WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Thom Tillis (R-NC), and Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ) today introduced legislation to close a financial loophole inadvertently created during the transition from the Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) to the Post 9-11 Forever GI Bill that prevents at least 25,000 active-duty service members who paid into the MGIB to receive financial assistance for education from receiving repayments they are owed: 

“American service members shouldn’t have to cut through layers of bureaucratic red tape just to receive financial benefits they are owed,” said Sen. Cornyn. “This legislation would fix this error and ensure active-duty service members who paid into the Montgomery GI Bill are made whole.”

“Veterans have earned and deserve fair treatment when using their GI Bill benefits,” said Sen. Hassan. “I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan bill that will help veterans get back the hard-earned money that they paid for GI Bill programs that they did not benefit from or use.” 

“Our brave servicemembers deserve the full financial benefits they are rightfully owed,” said Sen. Tillis. “This common-sense legislation fixes a financial loophole and cuts down on the unnecessary bureaucracy that prevents many active-duty servicemembers from receiving the full benefits they earn through serving our country.”

“We’re helping Arizona servicemembers more easily reclaim GI Bill payments and receive the full benefits they have earned,” said Sen. Sinema.

Companion legislation, introduced by Congressman Jim Banks (IN-03), has passed the House of Representatives.

Background:

The MGIB is being phased out for the more generous Post-9/11 Forever GI Bill, which was signed into law on August 16, 2017. The MGIB required service members to pay a $100 monthly fee during their first 12 months of active duty in order to receive financial assistance for education. The $1,200 in total was then refunded to service members as an attachment to their housing allowance. However, veterans who do not receive a housing allowance have also not been receiving the $1,200 they are owed. The process to reclaim these funds can be difficult, and many veterans lose out on this money because they waited too long. This legislation would ensure veterans are made whole by amending Title 38 of United States Code to require the U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs to repay members of the Armed Forces for contributions they made towards Post-9/11 educational assistance and for other purposes.