Months after revelations of financial turmoil spurred a state investigation at New Jersey City University, legislators want to make sure they’re not caught by surprise the next time a public institution faces a crisis. To that end, they’ve introduced three pieces of legislation designed to beef up financial oversight of the state’s colleges and universities. One bill would require institutions to file an annual fiscal monitoring report with the Office of the Secretary of Higher Education—New Jersey’s highest authority on higher ed, who answers to the governor—and submit to an audit by that office every three years. It would also give the secretary the power to appoint a monitor to oversee an institution’s fiscal operations if an audit is particularly troubling.
