VA warns of problems with GI Bill upgrades

[unhappycamper]

VA warns of problems with GI Bill upgrades
By Rick Maze - Staff writer
Posted : Thursday May 8, 2008 6:15:27 EDT

The Department of Veterans Affairs seemed to be standing in front of a fast-moving train Wednesday when a top official said VA would need two years of preparation to come up with a payment system for a proposed overhaul of GI Bill education benefits.

The warning flags were waved by Keith Pedigo, VA’s associate deputy undersecretary for policy and program management, who said meeting an Aug. 1, 2009, effective date for the benefits increases, under what lawmakers are calling the 21st Century GI Bill of Rights, would be extremely difficult.

Because the proposal calls for the maximum benefit to be different in each state, payments would have to be manually, rather than automatically, processed, Pedigo said.

“VA does not now have a payment system or the appropriate number of trained personnel to administer the program,” Pedigo said, predicting it would take two years to develop a payment system to provide the new benefits. Those benefits include paying the full cost of tuition and fees for the most expensive four-year public college or university in each state, plus a monthly living expense, an annual payment for books and other expenses, as well as up to $1,200 for tutorial assistance.

Pedigo, testifying before the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, also warned about the potential for large overpayments because the bill, S 22, calls for lump-sum tuition payments directly to a school at the start of a quarter or semester, without specifying what would happen if a student drops out.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/05/military_gibill_va_050708w/



uhc comment: The Empire Strikes Back!