VA Calls for Increase in Veteran Education Benefits

Washington – With the support of President George W. Bush, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi today urged a congressional subcommittee to pass legislation that would pay a greater share of tuition costs for veterans under the Montgomery GI Bill.

“The GI Bill simply has not kept up with rising tuition costs,” Principi said.  “The promise of a higher education is critical to attracting promising young men and women to military duty, but when they face today’s college costs, only about half actually use the benefit, often because they can’t afford to make up the difference.”

Congressional leaders have said that the cost of the improvements would stay within spending limits agreed to by the White House and Congress.  The measure, formally known as “the 21^st Century Montgomery GI Bill Enhancement Act” (H.R. 1291), is scheduled for markup June 13 by the House Veterans’ Affairs subcommittee on benefits.

The bill would raise the payment for veterans with at least three years of active-duty service in full-time studies from the current rate of $650 a month to $1,100 monthly by the 2004-2005 academic year.  The typical benefit for a four-year degree would rise during the same period from $23,400 to almost $40,000.

Principi, the first secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to support a substantive increase in GI Bill benefits in years, told the House subcommittee at a hearing today that he discussed veterans educational needs with President Bush yesterday and the President strongly supports the program and acknowledged its great importance to veterans and the nation.  Principi praised the members of the subcommittee from both parties for their initiative in developing the improvements.

Principi said the administration will not stop at simply raising the GI Bill benefit levels, but will continue to look at changes that will allow more veterans to use their benefits.  Some specialized technical courses, for example, are presented in an accelerated manner and do not fit the traditional mold of semesters or quarters used to calculate benefits, he noted.

Service members contribute to the Montgomery GI Bill program while in uniform by having $100 a month deducted from their pay for a year.

Experts report that tuition for higher education currently costs about $1,025 per month.  Under the phased-in approach of H.R.1291, eligible veterans would receive monthly benefits of $800 for 2002, $950 for 2003 and $1,100 for 2004.  The figure would be adjusted for inflation thereafter.

“This does not return veterans to the benefit level of the original GI Bill after World War II, but is a step toward fixing the problem of an educational benefit that young men and women can’t afford to use when they leave the military today, particularly if they are supporting a family,” Secretary Principi said.

Before being named secretary of veterans affairs by President Bush, Principi chaired a congressionally chartered commission that examined programs for the transition needs of military members.  In its 1999 report, the commission called for enhancement of the education benefit, calling it the chief vehicle to ensure that military veterans have the means to create success in life when their service concludes.

Its report also recognized a strong GI Bill as being critical to the military meeting recruitment goals and attracting high-quality college-bound high school graduates.

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