Washington, D.C. - Today, Rep. Phil Roe, M.D. (R-Tenn.), the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, released the following statement after introducing a bill to protect GI Bill recipients from being negatively impacted by school closures or other changes as a result of COVID-19:
“No student veteran, dependent, or spouse should be worried about their GI Bill benefits being reduced or cut off because of actions their school is taking in response to COVID-19," said Roe. "That is why as soon as the Student Veterans of America brought it to my attention that GI Bill beneficiaries at schools who are closing or transitioning to an online-only curriculum could receive lower monthly housing payments or have their degree program disapproved by VA, I took action to prevent it. My bill would ensure that Secretary Wilkie has the flexibility to continue serving students well during times of uncertainty and I am committed to seeing it signed into law quickly.”
“The uncertainty facing student veterans in the wake of unexpected school closures and changes in response to COVID-19 is unprecedented,” said Jared Lyon, CEO and National President of Student Veterans of America. “This critical, time-sensitive legislation explicitly ensures student veterans will be able to continue to attend school and experience no changes to monthly housing allowances as more schools take COVID-19 prevention measures. We appreciate the the swift attention brought to this issue by the sponsors and urge them to move this legislation forward to the President’s desk to be signed into law as soon as possible.”
