Starting in August 2009, Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans will receive more money to cover their educational costs. The increase is part of the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008, which was signed into law by former President George W. Bush in June 2008.

The new GI Bill is the latest leg in a mostly positive legislative history of providing educational assistance to military veterans. Since World War II, the government has made sure American veterans received college or vocational education benefits through the GI Bill.

Veteran groups have applauded the benefit changes in the latest version of the bill, also known as the 9/11 GI Bill. Several well-known veteran groups such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), the American Foreign Legion (AFL) and the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) have expressed their support for the new legislation.

Sen. Jim Webb (D-VA), sponsor of the new bill, said that it was “past time to enact a new veterans’ education program modeled on the WWII era GI Bill.”

Known by various names over the years — the Veterans Adjustment Act of 1952, the Veterans Readjustment Benefits Act of 1966, the Readjustment Assistance Act of 1972, the 1976 Veterans Educational Assistance Program, and most recently the Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB), passed in 1987 — the various incarnations of the GI Bill also brought changes to the actual educational benefits. Veterans are given a set monthly stipend for their educational benefits, rather than the benefits being paid directly to the colleges. Also, veterans needing an increase in tuition coverage must make voluntary contributions from their military pay, which are then matched by the military.

Veterans have complained that the end result is in more out-of-pocket tuition expenses for them. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, a WWII veteran who completed college under the original GI Bill describes MGIB as “not adequate” when it comes to providing current veterans with the same opportunities as previous veterans.

The increase in out-of-pocket expenses is the main reason veterans have lobbied for a new bill. The Montgomery GI Bill simply was not keeping up with rising tuition costs, the IAVA and other groups argued.

The 9/11 GI Bill will give Iraq and Afghanistan veterans an educational program modeled on the more comprehensive coverage from the WWII-era GI Bill.

What are the 9/11 GI Bill educational benefits? Based on a veterans' length of active duty service the bill would cover the following:

• Cost of tuition and fees based on the most expensive in-state tuition costs by making payments directly to the school;
• A monthly housing allowance in the same zipcode as the vet’s school;
• Relocation expenses on a selective basis to those from highly rural areas to pursue a college education;
• Additional costs such as books, supplies and tutorial assistance via stipend; and
• Educational benefits for dependents (spouse, children) of military servicepersons.

Though the 9/11 GI Bill legislation had general bipartisan support in the House and Senate, there were some critics of the bill, most notably former President George W. Bush and Senator John McCain (R-AZ).

Bush and McCain both expressed concern over the cost of the bill, which will amount to over $51 billion over the next ten years. Their other concern was over the bill’s impact on military retention rates. The New York Times described their stance as being in favor of college benefits “remain[ing] just mediocre enough that people in uniform are more likely to stay put.”

Other critics of the new GI Bill question how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will administer the educational benefits.

IAVA, a supporter of the bill, has qualms about a national tuition and fee cap disparity amongst state colleges and universities. Depending on the location of the school some vets would receive 100% tuition coverage while others could end up owing a significant percentage of their tuition costs. The vet organization also states that many colleges and universities do not make available separate tuition and fee costs, only the total costs. The lack of tuition versus fee clarity would make it hard to determine actual tuition costs and how much the 9/11 GI Bill will cover.

The VA, according to IAVA, has made the educational benefits regulations “confusing and unfair” and that veterans will not be able to make “educated decisions about the costs of attending school.” As a result, the vet organization has set-up an alternate website to explain the bill’s benefits and to allow for feedback.

The Department of Veterans Affairs will start distributing educational benefits on or after August 1, 2009.

In a typically OhMyGov! ending to an otherwise good government story, Keith Wilson, director of education service for the Veterans Benefits Administration, said that benefit payments will be processed manually because an automated processing system won’t be ready until 2011.

Also Interesting:

[+] Gov Update: Post 9/11 GI Bill, Chapter 33

[+] President Obama to commemorate Department of Veterans Affairs

[+] New Post-9/11 GI Bill offers greater benefits

[+] House Silently Passes $630 billion Omnibus Bill