Press Releases
Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami
202-226-7616
08/05/2009
Pelosi Statement on VA Fixing Tuition Technicality in Post-9/11 GI Bill That Affected Veterans in California
Washington, D.C. — Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today acknowledging the work of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and the VA in fixing a tuition technicality in the Post-9/11 GI Bill that affected veterans attending college in California.
“Secretary Shinseki and the Department of Veterans Affairs should be commended for fixing a technical glitch in the Post-9/11 GI Bill that could have prevented thousands of California’s veterans from attending the school of their choice this fall.
“Enacting the Post-9/11 GI Bill was the foundation of the New Direction Congress’s continuing commitment to our nation’s heroes. Under this legislation, those who served in the armed forces after September 11, 2001 are eligible for tuition assistance up to the level of tuition charged by the most expensive public school in each state. However, California state law prohibits its public universities from charging tuition; instead, the schools recoup costs through student fees. This technicality risked creating a situation where California veterans would be forced to borrow additional funds to finance their education, placing them at a competitive disadvantage to their peers across the country.
“The California Congressional Delegation, led by Congressman Mike Thompson, has been diligently working on a legislative solution since the glitch was discovered. I applaud their efforts in focusing national attention on this potentially devastating problem. Yesterday’s announcement by the VA and the State of California will restore the promise Congress made to these brave veterans by allowing them the freedom to attend any one of the many outstanding private and public universities throughout California.”