Proposed Legislation Would Help Veterans Attending California's Private Colleges

Washington — Responding to concerns that some California veterans could receive no tuition aid under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, a California Congressman has offered legislation that would allow the state’s veterans to apply a portion of their federal “fees” allowance to tuition.

Under the GI bill, which Congress approved last year (as Title V of a supplemental-appropriations act), the federal government will cover a veteran’s tuition and mandatory fees, up to the amounts charged by the most expensive public college in the state. In California, where public colleges are not allowed to charge tuition, the government has set the maximum tuition benefit at $0 and the maximum fees benefit at $6,586.54.

That amount of assistance should work fine for veterans attending the state’s public colleges. But veterans attending private colleges — where tuition can be in the tens of thousands of dollars but fees are often much lower — could be in a bind come August, when the law goes into effect. Not only would they get no tuition help, but they would receive only a portion of the maximum allowed for fees.

The proposed legislation, offered by Rep. Howard P. (Buck) McKeon, the top Republican on the U.S. House of Representatives education committee, would allow veterans to use up to the full $6,586.54 to offset both tuition and fees.

“California’s prohibition on tuition was meant to hold costs down, not unfairly drive them up for our state’s veterans,” Mr. McKeon said. —Kelly Field