Title: Veterans Education Relief and Reinstatement Act of 2017
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Education Relief and Reinstatement Act of 2017
This bill declares that, if a veteran is forced to discontinue a course as a result of a a permanent school closure and did not receive credit, could not transfer credit, or lost training time toward completion of the education program, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) educational assistance payments shall not, for a specified period of time, be:
The bill applies to courses and programs of education discontinued in FY2015 or a following fiscal year.
The VA may continue to pay educational assistance and subsistence allowances to eligible veterans and eligible persons enrolled in specified courses for up to 4 weeks in any 12-month period when schools are temporarily closed under an established policy based on an executive order of the President or due to an emergency situation.
The VA may also continue to pay a monthly housing stipend following a permanent school closure, but only until the earlier of: (1) the date of the end of the term, quarter, or semester during which the school closure occurred; and (2) the date that is four months after the school closure.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1489 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1489

To amend section 3312 of title 38, United States Code, to restore Post-
 9/11 Educational Assistance and other relief for veterans affected by 
                school closures, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 29, 2017

 Mr. Blumenthal (for himself, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Tester, Mr. Heller, Mr. 
 Young, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Brown, Mr. Carper, Mrs. McCaskill, Mr. Murphy, 
  Mr. Reed, Ms. Warren, and Mr. Wyden) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend section 3312 of title 38, United States Code, to restore Post-
 9/11 Educational Assistance and other relief for veterans affected by 
                school closures, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Education Relief and 
Reinstatement Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. RESTORATION OF ENTITLEMENT TO POST-9/11 EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE 
              AND OTHER RELIEF FOR VETERANS AFFECTED BY SCHOOL CLOSURE.

    (a) Educational Assistance.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3312 of title 38, United States 
        Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(d) Discontinuation of Education Due to School Closure.--
            ``(1) In general.--Any payment of educational assistance 
        described in paragraph (2) shall not--
                    ``(A) be charged against any entitlement to 
                educational assistance of the individual concerned 
                under this chapter; or
                    ``(B) be counted against the aggregate period for 
                which section 3695 of this title limits the 
                individual's receipt of educational assistance under 
                this chapter.
            ``(2) Description of payment of educational assistance.--
        Subject to paragraph (3), the payment of educational assistance 
        described in this paragraph is the payment of such assistance 
        to an individual for pursuit of a course or courses under this 
        chapter if the Secretary finds that the individual--
                    ``(A) was forced to discontinue such course pursuit 
                as a result of a permanent school closure; and
                    ``(B) did not receive credit, could not transfer 
                credits, or lost training time, toward completion of 
                the program of education being pursued at the time of 
                such closure.
            ``(3) Period for which payment not charged.--The period for 
        which, by reason of this subsection, educational assistance is 
        not charged against entitlement or counted toward the 
        applicable aggregate period under section 3695 of this title 
        shall not exceed the aggregate of--
                    ``(A) the portion of the period of enrollment in 
                the course or courses from which the individual failed 
                to receive credit or could not transfer credits, or 
                with respect to which the individual lost training 
                time, as determined under paragraph (2)(B); and
                    ``(B) the period by which monthly stipend is 
                extended under section 3680(a)(2)(B) of this title.''.
            (2) Applicability.--Subsection (d) of such section, as 
        added by paragraph (1), shall apply with respect to courses and 
        programs of education discontinued as described in subparagraph 
        (A) or (B) of paragraph (2) of such subsection in fiscal year 
        2015 or any fiscal year thereafter.
    (b) Monthly Housing Stipend.--
            (1) In general.--Section 3680(a) of such title is amended--
                    (A) by striking the matter after paragraph (3)(B);
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by redesignating 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), 
                respectively;
                    (C) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (3) as 
                subparagraphs (A) through (C), respectively;
                    (D) in the matter before subparagraph (A), as 
                redesignated, in the first sentence, by striking 
                ``Payment of'' and inserting ``(1) Except as provided 
                in paragraph (2), payment of''; and
                    (E) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph (2):
            ``(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Secretary may, 
        pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary shall prescribe, 
        continue to pay allowances to eligible veterans and eligible 
        persons enrolled in courses set forth in paragraph (1)(A)--
                    ``(A) during periods when schools are temporarily 
                closed under an established policy based on an 
                Executive order of the President or due to an emergency 
                situation, except that the total number of weeks for 
                which allowances may continue to be so payable in any 
                12-month period may not exceed four weeks; or
                    ``(B) solely for the purpose of awarding a monthly 
                housing stipend described in section 3313 of this 
                title, during periods following a permanent school 
                closure, except that payment of such a stipend may only 
                be continued until the earlier of--
                            ``(i) the date of the end of the term, 
                        quarter, or semester during which the school 
                        closure occurred; and
                            ``(ii) the date that is four months after 
                        the date of the school closure.''.
            (2) Conforming amendment.--Paragraph (1)(C)(ii) of such 
        section, as redesignated, is amended by striking ``described in 
        subclause (A) of this clause'' and inserting ``described in 
        clause (i)''.
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