Tillis, colleagues introduce bill to close financial loophole in GI Bill repayments

Senator Thom Tillis and his colleagues recently introduced legislation to close a financial loophole inadvertently created during the transition from the Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) to the Forever GI Bill that prevents at least 25,000 activeduty servicemembers who paid into the MGIB to receive financial assistance for education from receiving repayments they are owed.

“Our brave servicemembers deserve the full financial benefits they are rightfully owed,” said Senator Tillis. “This commonsense 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.”

Background:

The MGIB is being phased out for the more generous Forever GI Bill, which was signed into law on August 16, 2017. The MGIB required servicemembers 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 servicemembers 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.