[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8415 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8415

   To provide for the continuation of certain educational assistance 
    benefits during the COVID-19 emergency, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 29, 2020

  Mr. Cisneros (for himself and Mr. Bergman) 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 provide for the continuation of certain educational assistance 
    benefits during the COVID-19 emergency, 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 ``Restoring Education Access for 
Student Veterans Act''.

SEC. 2. CONTINUATION OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS EDUCATIONAL 
              ASSISTANCE BENEFITS DURING COVID-19 EMERGENCY.

    (a) Authority.--If the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines 
under subsection (c) that an individual is negatively affected by the 
COVID-19 emergency, the Secretary may provide educational assistance to 
that individual under the laws administered by the Secretary as if such 
negative effects did not occur. The authority under this section is in 
addition to the authority provided under section 1 of Public Law 116-
128 (38 U.S.C. 3001 note prec.), but in no case may the Secretary 
provide more than a total of four weeks of additional educational 
assistance by reason of section 4 of the Student Veteran Coronavirus 
Response Act of 2020 (Public Law 116-140; 38 U.S.C. 3680 note) and this 
section.
    (b) Housing and Allowances.--In providing educational assistance to 
an individual pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary may--
            (1) continue to pay a monthly housing stipend under chapter 
        33 of title 38, United States Code, during a month the 
        individual would have been enrolled in a program of education 
        or training but for the COVID-19 emergency at the same rate 
        such stipend would have been payable if the individual had not 
        been negatively affected by the COVID-19 emergency, except that 
        the total number of weeks for which stipends may continue to be 
        so payable may not exceed four weeks; and
            (2) continue to pay payments or subsistence allowances 
        under chapters 30, 31, 32, 33, and 35 of such title and chapter 
        1606 of title 10, United States Code, during a month for a 
        period of time that the individual would have been enrolled in 
        a program of education or training but for the COVID-19 
        emergency, except that the total number of weeks for which 
        payments or allowances may continue to be so payable may not 
        exceed four weeks.
    (c) Determination of Negative Effects.--The Secretary shall 
determine that an individual was negatively affected by the COVID-19 
emergency if--
            (1) the individual is enrolled in a covered program of 
        education of an educational institution or enrolled in training 
        at a training establishment and is pursuing such program or 
        training using educational assistance under the laws 
        administered by the Secretary;
            (2) the educational institution or training establishment 
        certifies to the Secretary that such program or training is 
        truncated, delayed, relocated, canceled, partially canceled, 
        converted from being on-site to being offered by distance 
        learning, or otherwise modified or made unavailable by reason 
        of the COVID-19 emergency; and
            (3) the Secretary determines that the modification to such 
        program or training specified under paragraph (2) would reduce 
        the amount of educational assistance (including with respect to 
        monthly housing stipends, payments, or subsistence allowances) 
        that would be payable to the individual but for the COVID-19 
        emergency.
    (d) Effect on Entitlement Period.--If the Secretary determines that 
an individual who received assistance under this section did not make 
progress toward the completion of the program of education in which the 
individual is enrolled during the period for which the individual 
received such assistance, any assistance provided pursuant to this 
section shall not be counted for purposes of determining the total 
amount of an individual's entitlement to educational assistance, 
housing stipends, or payments or subsistence allowances under chapters 
30, 31, 32, and 35 of such title and chapter 1606 of title 10, United 
States Code.
    (e) Applicability Period.--This section shall apply during the 
period beginning on March 1, 2020, and ending on December 21, 2021.

SEC. 3. EFFECTS OF CLOSURE OF EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION AND MODIFICATION 
              OF COURSES BY REASON OF COVID-19 EMERGENCY.

    (a) Closure or Disapproval.--Any payment of educational assistance 
described in subsection (b) shall not--
            (1) be charged against any entitlement to educational 
        assistance of the individual concerned; or
            (2) be counted against the aggregate period for which 
        section 3695 of title 38, United States Code, limits the 
        receipt of educational assistance by such individual.
    (b) Educational Assistance Described.--Subject to subsection (d), 
the payment of educational assistance described in this subsection is 
the payment of such assistance to an individual for pursuit of a course 
or program of education at an educational institution under chapter 30, 
31, 32, 33, or 35 of title 38, United States Code, or chapter 1606 of 
title 10, United States Code, if the Secretary determines that the 
individual--
            (1) was unable to complete such course or program as a 
        result of--
                    (A) the closure of the educational institution, or 
                the full or partial cancellation of a course or program 
                of education, by reason of the COVID-19 emergency; or
                    (B) the disapproval of the course or a course that 
                is a necessary part of that program under chapter 36 of 
                title 38, United States Code, because the course was 
                modified by reason of such emergency; and
            (2) did not receive credit or lost training time, toward 
        completion of the program of education being so pursued.
    (c) Housing Assistance.--In this section, educational assistance 
includes, as applicable--
            (1) monthly housing stipends payable under chapter 33 of 
        title 38, United States Code, for any month the individual 
        would have been enrolled in a course or program of education; 
        and
            (2) payments or subsistence allowances under chapters 30, 
        31, 32, and 35 of such title and chapter 1606 of title 10, 
        United States Code, during a month the individual would have 
        been enrolled in a course or program of education.
    (d) Period Not Charged.--The period for which, by reason of this 
subsection, educational assistance is not charged against entitlement 
or counted toward the applicable aggregate period under section 3695 of 
title 38, United States Code, shall not exceed the aggregate of--
            (1) the portion of the period of enrollment in the course 
        from which the individual did not receive credit or with 
        respect to which the individual lost training time, as 
        determined under subsection (b)(2); and
            (2) the period by which a monthly stipend is extended under 
        section 3680(a)(2)(B) of title 38, United States Code.
    (e) Continuing Pursuit of Disapproved Courses.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary may treat a course of 
        education that is disapproved under chapter 36 of title 38, 
        United States Code, as being approved under such chapter with 
        respect to an individual described in paragraph (2) if the 
        Secretary determines, on a programmatic basis, that--
                    (A) such disapproval is the result of an action 
                described in subsection (b)(1)(B); and
                    (B) continuing pursuing such course is in the best 
                interest of the individual.
            (2) Individual described.--An individual described in this 
        paragraph is an individual who is pursuing a course of 
        education at an educational institution under chapter 30, 31, 
        32, 33, or 35 of title 38, United States Code, or chapter 1606 
        of title 10, United States Code, as of the date on which the 
        course is disapproved as described in subsection (b)(1)(B).
    (f) Status as Full-Time Student for Purposes of Housing Stipend 
Calculation.--In the case of an individual who, as of the first day of 
the COVID-19 emergency was enrolled on a full-time basis in a program 
of education and was receiving educational assistance under chapter 33 
of title 38, United States Code, or subsistence allowance under chapter 
31 of such title, and for whom the Secretary makes a determination 
under subsection (b), the individual shall be treated as an individual 
enrolled in a program of education on a full-time basis for the purpose 
of calculating monthly housing stipends payable under chapter 33 of 
title 38, United States Code, or subsistence allowance payable under 
chapter 31 of such title, for any month the individual is enrolled in 
the program of education on a part-time basis to complete any course of 
education that was partially or fully canceled by reason of the COVID-
19 emergency.
    (g) Notice of Closures.--Not later than 5 business days after the 
date on which the Secretary receives notice that an educational 
institution will close or is closed by reason of the COVID-19 
emergency, the Secretary shall provide to each individual who is 
enrolled in a course or program of education at such educational 
institution using entitlement to educational assistance under chapter 
30, 31, 32, 33, or 35 of title 38, United States Code, or chapter 1606 
of title 10, United States Code, notice of--
            (1) such closure and the date of such closure; and
            (2) the effect of such closure on the individual's 
        entitlement to educational assistance pursuant to this section.
    (h) Applicability.--This section shall apply with respect to the 
closure of an educational institution, or the cancellation or 
modification of a course or program of education, that occurs during 
the period beginning on March 1, 2020, and ending on December 21, 2021.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``covered program of education'' means a 
        program of education (as defined in section 3002 of title 38, 
        United States Code) approved by a State approving agency, or 
        the Secretary of Veterans Affairs when acting in the role of a 
        State approving agency.
            (2) The term ``COVID-19 emergency'' means the public health 
        emergency declared pursuant to section 319 of the Public Health 
        Service Act on January 31, 2020, entitled ``Determination that 
        a Public Health Emergency Exists Nationwide as the Result of 
        the 2019 Novel Coronavirus''.
            (3) The term ``educational institution'' has the meaning 
        given that term in section 3452(c) of title 38, United States 
        Code, and includes an institution of higher learning (as 
        defined in such section).
            (4) The term ``State approving agency'' has the meaning 
        given that term in section 3671 of title 38, United States 
        Code.
            (5) The term ``training establishment'' has the meaning 
        given that term in section 3452(e) of title 38, United States 
        Code.
            (6) The term ``training'' includes on-job training and 
        apprenticeship programs and vocational rehabilitation programs.
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