Bob Filner: “I want to thank Senator Akaka, chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, for introducing this bill, also known…”

“I want to thank Senator Akaka, chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, for introducing this bill, also known as the Post-9/ 11 Veterans Educational Assistance Improvements Act of 2010. And I want to thank my colleague, Representative Walt Minnick of Idaho, for his advocacy on behalf of our Nation's veterans and for introducing a similar bill in the House of Representatives. My colleagues may recall that we successfully passed the Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2008 to help pay the full cost of tuition at 4-year colleges for veterans who served after September 11, 2001. This new entitlement has provided thousands of veterans with funds to pay for tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance, and a $1,000 book stipend. While this has proven to be a significant step to improve existing educational benefits for our veterans, much work remains to be done. This bill is fully paid for, bipartisan, and seeks to rectify many of the ongoing technical concerns that were highlighted after the passage of the Post-9/11 GI bill while expanding benefits to veterans that were originally excluded from participating in this new benefit.”