New Jersey § 18a:38-1

§ 18a:38-1.

Public schools shall be free to the following persons over five and under 20 years

of age: a. 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.