Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Improvements Act of 2010

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. AKAKA. Madam President, as chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, I am delighted to bring before the Senate S. 3447, the Post-9/11 Veterans' Educational Assistance Improvements Act of 2010.

This measure, together with the managers' amendment, is based on the legislation I introduced on May 27, 2010. Hearings were held on the bill on July 21, 2010, and on August 5, 2010, the committee ordered the measure to be reported. The committee's report was filed on October 26, 2010.

The purpose of this legislation is to make modifications in the program of educational assistance operated under chapter 33 of title 38, United States Code, for veterans who have served on active duty since September 11, 2001. It would provide for a streamlined, less complex, and more equitable program, and expand certain opportunities for training and education, including on-job and vocational training. It would also correct a number of inadvertent omissions and errors in the new chapter 33 program as enacted in 2008 as title V of Public Law 110-252, the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008.

As one who knows, from firsthand experience, the value of G.I. bill benefits and how they can substantially enhance all aspects of an individual's life, I believe that it is critical that we move toward making this new G.I. bill for today's veterans the best that it can be. And that is what my bill is intended to do.

In 2008, I was pleased to join with our distinguished colleague from Virginia, Mr. Webb, as a cosponsor of the original measure which established this new program. However, since the process leading to the enactment of this new program was outside the framework of the usual committee route for development and consideration of legislation, there are a number of issues with the new program that require legislative remedies. In addition, VA's yearlong experience with the program has made it clear that the new program is very complex, difficult to understand, and results in unintended inequities.

I worked with my colleagues here in the Senate, with the Department of Veterans' Affairs, and with various veteran and other organizations to craft legislation that addresses many of the problems and will, in addition, make additional valuable educational opportunities for veterans available through on-job and apprenticeship training. Because the details of the legislation are described in detail in the committee's report on S. 3447--Senate Report 111-34--I will just highlight a few of the provisions.

First, the bill would allow members of the National Guard and Reserve to benefit from the new program. These individuals--those activated under the authority of title 32 by orders of the President or the Secretary of Defense to support a national security mission--were inadvertently omitted from the program when it was enacted in 2008 and the pending measure would remedy this oversight.

Second, the bill would simplify the payments. Instead of a complex and sometimes inequitable benefits calculation based on a State-by-State determination, this measure would provide that if an individual is enrolled in a program of education at a public institution of higher learning, VA would pay the cost of tuition and fees. If an individual is enrolled in other than a public institution, VA would pay up to a national cap that will be adjusted annually based on increases in the cost of education. My measure sets the initial cap at $17,500.

Third, the bill would expand the options available to individuals and provide that benefits could be paid for the pursuit of apprenticeship and on-job training as well as for pursuit of a vocational goal. This will open up the doors for valuable benefits for those who choose these options.

Fourth, the bill would expand the program to authorize the payment of the $1,000 annual book allowance to individuals who are attending school while on active duty. It would also permit veterans and servicemembers to use benefits for multiple licensing and certification courses.

Finally, this measure would permit service-connected disabled veterans enrolled in a program of vocational rehabilitation under chapter 31 of title 38 who also have eligibility for the new Post-9/11 G.I. bill program to select under which program to receive a living or subsistence allowance. This will remove the economic incentive for an individual to forgo the valuable assistance available under the chapter 31 program in exchange for a higher living stipend under the chapter 33 program.

While I am pleased that we have been able to produce this package of improvements that will go a long way toward making the new program the best that it can be, I note that we still have much to do in this area. There are questions and issues that have not been addressed in this measure--such as how to ensure that veterans using their benefits are afforded a quality education, a 48-month cap on the total amount of benefits available under all the programs of educational assistance offered by VA, and the overall need to curb instances of fraud, abuse, and misuse of benefits. I am certain this list can only grow longer.

But this marks an important first step and I look forward to continuing to working with my colleagues here and in the House of Representatives as we continue to move through the legislative process to do what needs to be done.

In closing, I extend a note of personal thanks to the committee's distinguished ranking member from North Carolina, Mr. Burr, and his staff member, Amanda Meredith, whose hard work and dedication are much appreciated.

I urge the Senate to pass the pending measure.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source