GI Bill Reversal

Reversal: VA To Follow Law On GI Bill Back Pay After Pressure

Due to pressure from Congress, VA found some common sense and will pay veterans their full monthly housing stipends in accordance with the law.

“Although VA has encountered issues with implementing the Forever GI Bill on Congress’ timeline, we will work with lawmakers to ensure that — once VA is in a position to process education claims in accordance with the new law — each and every beneficiary will receive retroactively the exact benefits to which they are entitled under that law,” Wilkie said in his statement, as reported by NBC.

For the past two months, VA has failed to get a hold on a GI Bill IT glitch that resulted in hundreds of thousands of veterans being underpaid their housing allowance. The agency previously spent tens of millions updating its IT system to accommodate the new Forever GI Bill by the August 2018 deadline.

The initiative failed, and millions were flushed down the toilet.

Two days ago, unnamed VA officials informed Congress that agency leadership decided to make up its own interpretation of the Forever GI Bill laws that, for the convenience of the agency, would not require payments at the legislated amount until spring 2020.

Yesterday, VBA Undersecretary Paul Lawrence tried to explain its legal basis for flouting the law concerning President Donald Trump’s cornerstone achievement for veterans. Numerous lawmakers questioned Lawrence about the agency’s obviously flawed logic.

The pressure apparently triggered the common sense and decency switch on the 10th Floor at 810 Vermont (slang for VA Headquarters) inspiring VA Secretary Robert Wilkie to announce a reversal of thumbing their nose at the law earlier in the day.

“To clear up any confusion, I want to make clear that each and every post-9/11 GI Bill beneficiary will be made 100 percent whole — retroactively if need be — for their housing benefits for this academic year based on Forever GI Bill rates, not on post-9/11 GI Bill rates,” Wilkie said in his statement.

The House Committee on Veterans Affairs was reportedly pleased with the Secretary’s announcement. A spokeswoman stated, “The Secretary’s new statement is unambiguous and we believe that VA has every intention to ensure that all student veterans are paid in full what they deserve in accordance with the law.”

This is good news for veterans impacted. Perhaps the agency realized they were fast walking into an obvious basis for a class action lawsuit.

That aside, lawmakers at the hearing were very light handed on agency leadership other than Rep. Mike Coffman and a couple others. Coffman lost his reelection and will not return to the Committee in January.

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11 Comments

  1. It’s like they have a VA flow chart> The Vets aren’t getting their $$$> Will I catch any heat because of it?> No> Put the blame on another dept. > (Other dept.) Will I catch any heat for this? > Maybe > Blame it on IT dept. > (IT dept.) Oh Oh it’s our problem. Call IT supervisor> IT supervisor, Yikes this is our problem> Calls Upper management> Upper management release confusing/false blanket statement> Congress see’s misleading/confusing statement> Calls VA director > Is my job on the line already?> Yes. > Makes statement all Vets will be paid> Problem persists for months > START-OVER to step one. (*Short version flow chart)

  2. This certainly speaks to the culture within the VA. Keeping the promises to those who served is not a priority. The tried to get away with cheating. And of course, the culture of corruption in Washington extends far beyond the VA, you know, that $21 trillion that mainstream and painstream media still hasn’t mentioned.

    1. I know what your saying 21 trillion, that’s catastrophic, and where did they get the money, China, i presume, same place about 3/4 of are drugs and vaccines come from. Big pig bankers are going to want that money back at some point.

  3. Will I receive any back pay? I was enrolled from 2015-2017? My wife and son are currently enrolled. Any help will be appreciated.

  4. I’ll bet he can’t live up to that promise. FOIA requests are supposed to provide your records. Even the BVA, CAVC cannot or won’t obtain my VA Medical Division file. It is probably lost in one of those “IT glitches”. Whatever the reason, the VA GC won’t own up to it and the CAVC clerk’s order is forcing me to proceed without the documents that have been removed from my C&P file. Hard to prove your case without the documents. And it will be hard to prove their case that they are owed without the documents stored in the data that was eaten up by the Glitch.

  5. Where is the money? Congess gave the VA a bunch of money to introduce a new GI Bill and where did it go?
    Lawrence andCashover need to be fired or at least sent to Greenland or some other place they can do no more harm. These bureaucrats are anti-veterans. Too many of these people in the VA are only intrested in there own careers. Start here to drain the swamp.

  6. Rise and Shine Veterans email your Senators or Representative contract the Veteran Affairs Committee your belief how improve Veterans Health Care and Spread your friends do the same and you don’t have to be a Veteran to share their beliefs how improve Veterans Health Care…Semper Fi remember God comes first and Veterans comes next or we. would not called United States.

    1. IMO – The Politicians are well aware of what’s not going well inside the VA. If they were that concerned about Veterans, they’d be seeking us out.

      But don’t let me stop you from reminding them what they already know.

      So let us, suffer on Vets, suffer on. We’ve earned the right to unrighteously suffer thru the hands of corruption..

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