A4561

An Act concerning preschool education, amending N.J.S.18A:38-1, and supplementing chapter 44 of Title 18A of the New Jersey Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. (New section) a. Notwithstanding the provisions of section 12 of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-54) or any other law, rule, or regulation to the contrary, the board of education of a school district serving elementary grades shall establish a preschool program for resident three- and four-year old children no later than the beginning of the 2029-2030 school year; provided, however, that a district not providing a preschool program prior to the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) may satisfy the requirements of this subsection by entering a sending-receiving relationship with a preschool program established by the board of education of an adjacent school district. The tuition of students attending a preschool program in another district in accordance with a sending-receiving agreement shall be determined in accordance with N.J.S.18A:38-19. Attendance at a preschool program shall be free in accordance with the requirements of N.J.S.18A:38-1.

b. A school district that does not provide a preschool program prior to the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall submit to the Commissioner of Education no later than June 30, 2027, a plan for the establishment of a preschool program in accordance with the provisions of subsection a. of this section.

c. A school district that establishes a preschool program in accordance with subsection a. of this section shall be eligible to receive State aid pursuant to section 12 of P.L.2007, c.260 (C.18A:7F-54) and section 6 of P.L.2025, c.100 (C.18A:7F-54.1).

d. As used in this section, “preschool program” means free, full-day preschool that meets all program requirements for high-quality preschool pursuant to regulations adopted by the commissioner and is operated by the district or in partnership with a licensed child care provider or Head Start program.

2. N.J.S.18A:38-1 is amended to read as follows:

18A:38-1. Public schools shall be free to the following persons over [five] three and under 20 years of age:

Any person who is domiciled within the school district;

b. (1) Any person who is kept in the home of another person domiciled within the school district and is supported by such other person gratis as if he were such other person's own child, upon filing by such other person with the secretary of the board of education of the district, if so required by the board, a sworn statement that he is domiciled within the district and is supporting the child gratis and will assume all personal obligations for the child relative to school requirements and that he intends so to keep and support the child gratuitously for a longer time than merely through the school term, and a copy of his lease if a tenant, or a sworn statement by his landlord acknowledging his tenancy if residing as a tenant without a written lease, and upon filing by the child's parent or guardian with the secretary of the board of education a sworn statement that he is not capable of supporting or providing care for the child due to a family or economic hardship and that the child is not residing with the resident of the district solely for the purpose of receiving a free public education within the district. The statement shall be accompanied by documentation to support the validity of the sworn statements, information from or about which shall be supplied only to the board and only to the extent that it directly pertains to the support or nonsupport of the child. If in the judgment of the board of education the evidence does not support the validity of the claim by the resident, the board may deny admission to the child. The resident may contest the board's decision to the commissioner within 21 days of the date of the decision and shall be entitled to an expedited hearing before the commissioner on the validity of the claim and shall have the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence that the child is eligible for a free education under the criteria listed in this subsection. The board of education shall, at the time of its decision, notify the resident in writing of his right to contest the board's decision to the commissioner within 21 days. No child shall be denied admission during the pendency of the proceedings before the commissioner. In the event the child is currently enrolled in the district, the student shall not be removed from school during the 21-day period in which the resident may contest the board's decision nor during the pendency of the proceedings before the commissioner. If in the judgment of the commissioner the evidence does not support the claim of the resident, he shall assess the resident tuition for the student prorated to the time of the student's ineligible attendance in the school district. Tuition shall be computed on the basis of 1/180 of the total annual per pupil cost to the local district multiplied by the number of days of ineligible attendance and shall be collected in the manner in which orders of the commissioner are enforced. Nothing shall preclude a board from collecting tuition from the resident, parent or guardian for a student's period of ineligible attendance in the schools of the district where the issue is not appealed to the commissioner;

(2) If the superintendent or administrative principal of a school district finds that the parent or guardian of a child who is attending the schools of the district is not domiciled within the district and the child is not kept in the home of another person domiciled within the school district and supported by him gratis as if the child was the person's own child as provided for in paragraph (1) of this subsection, the superintendent or administrative principal may apply to the board of education for the removal of the child. The parent or guardian shall be entitled to a hearing before the board and if in the judgment of the board the parent or guardian is not domiciled within the district or the child is not kept in the home of another person domiciled within the school district and supported by him gratis as if the child was the person's own child as provided for in paragraph (1) of this subsection, the board may order the transfer or removal of the child from school. The parent or guardian may contest the board's decision before the commissioner within 21 days of the date of the decision and shall be entitled to an expedited hearing before the commissioner and shall have the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence that the child is eligible for a free education under the criteria listed in this subsection. The board of education shall, at the time of its decision, notify the parent or guardian in writing of his right to contest the decision within 21 days. No child shall be removed from school during the 21-day period in which the parent may contest the board's decision or during the pendency of the proceedings before the commissioner. If in the judgment of the commissioner the evidence does not support the claim of the parent or guardian, the commissioner shall assess the parent or guardian tuition for the student prorated to the time of the student's ineligible attendance in the schools of the district. Tuition shall be computed on the basis of 1/180 of the total annual per pupil cost to the local district multiplied by the number of days of ineligible attendance and shall be collected in the manner in which orders of the commissioner are enforced. Nothing shall preclude a board from collecting tuition from the parent or guardian for a student's period of ineligible attendance in the schools of the district where the issue is not appealed to the commissioner;

The provisions of this section requiring proof of support, custody or tenancy shall not apply to a person keeping a child in his home whose parent or guardian is a member of the New Jersey National Guard or a member of the reserve component of the armed forces of the United States and who has been ordered into active military service in any of the armed forces of the United States in time of war or national emergency. In such a situation, the child shall be eligible to enroll in the district in which he is being kept, and no tuition shall be charged by the district. Following the return of the child's parent or guardian from active military service, the child's eligibility for enrollment without tuition in the district in which he or she is being kept shall cease at the end of the current school year;

c. Any person who fraudulently allows a child of another person to use his residence and is not the primary financial supporter of that child and any person who fraudulently claims to have given up custody of his child to a person in another district commits a disorderly persons offense;

d. Any person whose parent or guardian, even though not domiciled within the district, is residing temporarily therein, but any person who has had or shall have his all-year-round dwelling place within the district for one year or longer shall be deemed to be domiciled within the district for the purposes of this section;

e. Any person for whom the Division of Youth and Family Services in the Department of Children and Families is acting as guardian and who is placed in the district by the division;

f. Any person whose parent or guardian moves from one school district to another school district as a result of being homeless and whose district of residence is determined pursuant to section 19 of P.L.1979, c.207 (C.18A:7B-12). On or before December 31 of each year, a public school shall report to the Office of Homelessness Prevention in the Department of Community Affairs an accounting of each instance in which the public school is made aware that a student enrolled in the public school because the student's parent or guardian moved from one school district to another school district as a result of being homeless.

(cf: P.L.2019, c.73, s.4)

3. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

This bill requires school districts to establish preschool programs for resident three- and four-year old children no later than the start of the 2029-2030 school year. A school district that does not currently provide a preschool program would be required to submit a plan for the establishment of a preschool program to the Commissioner of Education no later than June 30, 2027.

Under the bill, a preschool program is defined as free, full-day preschool that meets all program requirements for high-quality preschool pursuant to regulations adopted by the commissioner and is operated by the school district or in partnership with a licensed child care provider or Head Start program. A district would also be able to fulfill the requirements of the bill by entering into a sending-receiving relationship with a neighboring school district for the provision of preschool services.

Finally, the bill amends a section of law to provide that public school would be free for persons aged three to 20. Under current law, public school is required to be free for persons aged five to 20.