S 2579 New Jersey Senate · 2026-2027 Regular Session

Permits spouses and dependents of military service members to qualify for in-State tuition in event that service member is transferred to another state.

This bill (S 2579) extends New Jersey's in-state tuition eligibility to spouses and dependents of active-duty military service members when the service member is transferred to another state. It ensures that if a military spouse or dependent was already enrolled in a New Jersey public college or university before the transfer, they can continue to qualify for in-state tuition rates - provided they maintain continuous enrollment at the same institution. The law directly affects military-connected students who face relocation due to service, preventing them from losing affordable tuition status during temporary relocations. It builds on existing protections for military dependents who attended New Jersey high school for three years.
Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared
Introduction
Jan 2026
Committee Review
Floor Vote
Governor
Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action May 21, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Technical Review Of Prefiled Bill Introduced · 4 edits · Jan 13, 2026
MODERATE
The bill moved from a prefiled technical review status to introduced status, with a formal statement added explaining its purpose. The statement clarifies that the bill extends in-state tuition classification at New Jersey public higher education institutions to spouses of military service members and protects that classification if the service member is relocated out of state, provided the spouse or dependent was already enrolled and maintains continuous enrollment.
SCOPE

A formal statement was added explaining that the bill extends in-state tuition eligibility to the spouse of a military service member attending a New Jersey public institution of higher education.

ELIGIBILITY

The statement clarifies that if a military service member is relocated out of state, their spouse or dependent retains in-state tuition status if they were enrolled before the relocation and maintain continuous enrollment at the institution.

TECHNICAL

Co-sponsor Senator Singleton was removed, leaving only Senator Space as co-sponsor.

The bill status changed from 'Technical Review Of Prefiled Bill' to 'Introduced Pending Technical Review by Legislative Counsel.'

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
3
Key actions
0
Committee
1
May 21, 2026
Committee
Referred to Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee
upper
Jan 13, 2026
Introduced
Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate Military and Veterans' Affairs Committee
upper
2 primary · 2 co-sponsors

Sponsors