Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020
Latest action. Became public lawWhat a bill becomes when enacted, numbered by Congress and order of enactment: Public Law 119-4 is the 4th law of the 119th Congress.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) No: 116-315.
Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020
This bill implements various updates to policies and programs for veterans, including those related to education, pandemic assistance, benefits, health care, homelessness, personnel, and financial matters.
TITLE I--EDUCATION
Subtitle A--Education Generally
(Sec. 1001) This section revises eligibility and prioritization for the Edith Nourse Rogers STEM Scholarship program under the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
(Sec. 1002) This section expands eligibility for the Marine Gunnery Sergeant John David Fry Scholarship to (1) a child or surviving spouse of a service member who dies on or after September 11, 2001, serving in a line of duty other than active duty, and (2) a child or surviving spouse of a Selected Reserve member who dies on or after September 11, 2001, from a service-connected disability.
(Sec. 1003) This section updates the Montgomery GI Bill program by extending the period of time within which an election must be made for entitlement to educational assistance under the program.
(Sec. 1004) This section phases out the Montgomery GI Bill program on September 30, 2030.
(Sec. 1005) This section updates provisions related to in-state tuition, including by removing a deadline that prevents certain veterans from receiving in-state tuition, regardless of their state of residence, using Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits at public institutions of higher education.
(Sec. 1006) This section expands the list of work-study activities that qualify for payment of work-study allowances under VA rehabilitation, training, and education programs.
(Sec. 1007) Under this section, an assistance payment for training and rehabilitation programs for veterans with service-connected disabilities shall not be charged against an individual's entitlement to such assistance if an individual is unable to complete a course or program due to the closure of an educational institution or disapproval of the course.
The section also authorizes the VA to continue to pay subsistence allowances for a specified amount of time during periods following the permanent closure of an institution or the disapproval of a course of study.
The summary continues for 156 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Public Law" stage on January 5, 2021. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
This bill has been enacted. It is law.
The record's latest action, on January 5, 2021: Became Public Law No: 116-315.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Mike Levin (D-CA) introduced it on June 4, 2020, and 10 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 5 Democrats, 5 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HousePassed
- SenatePassed
- PresidentSigned into law