Guess what?
Those days are still not over.
Wednesday in the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Senator Richard Burr (above), the Ranking Member on the Committee, addressed what was going on with two VA officials.
Ranking Member Richard Burr: I need to move to the GI Bill real quick. And I just want to paraphrase an article which was written [by Tony Burbeck] on June the 12th which was Tuesday in the Charlotte Observer.
It talks about local veterans who are now enrolled in a school that
aren't getting their tuition and student housing money as promised from
the GI Bill and it's threatening their ability to stay in school and to
pay their rent. I won't name the veterans, five of them. "They say that
they're facing the same problems: thousands of dollars in government
backed tuition money from their GI Bills plus a monthly basic housing
allowance which hasn't come through since they started class May the
7th." Not even a book fee. Haven't received anything. "We got out of
the United States Marine Corps April 22nd." "Hall's certificate of
eligibility says he's entitled to 100 percent of benefits covered under
the GI Bill at an institution of higher education. He's in school, but
his tutition hasn't been paid. Hall says he might have to drop out of if
the GI Bill tuition payment doesn't come through. He added the
Department of Veterans Affairs also told him they are six to eight weeks
behind processing payments. Hall is already at the end of the line
with rent money that could be paid with the housing allowance. He said
he faced eviction if he didn't receive the money. Some veterans have
taken out student loans they didn't think they needed to. Others are
working all night to make up for those missing benefits. 'I have
received zero of my VA benefits,' White said." And Maxwell said
"Nothing." Does that disturb you? Because everytime this Committee
asks the question of the VA, "Are we late on payments? Is this thing
working?," the answer we get is, "Yeah. It works perfectly. We're
getting them out there." These are guys who have been in school since
May the 7th They're veterans. It's a pretty reputable media outlet.
Feel fairly certain that this Marine didn't get it wrong, 100%
eligable. But there's no payment going to his school. There's no
housing stipend, there's no book fee that's being made.
Curtis
Coy: Senator, we're always concerned with any of our veterans who are
getting payments late. We process educational claims in four different
sites across the country. Uh, right now for original claims, uh, Mr.
Worley can-can correct me on the, uh, exact number perhaps but on
original claims, we're looking at, uh, processing times of 30 to 35 days
for supplemental claims, anywhere from 10 to 15 days --
Ranking
Member Richard Burr: So is the VA official who talked to this Marine
and told the Marine that they were six to eight weeks behind processing
payments, was that bogus?
Curtis
Coy: No, sir. I don't think it's bogus at all. There are some that
take longer than others. Uh, what I gave you was an average time, not
the range of times. We've had ranges much higher than that, as you
might imagine. We, uh, track these, uh, claims on a daily basis and so,
uh, we take all of those kinds of issues --
Ranking
Member Richard Burr: What do -- what do the Marines do, Mr. Coy? The
school's working with them. They're keeping them in. He may be in
school but he might be evicted from his place on a beneft that he --
that he's earned. He deserves. What are we -- what are we going to
do? I don't think -- And if I thought I was talking about an isolated
case, I wouldn't press this. I don't think I am.
Robert
Worely II: Ranking Member Burr, I would only say that when these --
when these come to our attention, uh, we find out what happened and we
correct them as quickly as possible.
Ranking Member Richard Burr: I'll make sure when you leave you've got this news article.