N.J. Admin. Code § 9A:10-7.22

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024

Section 9A:10-7.22 - Eligibility for NJBEST Matching Grant Program

(a) For accounts opened on or after June 29, 2021, the Authority will provide a one-time grant of up to $ 750.00 in a dollar-for-dollar match of an account owner's initial deposit into an NJBEST 529 College Savings Plan account provided:

1. The account owner's household adjusted gross income is equal to or greater than $ 0 and does not exceed $ 75,000;

2. The NJBEST 529 College Savings Plan account remains open and maintains up to $ 750.00 of the initial contribution for a minimum of three years following initial contribution into the contributor's account, or the matching grant funds will be forfeited back to the Authority; and

3. Sufficient funds are available to finance the matching grants from direct State appropriations to the Authority or from NJBEST administrative fees, the availability of which shall be determined annually by the Authority Board. The amount of the administrative fees shall not be increased to fund the matching grants.

(b) The Authority will match contributions into no more than one account per beneficiary.

(c) To receive matching grants from the Authority, account owners must apply online on the Authority's website within one year of opening their NJBEST account and must submit their Internal Revenue Service tax return transcripts for the year prior to the application year to verify income. If no tax returns were filed for the year requested, account owners may provide the Authority with documented proof, received through a Federal or State agency, of taxable and/or untaxed income, including, but not limited to, an IRS tax and wage transcript, receipt of unemployment insurance benefit payments, child support, alimony, welfare payments, Social Security benefits, SSI, or one benefit from any of the following Federal programs: SNAP, TANF, WIC, or housing assistance.

1. In the event there are insufficient funds available to match the contributions of all applicants, the Authority will select participants for the matching grant program by order of when the application was received.

(d) Within 60 days of approving an account owner's application, the Authority will provide the NJBEST Investment Manager with the matching NJBEST Grant. The Investment Manager will deposit those funds into an escrow account. After three years if the account holder meets the requirements at (a)2 above, then the balance of the matching grant and any earned interest will be transferred from the escrow account to the account holder's account.

(e) To be eligible for the matching grant program, the account owner must be a New Jersey resident.

N.J. Admin. Code § 9A:10-7.22

Adopted by 54 N.J.R. 443(a), effective 2/9/2022

Amended by 56 N.J.R. 374(a), effective 3/4/2024