In 1974 the New Jersey Board of Higher Education appointed an independent Commission on Financing Postsecondary Education to develop a long-range financing plan for education beyond high school. Data were analyzed, issues debated, and alternative financing plans discussed regarding the Commission charge to: (1) develop policies to promote access to appropriate postsecondary opportunities; (2) promote institutional capacity to adjust to changing educational needs; (3) design a financing system that enhances quality at all levels; (4) distribute the costs of education in a socially equitable fashion; and (5) design a system to maintain institutional stability insofar as prudent, practical, and consistent with public policy. An overview of New Jersey postsecondary education is presented, and recommendations for state financing principles and strategies are offered. Financial implications of the commission's recommendations are reviewed. Appended are: indices of income group representation by institutional sector; cost simulation model; commission publications; commission advisory subcommittees; commission proceedings and meetings; and statements of individual commission members. (LBH)