Press enter after choosing selection

Va Study Charges Benefit Rip-off

Va Study Charges Benefit Rip-off image
Parent Issue
Day
8
Month
October
Year
1976
Copyright
Creative Commons (Attribution, Non-Commercial, Share-alike)
OCR Text

VA Study Charges Benefit Rip-Off

A Veterans' Administration Study issued last week by Senator William Proxmire (D-Wisconsin) charges that the VA has failed to monitor adequately the dispersal of veterans' educational benefits.

The report, issued by the government's General Accounting Office (GAO), estimates that the over-payment of educational benefits to veterans will total some $1.4 billion, with overpayment of $823 million during the current fiscal year-an increase of $375 million over 1975.

Senator Proxmire urged the use of VA representatives on campus to assist colleges and universities in monitoring the class attendance of veterans who claim lo be enrolled in educational programs for which they are receiving VA benefits.

Proxmire also suggested that improvements in the comprehensive compliance surveys at colleges and universities would enhance the timeliness of schools reporting on the status of veterans.

Human Rights Veterans Committee spokesperson Lawrence Elliott, on the other hand, termed Senator Proxmire's report "part of a continued cut-back mentality."

"Where was that mentality about the war in Vietnam and the defense budget?" Elliott asked.

Elliott charged that the educational benefits given to veterans are not enough to support them and their families while attending school. "Many veterans are forced to work and therefore miss classes." Elliott said.

Any number of schools "look the other way" when veterans miss classes, Elliott says, because they benefit from the assistance veterans get from the VA.

Meanwhile, the Department of Veterans Benefits (DVB) in Washington, D.C has released a statement agreeing in principle with the Proxmire study and the GAO report and claiming that the VA has already implemented many of the suggestions in the Proxmire study.

The DVB statement pointed out, however, that the presence of VA representatives on campus is a serious infringement of the rights of the academic community.