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Veterans & Service Members

AACRAO recognizes and honors the sacrifices these men and women have made and its members are proud to assist them and meet their educational needs. Veterans and students on active military duty and their families face special circumstances and challenges.

Changes in federal statute and executive actions have greatly promoted the expansion of services toward veterans and their families. Since the Post-9/11 GI Bill was passed in 2009, close to 1 million veterans, service members, and eligible dependents have taken advantage of the educational benefits available to them. With the passage of more recent legislation, such as the Forever GI Bill in 2017 and the Isakson Roe and THRIVE Acts in 2021, there will be significant changes to military education benefits over the coming years.

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Latest Actions

AACRAO recently hosted a webinar to discuss the implementation of veteran legislation passed in December 2020, also known as the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act. This law will have a transformative effect on the mission of Education Service to provide ready access to, and timely and accurate delivery of, education benefits to Veterans, Service members, and their families, as well as further enable the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to empower GI Bill beneficiaries to achieve their vocational and career goals.

Other recent legislation introduced in both the House and Senate include important provisions to help ensure veterans can continue to receive their education benefits as well as technical corrections to the legislation passed last year.

UPDATES

AACRAO Urges Changes to Sweeping Veterans Benefits Law

Jul 22, 2021, 10:45 AM
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Summary : The measure aims to protect student veterans and help ensure that they can use their GI Bill benefits to complete a quality postsecondary education. However, several provisions could create unintended consequences for veterans and institutions.
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The House Veterans' Affairs Economic Opportunity Subcommittee held an oversight hearing on Tuesday with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to examine the implementation of the Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement (Isakson Roe) Act, H.R. 7105.

The Isakson Roe Act, enacted in January 2021 and set to take effect on August 1, is a sweeping package of veteran-related legislation that includes a modified version of the Protect the GI Bill Act, H.R. 4625. Overall, the measure provides important protections for student veterans to help ensure that they can use their GI Bill benefits to complete a quality postsecondary education. However, the legislation contains several provisions that could create unintended consequences for veterans and institutions.

Ahead of the hearing, AACRAO joined 10 other higher education associations in a letter to the House Veterans' Affairs Committee outlining key concerns, requesting greater clarity regarding the VA's implementation plans, and advocating for technical changes to the legislation. In particular, the letter highlights issues related to bill language requiring institutions to submit dual certification for verification of enrollment, provide estimates of costs and aid for the entire duration of the student's program, and establish eligibility under Title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) in order to participate in the GI Bill program.

This week's letter is part of a year-long advocacy campaign by the higher education community to voice concerns about the problematic provisions included in Protect the GI Bill Act and ultimately the Isakson Roe package. 

Related Links

U.S. House Veterans' Affairs Economic Opportunity Subcommittee Hearing

https://veterans.house.gov/events/hearings/isakson-roe-at-six-months-an-update-on-implementation-of-education-improvements 

Letter to the House Veterans' Affairs Committee regarding the Isakson Roe Act

https://www.aacrao.org/docs/default-source/statements-and-letters/letter-to-hvac-on-isakson-roe-implementation-final.pdf?sfvrsn=71740287_1 


Michelle Mott
Categories :
  • Advocacy
  • Compliance and Reporting
  • Financial Aid and FAFSA
  • Veterans and Service Members
Tags :
  • Cost of Attendance
  • Federal relations
  • gi bill
  • Resources for Veterans Administration Certification
  • VA Programs
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STATEMENTS/LETTERS

ARTICLES