Bill Text: NJ A705 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Directs the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Human Services to work with institutions of higher education in the development of certain family programs.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-01-12 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Higher Education Committee [A705 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A705-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW JERSEY
214th LEGISLATURE
PRE-FILED FOR INTRODUCTION IN THE 2010 SESSION
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman SAMUEL D. THOMPSON
District 13 (Middlesex and Monmouth)
SYNOPSIS
Directs the Commission on Higher Education and the Department of Human Services to work with institutions of higher education in the development of certain family programs.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel
An Act concerning the establishment by institutions of higher education of programs for families headed by grandparents 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. The Legislature finds and declares that the Report of the Assembly Task Force on Grandparenting indicates that there is a significant number of grandparents who have the custodial responsibility of their grandchildren, many of whom are seeking the legal guardianship of their grandchildren. The report further indicates that these grandparents and families face legal and other difficulties which affect the well-being of the family unit and the report recommends that public and private institutions of higher education be encouraged to develop programs for the purpose of providing support, counseling and legal assistance to improve the quality of life for these families.
2. a. The Commission on Higher Education shall encourage public and private institutions of higher education in the State to expand the use of students involved in undergraduate and graduate social work and psychology degree programs to provide counseling, support, and such other services as may be required by families headed by grandparents. The commission shall work with institutions of higher education to coordinate the programs offered by individual institutions to avoid unnecessary program and service duplication.
b. The Commission on Higher Education, in consultation with, the Department of Human Services, shall organize a network of public and private law schools in the State to provide legal assistance to grandparents with limited financial resources who are petitioning the court for the custody or guardianship of their grandchildren.
3. The Commission on Higher Education, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, shall report to the Governor and the Legislature within three years of the effective date of this act, on the progress of the counseling, support, and legal services programs established pursuant to section 2 of this act. The report shall include recommendations on how the delivery of these programs can be further improved to maximize their availability to and use by families headed by grandparents.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill would require the Commission on Higher Education to encourage public and private institutions of higher education in the State to expand the use of students involved in undergraduate and graduate social work and psychology degree programs to provide counseling, support and such other services as may be required by families headed by grandparents.
The bill also would require the commission, in consultation with the Department of Human Services, to organize a network of public and private law schools in the State to provide legal assistance to grandparents with limited financial resources who are petitioning the court for the custody or guardianship of their grandchildren.
In addition, the commission would be required to report to the Governor and Legislature within three years of the effective date of the bill on the progress of the counseling, support and legal services programs established under the bill. The report would include recommendations on how the delivery of these programs can be further improved to maximize their availability to and use by families headed by grandparents.
