Bill Would Make Tuition Rates Fair for Vets

In January of this year, Chairman Jeff Miller (FL) and Ranking Member Mike Michaud (ME) of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs introduced bipartisan legislation (H.R. 357) that would require state-operated schools to give veterans “in-state tuition” rates even though they may not be residents of the states where the schools are located. The requirement would apply to state schools which have programs which are eligible for the GI Bill. According the House VA Committee’s press release, the legislation has been met with early support from several Veterans Service Organizations, including the Student Veterans of America and VFW. Michael Dakduk < of the Student Veterans of America said, “We fully support Chairman Miller’s and Congressman Michaud’s efforts to provide in-state tuition to student veterans regardless of residency status. < The ‘GI Bill Tuition Fairness Act of 2013’ addresses the issue of inequity within the Post 9/11 GI Bill and will do < a great deal to support veterans’ success in higher education.” The VFW’s Executive Director, Bob Wallace was quoted in the January 23, 2013 press release, “Over the last couple of years, the VFW has heard from countless veterans driven into more expensive college programs because public schools offered no flexibility in residency requirements, prohibiting < veterans from attending at the in-state rate.” Adding, “The VFW is proud to see that Chairman Miller and Ranking Member < Michaud have already taken a bold stance to ensure student-veterans attending public schools receive a reasonably-priced education at the public school of their choice, as we intended when we passed the Post-9/11 GI Bill.” Additional Provisions HR 357 also extends the deadline for the Veterans Retraining Assistance Program by three months and the VA Work-Study Allowance progam by an additional 5 years. In addition, the bill would require DoD to make the education track of the new TAP 2.0 workshops, also known as the Transition GPS program, mandatory for all servicemembers. The current version of Transition GPS includes three “optional” tracks for servicemembers – education, small business, and career related training. Let your elected officials know how you feel about the GI Bill Tuition Fairness Act of 2013. NOTE: The Post-9/11 GI Bill offers the Yellow Ribbon program, which is designed to help veterans avoid out-of-pocket tuition and fees. However, not all schools choose to participate at the 100 percent level and some restrict the number of open slots for the YRP.