ROA Attends Post 9/11 GI Bill Hearing

ROA attended a Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing April 21 on the Post 9/11 GI Bill.

Following are some of the topics discussed:

• Chairman Daniel Akaka (D, HI) said he will introduce a bill before Memorial Day on technical fixes.
• Ranking Member Richard Burr (R, N.C.) confronted the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) about only answering a third of his questions sent two months ago.
  
• The Department of Defense requested a technical fix to allow veterans to be able to use college kickers.
  
• The VA described their initiative to completely automate into a single system by the end December 2010. Currently there are four separate IT systems and 33 manual steps. The new system will also allow veterans and families to access a self-service web portal.
  
• Other issues discussed were communication, late payments, inconsistencies in rules, separation of tuition and fees, establishing a national baseline for the Yellow Ribbon Program, including non-degree institutions, OJT, apprenticeships, and flight training, as well as other challenges and recommendations.