Press Releases

Washington, D.C. - Today, Chairman Phil Roe, M.D. (R-Tenn.) release the following statement on the implementation of the Forever GI Bill:

The Forever GI Bill is a critical piece of legislation that ensures our Post 9/11 student veterans receive their deserved educational benefits. Creating the legislation was a bicameral, bipartisan achievement and one where Congress worked well with the Secretary of VA and President Trump. Over the past year and a half, Congress has diligently overseen the implementation of the law and worked to ensure that our nation’s veterans receive what they have been promised. Secretary Wilkie has been a great asset in the effort, and has always listened to input the Committee has shared with him.

While I remain frustrated by the many missteps encountered during the implementation process of the Forever GI Bill, I am glad that the Secretary is taking steps to ensure that VA acquires a functioning IT System and will ensure that monthly housing payments are made with minimal delays.

Under the law, underpaid student veterans must receive their retroactive payments. The burden of correcting and making those retroactive payments is timely and costly, but that isn’t a reason to dismiss a law or leave student veterans high and dry. The Secretary agrees. He said in a statement today that VA will ensure that every post 9/11 GI Bill recipient will receive what they were promised. He is doing right by veterans and I am encouraged to know that our student veterans will receive what they earned, despite the burden it may place on VA to do so. My main goal is simply to provide student veterans with what President Trump and the Congress promised them in this law. The Secretary and I are on the same page on this.