Rep. Braley Launches Website to Track Latest Progress in 1-133rd GI Bill Benefits Investigation

Press Release

Rep. Braley Launches Website to Track Latest Progress in 1-133rd GI Bill Benefits Investigation

Benefits Update: 1-133rd Soldiers Starting to Get Benefits They Were Denied

Today, Rep. Bruce Braley (D-Iowa) launched a website that will contain the most updated information on the progress of an investigation launched by Braley in October to probe why nearly 600 members of the Iowa National Guard's 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry were denied full GI Bill education benefits after returning home from 17 months of combat duty in Iraq.

The website can be found at http://house.gov/braley.

"As the Congressional investigation into the denied GI Bill benefits continues into the new year, I want to provide a place for Iowa National Guard members, their families, and the public to get the most up-to-date information on the findings and progress of the investigation," Braley said. "As the investigation goes forward, I plan to post the latest news, updates, and conclusions on this website.

"I'm also pleased to hear that over half of the 1-133rd members who were initially denied their benefits have been informed by the Army that they now qualify for full GI Bill educational benefits. I'm hopeful that the Pentagon will achieve their promise of getting full benefits to all of the troops affected by the error by the beginning of the spring 2008 semester in January."

Nearly 600 1-133rd members were initially denied full GI Bill educational benefits because their active duty orders were written one to five days short of the 730 day GI Bill qualifying requirement. After learning of the error, the Army initiated a process to correct the orders so that affected Guard members could qualify for the benefits they earned. Now, according to the Iowa National Guard, 312 soldiers have successfully completed the process and currently qualify for GI Bill benefits; 134 are still working through the process; and another 129 still have to file paperwork to begin the process.

In late October, Braley launched a Congressional probe in conjunction with the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee to learn why members of the Iowa National Guard were denied GI Bill education benefits in the first place and whether any other National Guard units have been denied benefits under similar circumstances.

Braley's investigation website includes a timeline of the events leading to the investigation, historical information on the GI Bill, the latest news about the investigation, and a link to contact Braley about the investigation.

Additional information regarding the launch of the investigation can be found at: http://braley.house.gov/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=77088

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