Legislation Protects Job Training Benefits for Disabled Veterans

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WASHINGTON, D.C. - American veterans have been shortchanged by bureaucratic red tape, often losing out on the full education benefits they earned through honorable service. At the heart of the problem is the "48-month rule," which caps the total amount of U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits a veteran can receive even if they qualify for multiple programs.

The VA also administers Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) benefits to help veterans with service-connected disabilities get job training, education, and support to reenter the workforce. However, veterans who use their GI Bill before enrolling in VR&E may have their VR&E education benefits reduced or delayed, because the total months of entitlement under the VA's 48-month limit are counted across both programs. Veterans who use VR&E first face no such penalty. The result is an unfair, two-tiered system which hits disabled veterans the hardest and creates barriers to the support they earned.

To fix this, U.S. Senators Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Angus King (I-ME) introduced the Ensuring Benefits for Disabled Veterans Act, which would let veterans access their full education benefits regardless of the order in which they use them. The bill also reduces administrative costs by eliminating the need for exemptions, making it a win for veterans and taxpayers alike.

"Our veterans, as we know, give so much in service to our country and we owe them so much," said Cramer. "For those who choose to continue their education, the system should be fair and flexible. That's all we're asking. No veteran should lose opportunities or benefits simply because of an arbitrary sequencing requirement. Only a bureaucrat could come up with something like that. Our bill corrects the oversight to ensure that all veterans can use their earned benefits in a way that works best for them."

"Our veterans served this country with grit and class, and now it is our turn to return the favor and provide commonsense access to the benefits they have rightly earned and deserve," said King. "The Ensuring Benefits for Disabled Veterans Act will help veterans access their benefits more efficiently - ensuring all veterans with disabilities can pursue their education without becoming tangled in red tape. This simple fix will make it easier for veterans to access benefits they have earned, making sure they can learn the skills they need to transition to the next phase in their life, beyond the military."

Specifically, the Ensuring Benefits for Disabled Veterans Act amends Title 38 of the U.S. Code to remove VR&E from the combined benefit limitation, while preserving VR&E's existing 48-month cap and the VA's authority to grant extensions when medically or vocationally necessary.

The Ensuring Benefits for Disabled Veterans Act is supported by several organizations, including American Veterans (AMVETS), Veterans for Foreign Wars, and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

"AMVETS strongly supports the Ensuring Benefits for Disabled Veterans Act, which repeals an outdated limitation that prevents veterans from accessing both the VA's Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program and educational assistance benefits," said AMVETS National Executive Director Joe Chenelly. "Disabled veterans should never be forced to choose between rehabilitation and education when both are critical to achieving meaningful, long-term employment."

Click here for bill text.