{"id":107118,"date":"2022-06-06T14:13:24","date_gmt":"2022-06-06T14:13:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/uncategorized\/2022\/06\/06\/plan-would-give-va-more-power-to-protect-gi-bill-benefits-in-future-national-emergencies\/"},"modified":"2026-08-20T14:05:02","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T14:05:02","slug":"plan-would-give-va-more-power-to-protect-gi-bill-benefits-in-future-national-emergencies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/education-transition\/2022\/06\/06\/plan-would-give-va-more-power-to-protect-gi-bill-benefits-in-future-national-emergencies\/","title":{"rendered":"Plan would give VA more power to protect GI Bill benefits in future national emergencies"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When the Covid-19 pandemic in America forced many colleges to shift classes online, Congress granted <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/education-transition\/2022\/02\/23\/no-gi-bill-covid-emergency-protection-past-this-summer-va-says\/\" target=\"_blank\">emergency authorities<\/a> to Veterans Affairs officials to ensure the changes wouldn\u2019t disrupt <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/education-transition\/2022\/02\/10\/free-tuition-for-military-students-part-of-push-to-help-minority-vets-families\/\" target=\"_blank\">veterans\u2019 education benefits<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Now, with most campuses returned to normal operations and those authorities expired, a group of lawmakers wants to grant similar powers to VA leadership in cases of similar future emergencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Last week, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.militarytimes.com\/education-transition\/2021\/04\/15\/va-dumps-plans-to-stop-students-from-adding-non-degree-classes-to-keep-gi-bill-benefits\/\" target=\"_blank\">Reps. Mike Levin<\/a>, D-Calif., and Nancy Mace, R-S.C., introduced the Student Veteran Emergency Relief Act to take immediate action to protect students\u2019 benefits in cases where the White House declares a national emergency, without having to wait for Congress to act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe pandemic exposed the gaps in GI Bill benefits that exist when emergencies cause veterans\u2019 educational programs to be cut short, canceled, or moved online,\u201d Levin said in a statement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWhile we were able to pass several bipartisan bills to protect veterans\u2019 GI Bill benefits during the pandemic, it\u2019s critical that we reauthorize those protections and extend them to any other national emergency.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/education-transition\/2022\/02\/23\/no-gi-bill-covid-emergency-protection-past-this-summer-va-says\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"186\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP21350711150432.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">No GI Bill COVID emergency protection past this summer, VA says<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">As college campuses return to normal operations, department officials are planning to let GI Bill protections expire in June.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The main issue is how VA education benefits are paid out to students who attend college classes remotely, rather than in-person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Students using the Post-9\/11 GI Bill \u2014 the most popular veterans education benefit \u2014 receive money for tuition as well as a monthly housing stipend. Individuals enrolled in traditional in-person classes receive the full financial benefit, while students in online-only classes are granted just half of that housing stipend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The difference between half of a housing stipend and the full payout can range from a few hundred dollars to nearly $2,000, since the payouts depend on the location of the student and school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When the coronavirus pandemic forced colleges to shift courses from physical classrooms to internet meeting rooms in spring 2020, nearly all students were reclassified as online-only, triggering a reduction in their housing benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Congress passed legislation giving the VA secretary emergency powers to ignore the change, and keep awarding full benefits to those students. VA officials said nearly 60,000 students would have faced significant financial impact without the moves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lawmakers extended that authority several times over the last few years, as education institutions grappled with how and when to bring students back to campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In February, as the two-year anniversary of the coronavirus pandemic in America approached, VA officials said they would not push for another renewal of the emergency powers, since most institutions had resolved their outstanding pandemic issues. The authorities officially expired on June 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Along with the housing stipend problem, the emergency powers granted by Congress allowed several other moves designed to protect students. This included continuation of work-study programs even while they were shifted to remote locations and additional protections for students forced to withdraw from courses due to health issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lawmakers said that type of flexibility should be available to VA leaders for future emergencies, whatever they may be.<\/p>\n\n\n\t<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\">\n\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/militarytimes\/education-transition\/2022\/02\/01\/vets-must-now-verify-school-enrollment-monthly-or-lose-housing-stipends\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__media\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2358105.jpg.jpg?w=300\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__image wp-post-image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"smg-interstitial-link__content\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"smg-interstitial-link__kicker\">Related<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"smg-interstitial-link__title\">Vets must now verify school enrollment monthly or lose housing stipends<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"smg-interstitial-link__excerpt\">Students will receive a text or email once a month to remind them to take action so they do not miss out on the payouts.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/a>\n\t<\/aside>\n\t\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cGI Bill benefits should be more easily accessible, not less, to those that served,\u201d Mace said in a statement. \u201cOne of the few benefits of the Covid pandemic was that it showed us where changes need to be made to the program, to make it easier for our veterans to access the money they are entitled to.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The proposal has already drawn support from Student Veterans of America, which said lawmakers should act on those lessons learned now instead of amid a crisis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis bill includes critical, forward-thinking, and common-sense policies that we already know work,\u201d said Lauren Augustine, vice president of government affairs for SVA. \u201cThe next emergency is not a matter of if, it is simply a matter of when.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The previous emergency authorities measures received broad, bipartisan support on Capitol Hill. House officials have not said when this measure might be brought up for a full chamber vote.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Emergency powers given to VA leaders amid the coronavirus pandemic expired earlier this month.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":99615,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":9,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":{"4":{"categories":["education-transition","veterans","daily-news-roundup","newsletters","middle-column","home","pentagon-congress","news","coronavirus"],"primary_category":"education-transition"},"5":{"categories":["education-transition","veterans","daily-news-roundup","newsletters","middle-column","home","pentagon-congress","news","coronavirus"],"primary_category":"education-transition"},"6":{"categories":["education-transition","veterans","daily-news-roundup","newsletters","middle-column","home","pentagon-congress","news","coronavirus"],"primary_category":"education-transition"},"7":{"categories":["education-transition","veterans","daily-news-roundup","newsletters","middle-column","home","pentagon-congress","news","coronavirus"],"primary_category":"education-transition"}}},"categories":[82,9,29,116,15,35,86,25,88],"tags":[8526,8542],"coauthors":[3347],"class_list":["post-107118","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-coronavirus","category-education-transition","category-home","category-left-column","category-news","category-newsletters","category-pentagon-congress","category-veterans","category-your-military","tag-education-and-transition","tag-veterans"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"OLHONYKOD5H2HMPV6WSEBP657Y","arc_canonical_url":"\/education-transition\/2022\/06\/06\/plan-would-give-va-more-power-to-protect-gi-bill-benefits-in-future-national-emergencies\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented 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