Veterans Homeless Programs, Caregiver Services, and Other Improvements Act of 2015
Latest action. Placed on Senate legislative calendarThe list of measures reported out of committee and eligible for floor action. Being on the calendar is not a promise of a vote.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) under General Orders. Calendar No. 716.
Veterans Homeless Programs, Caregiver Services, and Other Improvements Act of 2015
TITLE I--BENEFITS
This bill authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to pay burial and funeral expenses, accrued benefits, dependency and indemnity compensation, and non-service connected disability or death pension amounts to a survivor of a veteran who has not filed a formal claim if the VA determines that the record contains sufficient evidence to establish the survivor's entitlement to such benefits.
The special monthly pension for living Medal of Honor recipients is increased.
TITLE II--EDUCATION MATTERS
VA educational assistance payments for a veteran who was forced to discontinue a course, who did not receive credit, or who lost training time toward completion of an education program because of a permanent school closure shall not be charged against the individual's educational assistance entitlement or counted against the aggregate assistance period.
The VA may continue to pay educational assistance and subsistence allowances to eligible veterans and eligible persons enrolled in specified courses under certain conditions.
The monthly stipend payable to children eligible for post-9/11 G.I. Bill benefits shall be 50% of what the service member or veteran would receive.
The bill revises the process for electing post-9/11 educational benefits.
Specified education programs are deemed to be approved for veterans' education benefit purposes if a state approving agency determines that such program qualifies.
The VA shall conduct an annual compliance survey of educational institutions and training establishments offering approved veterans courses if at least 20 such veterans are enrolled in any such course.
Licensure or certification program requirements necessary for VA approval are revised.
The Yellow Ribbon G.I. Education Enhancement Program is expanded to cover the child of an individual who, on or after September 11, 2001, dies in the line of duty while serving on active duty.
The bill includes as active duty for purposes of eligibility for Post-9/11 veterans educational assistance service of a member of a reserve component ordered to active duty to receive authorized medical care, to be medically evaluated, or to complete a required Department of Defense (DOD) health care study.
The summary continues for 27 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 "Reported to Senate with amendment(s)" stage on December 7, 2016. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 7, 2016: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 716.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 114th Congress (2015-16), 329 of the 10,233 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.2 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
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?
John Boozman (R-AR) introduced it on February 10, 2015, and 3 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 2 Democrats, 1 Republican.
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.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 10, 2015, 4230 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 3564 days ago, on December 7, 2016.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 114th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2017 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
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
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers