Live from Capitol Hill: House Listens to Testimony of Post-9/11 G.I. Bill

This afternoon, the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity will listen to testimony from VA's Director of Education Service Keith Wilson on the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.

To view video from the hearing, Click Here.

During his testimony, Wilson admitted that the VA may not have all claims sorted out by the end of the fall semester. Wilson also explained the issues with processing Chapter 33 claims and answered questions from the subcommittee on implementation issues and VA's potential remedies.

AMVETS National Legislative Director Ray Kelley, who watched the hearing, expressed concern over the situation, since VA's digital option for Chapter 33 claims processing will not be online for another year.

Kelley explained that due to the complexity of the benefit and the number of veterans expected to take advantage of the program, VA will likely face similar surges in claims each semester, prompting additional backlogs until the digital processing system can be implemented.

In the wake of a daunting backlog of initial benefits claims for Chapter 33, VA Secretary Eric Shinseki instituted an emergency payment program for veterans experiencing delays. AMVETS leaders have applauded the swift action of VA to implement the successful stop-gap.

To date, American Veteran Online has received dozens of comments from veterans who continue to experience delivery issues with the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.

Patrick Campbell, chief legislative counsel for IAVA who helped to draft the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill, submitted testimony for the record on how his organization views the backlog and potential solutions.

Check back regularly with American Veteran Online for updates on the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill.