New GI Bill blows through House with overwhelming majority

Now it's on to the Senate. The final version of the bill attached to the war supplemental adds full WWII-type benefits as well as benefit-transfers to spouses. Huge. The administration had been promising a veto, but with a final count of 416 to 12, the writing apparently was on the wall.

Personally, I'm going to give mine to my wife for Christmas so she can pursue her Masters.

Presidential Candidates Clash on New GI Bill

Well, I suppose I have to admit that progress is being made in order to update the venerated GI Bill for our Soldiers. The issue has no come to the forefront of the Presidential race. For the last week, Senators Obama and McCain traded barbs over support for Soldiers via a renovated GI Bill program.

Democrats champion Senator Webbs bill that provides full college scholarships for people who spend three years in the armed forces. Republicans counter saying that the bill is all but an open invitation for massive of talented young Soldiers to leave the military, depriving our nation's military of a critical mass of young Noncommissioned Officers, seen by most as the backbone of our military.

Republicans counter with a bill that boosts benefits in line with how long a veteran had served. Additionaly, the Republican version supports transferrability of GI Bill benefits to spouses and dependants, pretty much making a guarantee that benefits will be used.

Personally, I'm rooting for a combination of the two. I want full college scholarships for Soldiers, but not at the expense of our Noncommissioned Officer corps. I also want to transfer my benefits to my spouse or children, as directed by the President in his last State of the Union. I guess I was asking for too much when I wanted my cake and to eat it, too.

In the end, the more attention given to the problem, the better. Soldiers will no doubt benefit greatly from either version of the bill.

Steal from the Rich and give it to the Vets!

OK, go ahead and read this article. It has a kind of nice 'Robin Hood' feel to it. From Yahoo:

House Democrats are proposing a tax surcharge on millionaires to pay for a big increase in education benefits for veterans of the war in Iraq, lawmakers said Tuesday.

Wait, here's my favorite:

"What we're talking about is a one-half percent income tax surcharge on incomes above $1 million," said Rep. Mike Ross, D-Ark., a leader of the Blue Dog group. "So someone who earns $2 million a year would pay $5,000. ... They're not going to miss it."

They're not going to miss it? Hell, they're going to revolt! Not that I don't agree with the measure and I do believe the current GI Bill is due a massive overhaul to keep pace with the high cost of a 21st century education. However, a discriminitary tax against the wealthy is probably not the way.

I predict this goes nowhere.

Vets to Congress: Current GI Bill Inadequate

And that's putting it nicely. CNN reports that current Iraq and Afghanistan veterans feel baited and switched. Today, a group of Soldiers, Marines and airmen spoke to Congress complaining the current GI Bill is not enough to pay for even the most modest college eduation.

Najwa McQueen of the Louisiana National Guard said, "They kind of sell you a dream. You think you're going to get all of this stuff, and in reality, you don't get that. I just kind of believed what my recruiter told me, which is not the truth."

McQueen left behind her husband and 18-month-old daughter in October 2004 and served 10 months in Iraq. After her service, she enrolled in college and found that her total benefits from the GI Bill would be $400 a month for four months, totaling $1,600. Her classes alone, she said, cost $1,000 each. (CNN)

Currently, the GI Bill pays a maximum of $1,101 a month for 36 months to help cover tuition, room and board, and books. National Guard and Reservist average around $440 per month.

The kicker, and you need to watch this closely, is that it goes out in monthly installments, not all at once. Once you are out of the Army, you do not have access to the lump sum to cover the up front cost of the education. You have to pay in installments which includes the interest attached to the lingering balances.

Even if vets had access to pay costs up front, the total benefits would not come close to covering the cost of the education at a four year public university, especially considering the additional cost of living expenses.

I personally know a veteran couple that while going through a four-year university, got by on student loans, WIC, and food stamps aside from the combined benefits of the GI Bill. I have not personally seen the proposed modernized GI Bill, but any improvements would be welcome to the current system. Warning, this sucker is going to cost $2 billion.

I say that kind of investment in our young veterans will provide excellent returns.

President to Congress: Transfer GI Bill Benefits to Families!

In his final State of the Union address, the President made the following statement to Congress:

“I call on Congress to enact the reforms recommended by Senator Bob Dole and Secretary Donna Shalala, so we can improve the system of care for our wounded warriors… Our military families sacrifice for America… So I ask you to join me in expanding their access to childcare, creating new hiring preferences for military spouses across the federal government, and allowing our troops to transfer their unused education benefits to their spouses or children.”

The fact is, since 2002, the Department of Defense made transfers of GI Bill available to military family members. The Army used that as a retention incentive for targeted career fields. Monday night, the President issued some extremely broad guidance stating that this targeted benefit to some be made mandatory for all. I happen to know a rather attractive gal that would love to get her hands on my $12 large.

Here are some relevant statistics courtesy DMI:

• Regular military compensation for a single enlisted member in the lowest pay grade in 2006: $29,700.


• Regular military compensation for an enlisted member with a spouse and two children in the lowest pay grade in 2006: $32,800.


• Number of dollars added to the national economy for every dollar spent on educational benefits under the original G.I. Bill: $7.


• Approximate amount of tuition support a service member can receive, in total, under the current G.I. Bill: $39,600.


• Average price of one year at a 4-year private college: $22,218.


• Percentage of troops who pay a nonrefundable $1,200 contribution towards G.I. Bill benefits who never use the G.I. Bill: 30%.


• Percentage of veterans who use their whole G.I. Bill benefit: 8%.


• Average amount less per hour that military wives earn compared to their civilian counterparts: $3.


• Percentage of active-duty military spouses who have their high school diploma: 97%.
  

Thank you Mr. President. Congress, get to work.