Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024
(a) A
student is eligible to attend the school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.b if the student is kept in the home
of a person other than the student's parent or guardian, and the person is
domiciled in the school district and is supporting the student without
remuneration as if the student were the person's own child.
1. A student is not eligible to attend a
school district pursuant to this provision unless:
i. The student's parent or guardian has
filed, together with documentation to support its validity, a sworn statement
that the parent or guardian is not capable of supporting or providing care for
the student due to family or economic hardship and the student is not residing
with the other person solely for the purpose of receiving a free public
education; and
ii. The person
keeping the student has filed, if so required by the district board of
education:
(1) A sworn statement that the
person is domiciled within the school district, is supporting the child without
remuneration and intends to do so for a time longer than the school term, and
will assume all personal obligations for the student pertaining to school
requirements; and
(2) A copy of the
person's lease if a tenant, a sworn landlord's statement if residing as a
tenant without written lease, or a mortgage or tax bill if an owner.
2. A student shall not
be deemed ineligible pursuant to this subsection because required sworn
statement(s) cannot be obtained when evidence is presented that the underlying
requirements of the law are being met, notwithstanding the inability of the
resident or student to obtain the sworn statement(s).
3. A student shall not be deemed ineligible
pursuant to this subsection when evidence is presented that the student has no
home or possibility of school attendance other than with a school district
resident who is not the student's parent or guardian but is acting as the sole
caretaker and supporter of the student.
4. A student shall not be deemed ineligible
pursuant to this subsection solely because a parent or guardian gives
occasional gifts or makes limited contributions, financial or otherwise, toward
the student's welfare provided the resident keeping the student receives from
the parent or guardian no payment or other remuneration for regular maintenance
of the student.
5. Pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.c, any person who fraudulently
allows a child of another person to use the person's residence and is not the
primary financial supporter of the child and any person who fraudulently claims
to have given up custody of their child to a person in another school district
commits a disorderly persons offense.
(b) A student is eligible to attend the
school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.b if the student is kept in the home
of a person domiciled in the school district who is not the parent or guardian
and the parent or guardian is a member of the New Jersey National Guard or the
reserve component of the United States armed forces and has been ordered into
active military service in the United States armed forces in time of war or
national emergency.
1. Eligibility pursuant
to this subsection shall cease at the end of the school year during which the
parent or guardian returns from active military duty.
(c) A student is eligible to attend the
school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.d if the student's
parent or guardian temporarily resides within the school district and elects to
have the student attend the school district of temporary residence,
notwithstanding the existence of a domicile elsewhere.
1. When required by the district board of
education, the parent or guardian shall demonstrate the temporary residence is
not solely for purposes of the student attending the school district of
temporary residence;
2. When one of
a student's parents or guardians temporarily resides in a school district while
the other is domiciled or temporarily resides elsewhere, eligibility to attend
school shall be determined in accordance with
N.J.A.C. 6A:22-3.1(a)1 i.
However, no student shall be eligible to attend school based upon a parent or
guardian's temporary residence in a school district unless the parent or
guardian demonstrates, if required by the district board of education, the
temporary residence is not solely for purposes of a student's attending the
school district.
(d) A
student is eligible to attend the school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.f if the student's parent or
guardian moves to another school district as the result of being homeless,
subject to the provisions at N.J.A.C. 6A:17-2, Education of Homeless Children
and Youths.
(e) A student is
eligible to attend the school district if the student is placed by court order
or by a society, agency, or institution in the home of a school district
resident pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-2. As used in this subsection, "court
order" shall not encompass orders of residential custody under which claims of
entitlement to attend a school district are governed by the provisions at
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1 and the applicable standards set
forth in this chapter.
(f) A
student is eligible to attend the school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-3.b and
N.J.S.A.
18A:38-3.1 if the student previously resided
in the school district and if the parent or guardian is a member of the New
Jersey National Guard or the United States reserves and has been ordered to
active service in time of war or national emergency, resulting in the
relocation of the student out of the school district. A school district
admitting a student pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-3.b and
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-3.1 shall not be obligated for
transportation costs.
(g) A student
is eligible to attend the school district pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-7.7 et seq. if the student
resides on Federal property within the State.
(h) In accordance with
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.1, a student who is not considered
homeless pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:7B-12 and who moves to a new school
district during the academic year as a result of a family crisis shall be
permitted to remain enrolled in the original school district of residence for
the remainder of the school year without the payment of tuition. A student
attending an academic program during the summer, who is otherwise eligible
except for the timing of the move, shall be permitted to remain in the school
district for the remainder of the summer program if it is considered an
extension of the preceding academic year.
1.
For purposes of this subsection, "family crisis" shall include, but not be
limited to:
i. An instance of abuse such as
domestic violence or sexual abuse;
ii. A disruption to the family unit caused by
death of a parent or guardian; or
iii. An unplanned displacement from the
original residence such as fire, flood, hurricane, or other circumstances that
render the residence uninhabitable.
2. Upon notification of the move by the
parent or guardian, the original school district of residence shall allow the
student to continue attendance and shall provide transportation services to and
from the student's new domicile in accordance with N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1. The original
school district of residence may request from the parent or guardian and may
review supporting documentation about the reason(s) for the move; however, any
such review shall not interrupt the student's continued enrollment in the
school district and in the current school of attendance with the provision of
transportation.
i. Examples of documentation
include, but are not limited to, newspaper articles, insurance claims, police
or fire reports, notes from health professionals, custody agreements, or any
other legal document.
3.
If the parent or guardian or the relevant documentation indicates the child is
homeless pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:7B-12, the school district liaison shall
assume the coordination of enrollment procedures pursuant to
N.J.A.C.
6A:17-2.5 and the student shall not be
eligible for enrollment pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.1.
4. If the original school district of
residence determines the situation does not meet the family crisis criteria at
(h)1i, ii, and iii above, the chief school administrator, or designee, shall
notify the parent or guardian in writing. The notification shall inform the
parent or guardian of the parent's or guardian's right to appeal the decision
within 21 calendar days of the parent's or guardian's receipt of the
notification. The notification shall state that if such appeal is denied, the
parent or guardian may be assessed the costs for transportation provided to the
new residence during the period of ineligible attendance. The notice shall also
state whether the parent or guardian is required to withdraw the student by the
end of the 21-day appeal period in the absence of an appeal.
i. The parent or guardian may appeal by
submitting the request in writing with supporting documentation to the
executive county superintendent of the county in which the original school
district of residence is situated.
ii. Within 30 calendar days of receiving the
request and documentation, the executive county superintendent shall issue a
determination whether the situation meets the family crisis criteria at (h)1i,
ii, and iii above. The original school district of residence shall continue to
enroll the student and provide transportation to the current school of
attendance in accordance with
N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1 until the determination is
issued.
iii. If the executive
county superintendent determines the situation does not constitute a family
crisis, the school district may submit to the executive county superintendent
for approval the cost of transportation to the ineligible student's new
domicile. The executive county superintendent shall certify the transportation
costs to be assessed to the parent or guardian for the period of ineligible
attendance.
5. When the
original school district of residence determines the situation constitutes a
family crisis pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.1, the chief school administrator,
or designee, shall immediately notify the parent or guardian in writing.
i. When the original school district of
residence anticipates the need to apply for reimbursement of transportation
costs, it shall send to the executive county superintendent a request and
documentation of the family crisis for confirmation the situation meets the
criteria set forth at (h)1i, ii, and iii above.
ii. Within 30 days of receiving the school
district's request and documentation, the executive county superintendent shall
issue a determination of whether the situation meets the criteria for a family
crisis. The original school district of residence shall continue to enroll the
student and provide transportation to the current school of attendance in
accordance with N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1
until the determination is issued, and shall not be reimbursed for additional
transportation costs unless the executive county superintendent determines the
situation is a family crisis or as directed by the Commissioner upon
appeal.
6. In providing
transportation to students pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-1.1, district boards of education
shall use the most efficient and cost-effective means available and in
conformance with all laws governing student transportation.
7. At the conclusion of the fiscal year in
which the executive county superintendent has determined the situation
constitutes a family crisis, the original school district of residence may
apply to the executive county superintendent for a reimbursement of eligible
costs for transportation services.
i. Eligible
costs shall include transportation for students who are required to be
transported pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1.
ii. School districts shall provide
documentation of the transportation costs for the eligible student(s) to the
executive county superintendent, who shall review and forward the information
to the Department's Office of School Finance for reimbursement payment(s) to
the school district.
iii. Payment
to the school district shall be made in the subsequent fiscal year and shall
equal the approved cost less the amount of transportation aid received for the
student(s).
8. Nothing
in this subsection shall prevent a parent or school district from appealing the
executive county superintendent's decision(s) to the Commissioner in accordance
with N.J.A.C. 6A:3-1.3. If the
Commissioner determines the situation is not a family crisis, the
Commissioner's decision shall state which of the following shall pay the
transportation costs incurred during the appeal process: the State, school
district, or parent.
(i)
A district board of education may allow, by contract or district board of
education policy, nonresident children of teaching staff members to enroll in
the school district without the payment of tuition, pursuant to
N.J.S.A. 18A:38-3.c.
