READJUSTMENT BENEFITS

The Veterans Administration is responsible for administering a program of vocational rehabilitation and education which has its statutory basis in Title 38, United States Code, "Veterans' Benefits."

Program Objective

This program is primarily concerned with providing both educational and rehabilitative assistance to veterans and certain other classes of beneficiaries. Under this broad category, benefits are available to basically three different groups of individuals:

Veterans and servicemen Financial assistance and services are provided to
restore lost educational opportunities where careers were interrupted or
impeded by reasons of military service after January 31, 1955.
Orphans and widows of veterans, whose death was due to service, and to the
wives and children of prisoners of war, as well as wives and children of
veterans totally disabled due to service-connected disability - Assistance
in obtaining post-secondary training is given. (Since they were developed
at different times the program for wives and widows is administratively
distinguished from that for children.)

Seriously disabled veterans - Vocational rehabilitation is provided for the purpose of restoring employability lost by reason of a handicap due to service-connected disability.

Program Scope

Like its World War II and Korean predecessors which together made it possible for almost 11 million veterans to receive education and training, the current or "Cold War" GI Bill was designed to assist the serviceman in his return to a productive civilian life. Known as the Veterans' Readjustment Benefits Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-358) the law established a permanent veterans' educational program. The program provides financial assistance to veterans who served on active duty after January 31, 1955, to obtain educational opportunities which were interrupted due to military service.

Of the more than 7 million post-Korean veterans currently eligible for these educational benefits, through June 30, 1970, a total of 1,859,271 persons have been in training since the inception of the program. Of this number 1,720,899 were veterans and 138,372 were servicemen.

With respect to the education program directed toward the sons and daughters of deceased or permanently disabled veterans, 151,000 have been assisted through June 30, 1970. The relatively small number of wives and widows who have entered training, 7,639, reflects the fact that the program has been in effect a very short time (since December 1968).

In contrast, as of June 1970, a total of 743,500 disabled veterans had entered vocational rehabilitative training, of which 621,300 were World War II veterans, 77,000 were Korean veterans and 45,200 were peacetime and Vietnam era veterans.

Program Impact

Significant factors which influence the budget estimates are:

Post-Korean Conflict Veterans

1,757,000 veterans are expected to receive training in 1972, with an average monthly enrollment of 887,000 trainees, at a cost of $1,762.0 million.

57-916 O-71 - 19

Sons and Daughters

53,500 children will receive training in 1972, with an average monthly enrollment of 23,900 at a cost of $66.4 million.

Wives and Widows - 9,400 wives and widows are expected to receive training in 1972, with an average monthly enrollment of 4,700 at a cost of $10.8 million.

Vocational Rehabilitation 33,900 veterans will receive some vocational re habilitation assistance in 1972, with an average monthly enrollment of 18,000, at a cost, from this appropriation of $21.4 million.

Legislative Changes

Public Law 91-219, "Veterans Education and Training Amendments Act of 1970," effective February 1, 1970, in addition to increasing the educational assistance allowance paid to eligible veterans and other beneficiaries, provided for special assistance to the educationally disadvantaged, as well as a program to permit education and training prior to release from active duty in the Armed Forces.

Public Law 91-584, enacted December 24, 1970, authorized educational assistanc for wives and children of members of the Armed Forces missing in action, captured b a hostile force, or interned by a foreign government or power. It also revised eligibility criteria for in-service training for servicemen with more than 180 days of active duty.

Public Law 91-666,

approved January 11, 1971, increased the basic automobile allowance for disabled veterans from $1,600 to $2,800; extended the benefits to certain servicemen on active duty; and provided for certain adaptive equipment, including the cost of installation, maintenance, repair and replacement thereof.

Appropriation Language

For the payment of readjustment and rehabilitation benefits to or on behalf of veterans as authorized by law (38 U.S.C, Chapters 21, 31 (except Section 1504), and 33-39), $1,888,700,000, to remain available until expended.

Participation

The number of trainees for each of the VA educational
programs are expected to increase in 1972.

of post-Korean Conflict veterans will increase from
1,588,000 in 1971 to 1,757,000 in 1972 with a correspond-
ing increase in cost of $194,189,281 over 1971. The number
of sons and daughters availing themselves of educational
opportunities are expected to increase from 52,400 in 1971
to 53,500 in 1972. This will result in an increased cost
of $1,690,000. Wives and widows engaged in educational
programs are estimated to increase from 8,700 in 1971 to
9,400 in 1972. This will result in an estimated increase
in cost of $915,000.

B. Special assistance to disabled veterans.

The number of disabled veterans requiring vocational rehab-
ilitation will increase from 31,300 in 1971 to 33,900 in
1972, and a moderate projected increase in the cost of
tuition, books, supplies and equipment for these veterans
will result in an increased cost of $2,575,000. Recently
enacted legislation has liberalized benefits in the auto-
mobiles for disabled veterans category that will result
in an increased cost of $5,860,000 in 1972.

Education and Training

.+$8,435,000

Educational Assistance to Post-Korean Conflict Veterans. This program provides educational and training benefits to eligible veterans who served in the Armed Forces after January 31, 1955. To be eligible, a veteran must have served, (1) for a period of at least 181 days, any part of which occurred after January 31, 1955, or (2) was discharged or released from active duty after such date for a service-connected disability. Servicemen with more than 180 days of service are also eligible for educational benefits.

The continuing increase in participation of the education and training program is attributable to two factors: (1) the increase in the number of veterans discharged from the Armed Forces; (2) the continuing emphasis on dissemination of information pointing out the value of education to the returning servicemen.

The average cost per trainee has been increased in both FY 1971 and FY 1972 because of increases in: (1) the percentage of trainees enrolled on a full-time basis; (2) the number of dependents of veterans in training; and (3) the length of training time.

The benefits of the GI education bill are brought to the attention of eligible servicemen and veterans by:

O Orientation and counseling to servicemen stationed in Vietnam and scheduled to be shipped stateside over 1 million men have received benefit orientation and about 135,000 have been given personal interviews.

Visits to military hospitals

about 160,000 bedside interviews have been conducted with servicemen who are ready to retire or be separated for reasons of disability resulting in more than 53,000 applications for vocational rehabilitation.

Orientation lectures and individual personal interviews at 311 separation centers throughout the United States.

o A direct mailing program to apprise the newly-discharged veteran of VA
benefits and advising him to contact the VA - of the approximately 1.5
million letters sent out, about 70% of those responding indicated an
interest in educational opportunities.

The assistance of veterans organizations, which, in response to VA
requests, have interviewed and otherwise helped about 1,000 additional
Vietnam era veterans per month.

o An extensive telephone exchange service in many states which permits a veteran to call the regional office from his home city without paying a toll charge.

Estimates for the post-Korean program are based on the following:

Educational Assistance to Children of Deceased and Disabled Veterans. The dependents' educational assistance program provides the sons and daughters of veterans who died from service-connected disabilities, for thoseof living veterans who are permanently and totally disabled from service-connected causes, and for those of prisoners of war, the opportunities for education to which they may have aspired but for the death or disability of their veteran fathers. Generally, educational assistance allowances are provided beyond high school for those aged 18 through 26, except that under some special conditions to age 31.

A nominal increase in the number of sons and daughters trainees is estimated for 1971 and 1972, on the assumption that there will be no accelerated growth in the military establishment which could limit the number who would seek this benefit since most eligibles are in the 18 to 26 age bracket.

The following table shows the number of trainees, the cost per trainee, and the total cost of education assistance payments to those sons and daughters who will be pursuing a program of education or training:

The

$64,690,000

$66,380,000

Educational Assistance to Wives and Widows of Disabled and Deceased Veterans. dependents' educational assistance program provides educational assistance to the widows of veterans who died of service-connected disabilities, to wives of veterans with a service-connected total disability permanent in nature, and to wives of prisoners of war, for the purpose of assisting them in preparing to support themselves and their families.