IAVA Endorses GI Bill

CONTACT: Chrissy Stevens (212) 982-9699 or chrissy@iava.orgFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   Senator Webb's GI Bill Wins Endorsement of Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of Americans (IAVA) Group Calls Educational Bill an Important Readiness Tool   Washington, DC- The Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), the nation's first and largest group dedicated to the troops and veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, today endorsed Senator Jim Webb's GI Bill, which seeks to provide veterans of the 9/11 era with educational benefits similar to those provided to service members at the end of World War II.    "Today we have the opportunity to renew our social contract with our servicemen and women.  Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) supports reinstating a World War II style GI Bill and therefore strongly endorses S.22, the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2007," writes IAVA Legislative Director Patrick Campbell in the organization's endorsement letter. "IAVA believes that S.22 is more than just a social investment; it's an important readiness tool. The military needs to recruit an additional 70,000 active duty servicemembers over the next two years.  Improving educational benefits for veterans is an important strategy for accomplishing this goal," writes Campbell.    Under Senator Webb's legislation, the "Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2007," returning service members could earn up to 36 months of benefits that would include payment of tuition, room and board, fees and educational costs plus a $1,000 a month stipend while enrolled in full-time training.    The Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs is considering a revised version of S.22, which adds a key provision capping tuition benefits at the highest in-state public university that should significantly lower the cost of the bill.    "It is an honor to receive support for my G.I. bill from the IAVA. The men and women who have served us honorably in Iraq and Afghanistan deserve the same benefits, and the same long-term opportunities, that were provided to the WWII generation," said Webb. "Better-educated veterans who know that their service is valued at the highest levels of government will have a more positive readjustment experience, and will become more successful, productive citizens."   Webb's bill has also been endorsed by the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA), the Air Force Sergeants Association (AFSA) and the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States (EANGUS). Senators Bingaman, Boxer, Brown, Casey, Clinton, Durbin, Kerry, Landrieu, McCaskill, Mikulski, Sanders, Stabenow, Tester, and Wyden are co-sponsors of the legislation. The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA), American Legion and Paralyzed Veterans of America also offered support for the legislation in testimony before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee on May 9, 2007. "MOAA supports S. 22 because it represents a vision, perhaps even a GI Bill ‘holy grail,' that our nation's warriors surely have earned in service to the nation," said Robert Norton, Deputy Director of Government Relations for the Military Officers Association of America.   Webb serves on the Committee on Foreign Relations, Committee on Armed Services, Committee on Veterans Affairs, and the Joint Economic Committee.   To read the text of Senator Webb's remarks on S.22 submitted in the Congressional record, please go to: http://webb.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=273786&   ###