ASSEMBLY, No. 4967
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
220th LEGISLATURE
INTRODUCED DECEMBER 12, 2022
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman PAMELA R. LAMPITT
District 6 (Burlington and Camden)
Assemblyman DANIEL R. BENSON
District 14 (Mercer and Middlesex)
Co-Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman Reynolds-Jackson
SYNOPSIS
Revises training requirements for governing board members of public institutions of higher education.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As reported by the Assembly Higher Education Committee on May 18, 2023, with amendments.
An Act concerning the members of governing boards of public institutions of higher education, amending P.L.2021, c.250, repealing section 17 of P.L.2009, c.308, and supplementing Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 1 of P.L.2021, c.250 (C.18A:3B-6.3) is amended to read as follows:
1. a. As a condition of serving as a member of the governing board of a public institution of higher education, a person shall be required to complete a training program developed by [that institution in consultation with] the Secretary of Higher Education that is designed to clarify the roles and duties of a governing board member.
b. The training shall be completed no later than [one year] six months after the date that the person is appointed as a member of the governing board of a public institution of higher education [except that a] and 1[at least once every two years] within six months of the start of each successive term1 thereafter. A person who serves as a member of a governing board prior to the effective date of [this act] P.L.2021, c.250 shall [not] be required to complete the training within six months from the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) 1and within six months of the start of each successive term thereafter1.
c. The [institution, in consultation with the] secretary[,] shall:
(1) prescribe the subject matter of the training which shall include, but need not be limited to, governance responsibilities, ethical standards, due diligence, the requirements of the "Senator Byron M. Baer Open Public Meetings Act," P.L.1975, c.231 (C.10:4-6 et seq.), and P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), issues associated with laws on privacy, board member fiduciary responsibilities and the role of the governing board in the financial management of an institution of higher education, and a review of the types of financial, organizational, legal, and regulatory issues that a member of a governing board may be required to consider in the course of discharging the member's governance responsibilities;
(2) [provide the training directly or] arrange for [, or specify,] [the] an entity or entities to provide the training. In the case of a county college, the secretary shall designate the New Jersey Council of County Colleges to provide the training [;] in consultation with the secretary; and;
(3) [conduct a periodic review of the prescribed subject matter of the training to insure that the training includes information on relevant changes to State or federal law and other information deemed necessary to enable governing board members to serve effectively;] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
(4) [certify completion of the training for each governing board member upon receipt of documentation thereof, as provided on a form and in a manner prescribed by the secretary, or otherwise arrange for certification by the training entity; and] (Deleted by amendment, P.L. , c. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
(5) take other such actions as the secretary determines appropriate to effectuate the purposes of this act.
d. The institution shall certify completion of the training required under this section for each governing board member upon receipt of documentation thereof, as provided on a form and in a manner prescribed by the secretary.
e. The secretary shall provide notification to a governing board member who has failed to comply with the requirements of this section and provide the member with a 30-day grace period to fulfill the outstanding training requirement. 1The secretary may provide additional extensions to the grace period.1 Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, failure to fulfill the outstanding training requirement within the 1[30-day]1 grace period 1[shall] may, at the discretion of the secretary,1 constitute a resignation from the governing board 1[and] . In the event that the secretary determines that the member has resigned,1 a vacancy shall be deemed to exist 1[. The] and the1 board member shall be disqualified from being reappointed to the board, or appointed to any other governing board of a public institution of higher education, for the succeeding two-year period.
1f. Training pursuant to this section may, upon approval of the secretary, be made available online.1
(cf: P.L.2021, c.250, s.1)
2. Section 17 of P.L.2009, c.308 (C.18A:3B-62) is repealed.
3. (New section) There is annually appropriated from the General Fund to the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education the sum of $350,000 to effectuate the purposes of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill.
4. This act shall take effect on the 1st day of the seventh month next following the date of enactment, but the Secretary of Higher
Education may take such anticipatory administrative action in advance thereof as shall be necessary for the implementation of the act.