Should Vets Get a 90-Day Grace Period From Colleges When GI Bill Funds Are Delayed? (H.R. 4830)

What is H.R. 4830?

(Updated June 25, 2020)

This bill — the SIT REP Act — would require educational institutions receiving funding from the Dept. of Veterans Affairs (VA) to provide a 90-day grace period for veterans whose GI Bill funds are delayed, thus enabling them to continue their education in the interim. Currently, the VA pays for the tuition and fees of veterans at higher education institutions under the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the vocational rehabilitation and education benefits program. The VA makes these payments directly to the institutions, usually at the start of the academic term; however, payments are occasionally delayed for various reasons, and in those instances, some institutions will ban beneficiaries from beginning or continuing their educations.

Under this bill, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs could approve only those institutions that allow veteran beneficiaries to attend the institution for up to 90 days after the VA certifies that the student is eligible for benefits, regardless of whether the VA has made payments of tuition and fees. Under this bill, the Secretary would be empowered to disapprove institutions that do not adopt this policy, making such institutions ineligible for VA funding.

The bill’s full title is the Servicemembers Improved Transition through Reforms for Ensuring Progress Act.

Argument in favor

Minor delays in funding should not affect veterans’ educations and ability to use their GI bill benefits. In this case, occasional delays in the receipt of VA funds are not indicative of ineligibility or inability to pay; so the fact that some educational institutions do not allow a grace period while VA funds are pending seems nonsensical.

Argument opposed

There is no reason why the VA should be funding GI bill education behind schedule; this bill is unnecessary as long as the VA meets educational institutions’ funding deadlines responsibly. Colleges shouldn’t be required to grant a grace period to veterans just because the VA doesn’t have its act together.

Impact

Higher education; veterans; and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

Cost of H.R. 4830

The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would have an insignificant impact on the federal budget.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) introduced this bill to ensure that veterans’ educational opportunities are not harmed by bureaucratic red tape:

“I filed this common sense bill in response to several student Veterans who were subject to punitive action by their school because it received payment from the VA after a certain deadline.  Veterans should never experience financial harm or delays in education due to bureaucratic red tape in processing paperwork at the VA or school. The GI Bill is already a wonderful benefit that our Veterans have earned and this legislation just makes the program better.”

This bill has seven bipartisan cosponsors including four Republicans and three Democrats. The American Legion supports this bill.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) Press Release
  
• American Legion (In Favor)