18A:71B-70 - Powers of the board
18A:71B-70 Powers of the board.
7.The board shall have the powers necessary or proper to carry out the provisions of this act, including, but not limited to, the power to:
a.appoint an executive director to serve as the chief administrative and operational officer of the board and to perform other duties assigned by the board;
b.adopt an official seal and alter the same at pleasure;
c.sue and be sued in its own name;
d.make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the performance of its duties and the execution of its powers in accordance with the provisions of P.L.1954, c.48 (C.52:34-6 et seq.);
e.purchase, without advertising for bids or after having rejected all bids obtained pursuant to advertising therefor, any materials, supplies, goods, services or equipment pursuant to a contract or contracts for such materials, supplies, goods, services or equipment entered into on behalf of the State by the Division of Purchase and Property;
f.establish agreements or other transactions with federal, State, and local agencies, including institutions of higher education;
g.invest funds not required for immediate disbursement;
h.hold, buy, and sell any instruments, obligations, securities, and property determined appropriate by the board;
i.employ personnel, including financial and computer experts, legal counsel, accountants, managers and auditors, as may be necessary; to fix their compensation; and to promote and discharge the employees and agents; all without regard to the provisions of Title 11A of the New Jersey Statutes;
j.solicit and accept gifts, grants, loans, and other aids from any source or participate in any other way in any government program to carry out the purposes of this act;
k.require a reasonable length of State residence for qualified beneficiaries, as appropriate;
l.reasonably restrict the number of participants in the county college plan and the university plan according to criteria developed by the board. A person denied participation solely on the basis of this restriction shall be granted priority for participation during the succeeding year;
m.segregate contributions and payments to the fund into various accounts;
n.establish reasonable administrative fees in connection with any transaction and impose reasonable penalties, including default, for delinquent payments or for entering into an advance payment contract on a fraudulent basis;
o.procure insurance against any loss in connection with the property, assets and activities of the fund or the board;
p.provide for the receipt of contributions in lump sums or installment payments;
q.impose reasonable limits on the length of time within which a qualified beneficiary shall be required to begin to exercise benefits under the program. The board shall also determine whether to impose limits on the total amount of time that the qualified beneficiary is permitted to exercise the benefits under the program;
r.delineate the terms under which payments may be withdrawn from the fund and impose reasonable fees and charges for withdrawals;
s.define for the purposes of this act the maximum number of credit hours which may be purchased under the program for an associate degree; the maximum number of credit hours which may be purchased under the program for a baccalaureate degree; the average current and projected tuition within the county college system and the average current and projected tuition of the four-year public institutions of higher education utilized to limit the contractual obligations of the board to qualified beneficiaries;
t.adopt rules and regulations to implement this act; and
u.take all actions required so that the program is treated as a qualified State tuition program under section 529 of the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C.s.529.
L.2001,c.262,s.7.