Senator Sherrod Brown

Veterans

Nothing is more important than caring for the men and women who have served our nation. Serving on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee is an honor and a duty I do not take lightly. VA benefits are earned benefits. The men and women of our armed forces have been made a promise that if they defend our country in military service, we will provide them with the benefits they need.

The VA has for too long been free from the tough Congressional oversight needed to ensure that it meets its obligations to America’s veterans. VA oversight is vital to ensure that our veterans coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan get the care and benefits they need immediately upon returning from war zones, and to ensure that every Veteran receives their benefits in a comprehensive and timely manner.

Inadequate or delayed funding costs the VA and the American taxpayer exorbitant amounts of money because inevitably projects that are delayed or poorly planned cost more. Unfortunately, the President’s budget request for the VA is inadequate to meet the needs of veterans. The budget proposal by the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, on which I serve, would provide the VA with nearly $4 billion more than what the President requested.

VA Access and Backlog

The 600,000 plus backlog for VA claims is unacceptable. Efforts to fix the problem are not enough and more needs to be done. Delays are a disservice to our veterans. Access is also important because many qualified veterans are not able to tap the resources of the VA system. Often they are shut out because of distance from an existing facility, or they lack knowledge of VA programs for which they are eligible, or according to the VA, some are considered too wealthy and are denied access. Denying VA access to qualified veterans is denying a veteran care earned and deserved and must never happen.

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans

The VA was unprepared for the massive influx of new veterans coming in from Iraq and Afghanistan. Transition assistance programs must continue to improve so all returning soldiers, regardless of service or reserve or Guard status are given the information and the access to the VA from the day they return. Modern technological improvements and cutting edge medicine must be used to ensure all of our veterans top quality care.

PTSD and TBI

Many Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury. State-of-the-art PTSD and TBI treatments must reach each and every veteran suffering from these ailments. And the VA must capitalize on medical advancement to also improve care for veterans from other wars who may have been suffering from ailments that we are only now beginning to understand.

Montgomery GI Bill

The GI Bill is an earned benefit with contributions from members of our military. Several problems with the GI Bill need fixing, including lifting the ten year ban, ensuring that members of the armed forces can enroll at anytime, and ensuring that the funding of the GI Bill keeps up with the escalating costs of education.

Military men and women offer unique, worldly, and highly technical perspectives that make them extraordinary students and classmates for less experienced students.
We must capitalize on this world view and technical expertise.

In early 2007, I introduced a GI Bill supplement for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) students. My bill would give each GI Bill recipient majoring in a STEM field an addition $2,000 per year, prorated and up front to encourage former members of the military to go into high demand fields of study. Our economy continues to increasingly rely on high tech careers and veterans are uniquely prepared to capitalize on their high tech military careers and better use their skills in the private sector when their service is over.

VETS Act

I recently introduced the VETS Act. This important piece of legislation would require colleges and universities to refund 100 percent of a student’s tuition and fees for any unearned credit for the semester or quarter when they are activated for duty. Colleges and universities would also be required to allow students to reenter the institution with the identical educational and academic status they had obtained when they left for duty. The law would readjust the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to treat student loans in a manner similar to other forms of debt and apply the 6 percent interest rate cap. Finally, military personnel would have 13 months to begin paying off student loans after returning home. Currently, they must begin paying certain student loans immediately upon their return. The VETS Act would give them time to overcome the strain of serving in a combat zone, to readjust back to civilian life, and to find employment if they choose not to return to school.