[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2855 Introduced in House (IH)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2855

To amend title 38, United States Code, to eliminate the time limitation 
for use of eligibility and entitlement to educational assistance under 
 certain programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             June 23, 2015

Mr. Higgins (for himself and Mr. Takano) introduced the following bill; 
   which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in 
    addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 38, United States Code, to eliminate the time limitation 
for use of eligibility and entitlement to educational assistance under 
 certain programs of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Education Flexibility 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following::
            (1) According to the ``National Survey of Veterans, Active 
        Duty Service Members, Demobilized National Guard and Reserve 
        Members, Family Members, and Surviving Spouses Final Report'', 
        commissioned by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in 2010, 20.6 
        percent of eligible veterans--approximately 2,621,753 
        veterans--were unable to use their GI bill educational benefits 
        because their period of eligibility expired.
            (2) The time limitations for using GI bill educational 
        benefits do not reflect the realities of the modern economy of 
        the United States. After leaving the service, many veterans 
        postpone further education to join the workforce and support 
        their families or are faced with lengthy rehabilitations from 
        service-related injuries.
            (3) Access to education and job retraining has proved the 
        arbiter of success in today's economy, and if the United States 
        is to lower the unemployment rate among the veteran population, 
        the United States must provide veterans unfettered access to 
        educational benefits.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to remove the delimiting 
dates and retroactively restore the Department of Veterans Affairs 
Educational benefits within the Post-Vietnam Era Veterans' Educational 
Assistance Program (VEAP), Montgomery GI Bill-Active Duty (MGIB-AD), 
and Post-9/11 GI Bill.

SEC. 3. ELIMINATION OF TIME LIMITATION FOR USE OF ELIGIBILITY AND 
              ENTITLEMENT TO EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Montgomery GI Bill-Active Duty.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3031 of chapter 30 of title 38, 
        United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 3031. Extension of entitlement to educational assistance 
              expiring during a quarter or semester or after a major 
              portion of a course is complete
    ``(a) Educational Institutions Operating on Quarter or Semester 
System.--If an individual eligible for educational assistance under 
this chapter is enrolled under this chapter in an educational 
institution regularly operated on the quarter or semester system and 
the period of such individual's entitlement under this chapter would, 
under section 3013, expire during a quarter or semester, such period 
shall be extended to the end of such quarter or semester.
    ``(b) Other Educational Institutions.--If an individual eligible 
for educational assistance under this chapter is enrolled under this 
chapter in an educational institution not regularly operated on the 
quarter or semester system and the period of such individual's 
entitlement under this chapter would, under section 3013, expire after 
a major portion of the course is completed, such period shall be 
extended to the end of the course or for 12 weeks, whichever is the 
lesser period of extension.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
        beginning of such chapter is amended by striking the item 
        relating to section 3031 and inserting the following new item:

``3031. Extension of entitlement to educational assistance expiring 
                            during a quarter or semester or after a 
                            major portion of a course is complete.''.
            (3) Conforming amendments.--Chapter 33 of title 38, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in section 3018C(e)(3)(B)--
                            (i) by striking ``(i) The Secretary'' and 
                        inserting ``The Secretary''; and
                            (ii) by striking clause (ii); and
                    (B) in section 3020--
                            (i) in subsection (f)(1), by striking 
                        ``Subject to the time limitation for use of 
                        entitlement under section 3031 of this title, 
                        an'' and inserting ``An''; and
                            (ii) in subsection (h), by striking 
                        ``Notwithstanding section 3031 of this title, 
                        a'' and inserting ``A''.
    (b) Post-Vietnam Era Veterans' Educational Assistance Program .--
            (1) In general.--Section 3232 of title 38, United States 
        Code, is amended--
                    (A) by striking subsections (a) and (b); and
                    (B) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 
                subsections (a) and (b), respectively.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 3035(b)(1) of title 38, 
        United States Code, is amended by striking ``and from'' and all 
        that follows through ``title''.
    (c) Post-9/11 GI Bill.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3321 of chapter 30 of title 38, 
        United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 3321. Extension of entitlement to educational assistance 
              expiring during a quarter or semester or after a major 
              portion of a course is complete
    ``Section 3031 shall apply with respect to the termination of an 
individual's entitlement to educational assistance under this chapter 
in the same manner as such section applies to the termination of an 
individual's entitlement to educational assistance under chapter 30, 
except that, in the administration of such section for purposes of this 
chapter, the reference to section 3013 shall be deemed to be a 
reference to section 3312 of this title.''.
            (2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the 
        beginning of such chapter is amended by striking the item 
        relating to section 3321 and inserting the following new item:

``3321. Extension of entitlement to educational assistance expiring 
                            during a quarter or semester or after a 
                            major portion of a course is complete.''.
            (3) Conforming amendments.--Chapter 33 of title 38, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in section 3312(b), by striking ``3321(b)(2)'' 
                and inserting ``3321'';
                    (B) in section 3319--
                            (i) in subsection (f)(1), by striking 
                        ``Subject to'' and all that follows through 
                        ``an'' and inserting ``An''; and
                            (ii) in subsection (h)(5)(A), by striking 
                        ``may use'' and all that follows through 
                        ``but''.
    (d) Conforming Amendments for Reserve Component Programs.--
            (1) Selected reserve.--Section 16133(b) of title 10, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``section 
                3031(f)'' and inserting ``subsections (a) and (b) of 
                section 3031''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``, as such 
                section existed on the day before the date of the 
                enactment of the Veterans Education Flexibility Act,'' 
                after ``title 38''.
            (2) Other reserve components.--Section 16164(b)(2) of title 
        10, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
    ``(2) The following provisions shall apply to the period of 
entitlement prescribed by paragraph (1):
            ``(A) Subsections (a) and (b) of section 3031 of title 38.
            ``(B) Subsection (d) of section 3031 of title 38, as such 
        subsection existed on the day before the date of the enactment 
        of the Veterans Education Flexibility Act.''.
    (e) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall apply 
with respect to any individual who has been entitled to educational 
assistance under chapters 30, 32, or 33 of title 38, United States 
Code. For purposes of determining the number of months of entitlement 
to such educational assistance that an individual is entitled to, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall disregard any delimiting date 
eliminated by this Act that occurred before the date of the enactment 
of this Act.
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