Washington — The U.S. Senate gave final approval on Thursday night to a bill that would significantly expand veterans’ education benefits, sending the measure to President Bush for a signature.

The legislation would provide veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan who have served for at least three years with enough aid to attend the most expensive public institution in their state, plus a monthly stipend for housing costs. For veterans attending more-costly private colleges, the bill would match, dollar for dollar, any aid that the institutions provide above the cost of the most expensive public college in the state.

Last night’s vote came a little over a week after lawmakers and the president reached a compromise on the bill, ending a monthlong impasse over the measure. President Bush initially opposed the bill, saying it would be too expensive and could make it harder for the military to retain troops in a time of war.

To answer his concerns about retention, Democratic leaders agreed to add a provision to the bill that would allow service members to transfer their educational benefits to their spouses and children. Service members could make such a transfer to their spouses only after having completed six years of service and committing to serving in the military for at least four more years. Benefits could be transferred to children only after a service member completed 10 years of service. —Kelly Field