I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7939 
To make permanent certain educational assistance benefits under the laws 
administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in the case of changes 
to courses of education by reason of emergency situations, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 3, 2022 
Mr. LEVIN of California (for himself and Ms. MACE) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, and in 
addition to the Committees on Armed Services, andthe Budget, for a pe-
riod to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for con-
sideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To make permanent certain educational assistance benefits 
under the laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs in the case of changes to courses of education 
by reason of emergency situations, and for other pur-
poses. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘Student Veteran Emergency Relief Act of 2022’’. 
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(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Educational assistance benefits during emergency situations. 
Sec. 3. Extension of time limitations for use of entitlement. 
Sec. 4. Extension of payment of vocational rehabilitation subsistence allow-
ances. 
Sec. 5. Payment of work-study allowances during emergency situations. 
Sec. 6. Payment of allowances to veterans enrolled in educational institutions 
closed for emergency situations. 
Sec. 7. Apprenticeship or on-job training requirements. 
Sec. 8. Prohibition of charge to entitlement of students unable to pursue a pro-
gram of education due to an emergency situation. 
Sec. 9. Emergency designations. 
SEC. 2. EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE BENEFITS DURING 
EMERGENCY SITUATIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 36 of title 38, United 
States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subchapters I and II as 
subchapters II and III, respectively; and 
(2) by inserting before subchapter II, as so re-
designated, the following new subchapter: 
‘‘SUBCHAPTER I—EMERGENCY SITUATIONS 
‘‘§ 3601. Definition of emergency situation 
‘‘In this chapter, the term ‘emergency situation’ 
means a situation that— 
‘‘(1) the President declares is an emergency; 
and 
‘‘(2) the Secretary determines is an emergency 
for purposes of the laws administered by the Sec-
retary. 
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‘‘§ 3602. Continuation of educational assistance bene-
fits during emergency situations 
‘‘(a) AUTHORITY.—If the Secretary determines under 
subsection (c) that an individual is negatively affected by 
an emergency situation, the Secretary may provide edu-
cational assistance to that individual under the laws ad-
ministered by the Secretary as if such negative effects did 
not occur. The authority under this section is in addition 
to the other authorities of the Secretary to provide benefits 
in emergency situations, but in no case may the Secretary 
provide more than a total of four weeks of additional edu-
cational assistance by reason of any other such authority 
and this section. 
‘‘(b) HOUSING
AND ALLOWANCES.—In providing 
educational assistance to an individual pursuant to sub-
section (a), the Secretary may— 
‘‘(1) continue to pay a monthly housing stipend 
under chapter 33 of this title, during a month the 
individual would have been enrolled in a program of 
education or training but for the emergency situa-
tion at the same rate such stipend would have been 
payable if the individual had not been negatively af-
fected by the emergency situation, except that the 
total number of weeks for which stipends may con-
tinue to be so payable may not exceed four weeks; 
and 
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‘‘(2) continue to pay payments or subsistence 
allowances under chapters 30, 31, 32, 33, and 35 of 
this title and chapter 1606 of title 10 during a 
month for a period of time that the individual would 
have been enrolled in a program of education or 
training but for the emergency situation, except that 
the total number of weeks for which payments or al-
lowances may continue to be so payable may not ex-
ceed four weeks. 
‘‘(c) DETERMINATION OF NEGATIVE EFFECTS.—The 
Secretary shall determine that an individual was nega-
tively affected by an emergency situation if— 
‘‘(1) the individual is enrolled in a covered pro-
gram of education of an educational institution or 
enrolled in training at a training establishment and 
is pursuing such program or training using edu-
cational assistance under the laws administered by 
the Secretary; 
‘‘(2) the educational institution or training es-
tablishment certifies to the Secretary that such pro-
gram or training is truncated, delayed, relocated, 
canceled, partially canceled, converted from being 
on-site to being offered by distance learning, or oth-
erwise modified or made unavailable by reason of the 
emergency situation; and 
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‘‘(3) the Secretary determines that the modi-
fication to such program or training specified under 
paragraph (2) would reduce the amount of edu-
cational assistance (including with respect to month-
ly housing stipends, payments, or subsistence allow-
ances) that would be payable to the individual but 
for the emergency situation. 
‘‘(d) EFFECT
ON ENTITLEMENT PERIOD.—If the 
Secretary determines that an individual who received as-
sistance under this section did not make progress toward 
the completion of the program of education in which the 
individual is enrolled during the period for which the indi-
vidual received such assistance, any assistance provided 
pursuant to this section shall not be counted for purposes 
of determining the total amount of an individual’s entitle-
ment to educational assistance, housing stipends, or pay-
ments or subsistence allowances under chapters 30, 31, 
32, and 35 of this title and chapter 1606 of title 10. 
‘‘§ 3603. Continuation of educational assistance bene-
fits for certain programs of education 
converted to distance learning by reason 
of emergency situations 
‘‘In the case of a program of education approved by 
a State approving agency, or the Secretary when acting 
in the role of a State approving agency, that is converted 
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from being offered on-site at an educational institution or 
training establishment to being offered by distance learn-
ing by reason of an emergency or health-related situation, 
as determined by the Secretary, the Secretary may con-
tinue to provide educational assistance under the laws ad-
ministered by the Secretary without regard to such conver-
sion, including with respect to paying any— 
‘‘(1) monthly housing stipends under chapter 
33 of this title; or 
‘‘(2) payments or subsistence allowances under 
chapters 30, 31, 32, and 35 of this title and chap-
ters 1606 and 1607 of title 10. 
‘‘§ 3604. Effects of closure of educational institution 
and modification of courses by reason of 
emergency situation 
‘‘(a) CLOSURE OR DISAPPROVAL.—Any payment of 
educational assistance described in subsection (b) shall 
not— 
‘‘(1) be charged against any entitlement to edu-
cational assistance of the individual concerned; or 
‘‘(2) be counted against the aggregate period 
for which section 3695 of this title limits the receipt 
of educational assistance by such individual. 
‘‘(b) EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE DESCRIBED.—Sub-
ject to subsection (d), the payment of educational assist-
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ance described in this subsection is the payment of such 
assistance to an individual for pursuit of a course or pro-
gram of education at an educational institution under 
chapter 30, 31, 32, 33, or 35 of this title or chapter 1606 
of title 10, if the Secretary determines that the indi-
vidual— 
‘‘(1) was unable to complete such course or pro-
gram as a result of— 
‘‘(A) the closure of the educational institu-
tion, or the full or partial cancellation of a 
course or program of education, by reason of an 
emergency situation; or 
‘‘(B) the disapproval of the course or a 
course that is a necessary part of that program 
under this chapter because the course was 
modified by reason of such emergency; and 
‘‘(2) did not receive credit or lost training time, 
toward completion of the program of education being 
so pursued. 
‘‘(c) HOUSING ASSISTANCE.—In this section, edu-
cational assistance includes, as applicable— 
‘‘(1) monthly housing stipends payable under 
chapter 33 of this title for any month the individual 
would have been enrolled in a course or program of 
education; and 
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‘‘(2) payments or subsistence allowances under 
chapters 30, 31, 32, and 35 of this title and chapter 
1606 of title 10 during a month the individual would 
have been enrolled in a course or program of edu-
cation. 
‘‘(d) PERIOD NOT CHARGED.—The period for which, 
by reason of this section, educational assistance is not 
charged against entitlement or counted toward the appli-
cable aggregate period under section 3695 of this title 
shall not exceed the aggregate of— 
‘‘(1) the portion of the period of enrollment in 
the course from which the individual did not receive 
credit or with respect to which the individual lost 
training time, as determined under subsection 
(b)(2); and 
‘‘(2) the period by which a monthly stipend is 
extended under section 3680(a)(2)(B) of this title. 
‘‘(e) 
CONTINUING
PURSUIT
OF
DISAPPROVED 
COURSES.—(1) The Secretary may treat a course of edu-
cation that is disapproved under this chapter as being ap-
proved under this chapter with respect to an individual 
described in paragraph (2) if the Secretary determines, 
on a programmatic basis, that— 
‘‘(A) such disapproval is the result of an action 
described in subsection (b)(1)(B); and 
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‘‘(B) continuing pursuing such course is in the 
best interest of the individual. 
‘‘(2) An individual described in this paragraph is an 
individual who is pursuing a course of education at an 
educational institution under chapter 30, 31, 32, 33, or 
35 of this title or chapter 1606 of title 10, as of the date 
on which the course is disapproved as described in sub-
section (b)(1)(B). 
‘‘(f) STATUS AS FULL-TIME STUDENT FOR PUR-
POSES OF HOUSING STIPEND CALCULATION.—In the case 
of an individual who, as of the first day of an emergency 
situation was enrolled on a full-time basis in a program 
of education and was receiving educational assistance 
under chapter 33 of this title or subsistence allowance 
under chapter 31 of this title, and for whom the Secretary 
makes a determination under subsection (b), the indi-
vidual shall be treated as an individual enrolled in a pro-
gram of education on a full-time basis for the purpose of 
calculating monthly housing stipends payable under chap-
ter 33 of this title, or subsistence allowance payable under 
chapter 31 of this title, for any month the individual is 
enrolled in the program of education on a part-time basis 
to complete any course of education that was partially or 
fully canceled by reason of the emergency situation. 
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‘‘(g) NOTICE OF CLOSURES.—Not later than 5 busi-
ness days after the date on which the Secretary receives 
notice that an educational institution will close or is closed 
by reason of an emergency situation, the Secretary shall 
provide to each individual who is enrolled in a course or 
program of education at such educational institution using 
entitlement to educational assistance under chapter 30, 
31, 32, 33, or 35 of this title, or chapter 1606 of title 
10 notice of— 
‘‘(1) such closure and the date of such closure; 
and 
‘‘(2) the effect of such closure on the individ-
ual’s entitlement to educational assistance pursuant 
to this section. 
‘‘§ 3605. Payment of educational assistance in cases of 
withdrawal 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any individual who 
withdraws from a program of education or training, other 
than a program by correspondence, in an educational in-
stitution under chapter 31, 34, or 35 of this title for a 
covered reason during the period of an emergency situa-
tion, the Secretary shall find mitigating circumstances for 
purposes of section 3680(a)(1)(C)(ii) of this title. 
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