and loan redemption under the program;

b. the number of participants in registered professional nurse and licensed practical nurse programs; the number of participants attending four-year and two-year approved institutions of higher education, hospital schools of nursing and county vocational schools, reported by institution; and the approved courses of study in which participants are enrolled;

c. the total number of participants who withdrew from the program or failed to complete the program's postgraduate employment requirement; and

d. the effect of the program on attracting and retaining qualified nurses in the State.

9. The Higher Education Student Assistance Authority, in consultation with the executive director of the New Jersey Commission on Higher Education, shall adopt, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), rules and regulations as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

10. There is appropriated $5,000,000 from the General Fund to the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority to establish the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program.

11. This act shall take effect for the 2010-2011 academic year; however, the authority may immediately take such administrative action as may be necessary to implement the provisions of this act.

STATEMENT

This bill establishes the Nursing Student Incentive Loan and Loan Redemption Program in the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority. The purpose of the program is to address the current and projected critical shortage of nurses in the State by providing an incentive for persons to enter nursing education programs and for persons already trained as nurses to advance their training in the profession, so as to ensure that the State's hospitals, nursing homes, veterans' facilities and home care services and community care programs will have sufficient, trained nursing staff in the future to provide quality health care services to the residents of this State.

The program would provide loans and loan redemption to finance the undergraduate study of eligible participants enrolled in an approved course of study in exchange for full-time employment as a licensed practical nurse or registered professional nurse in the State following completion of the nursing education program.

Eligible participants would include, but not be limited to, a certified nurse aide, personal care assistant or homemaker-home health aide who seeks to become a licensed practical nurse or registered professional nurse, a licensed practical nurse who seeks to become a registered professional nurse, a registered professional nurse who graduated from a two-year degree program or a hospital school of nursing who seeks to obtain a bachelor's degree in nursing, as well as a person who is not currently engaged in nursing activities but seeks to become a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse.

To be eligible to participate in the program, an applicant must:

a. be a resident of the State and maintain domicile in the State during participation in the program;

b. be enrolled in an approved course of study;

c. maintain a grade point average of 3.0 or higher on a scale of 4.0, or its equivalent, while enrolled in an approved course of study; and

d. enter into a written contract with the authority to commence employment in this State as a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse, as applicable, within one year after completion of an approved course of study. A full-time student would be required to be employed as a licensed practical nurse or a registered professional nurse, as applicable, for a period of one year for each year the student received a loan under the program. The work requirement for a part-time student would be prorated by the authority based on the amount of the loan received each year by the student.

The program may provide a loan of up to a maximum of $10,000 per year for a full-time student, or a prorated amount as established by the authority for a part-time student, to an eligible participant enrolled in a four-year institution of higher education or a hospital school of nursing. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount would not exceed $40,000 for a four-year program and $30,000 for a hospital school of nursing. In the case of a two-year program, the loan may be for a maximum of $4,000 per year for a full-time student or a prorated amount for a part-time student. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount would not exceed $8,000. In the case of a licensed practical nurse program at a county vocational school, the loan may be for a maximum of $3,000 per year for a full-time student or a prorated amount for a part-time student. The maximum loan and loan redemption amount would not exceed $3,000.

The bill requires the authority to annually submit to the Governor and the Legislature, by August 1 each year, a report on the loan and loan redemption program.

Finally, the bill appropriates $5 million to the authority to establish the loan and loan redemption program, and takes effect for the 2010-2011 academic year.