Crucial and timely GI bill benefits that cover housing and education are still in limbo for the nation’s veterans. As of November 8, the problem affects more than 82,000 vets, and the issue centers around processing defects with IT (information technology).
The Department of Veterans Affairs says it is committed to fixing the matter but revealed that the backlog will continue through the rest of the year.
The snafu goes back to changes made by President Donald Trump in August of 2017 in the creation of the Forever GI Bill. The milestone legislation was designed to greatly increase benefits for veterans and their families, but the issue stems from the VA department not being technically able to accommodate those key innovations.
For example, previously, a GI monthly housing stipend was issued from the veteran’s residential zip code.
Under the Forever GI Bill, the stipend is now calculated on the ZIP code of where he or she goes to school.
Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn., the chairman of the veterans’ affairs committee, is disappointed in the backlog, especially since Congress has appropriated a lot of money for the nation’s veterans, and it appears the money is going nowhere fast.
“This is — to be kind — a train wreck,” said Roe.
Meantime, Booz Allen Hamilton, a major information technology company responsible for upgrading the system for the Forever GI Bill will be testifying before Congress during a hearing on the IT processing defects.
The VA says it hired 202 additional workers to the staff and that the department is processing an average of 16,000 claims per day. Still, the backlog is huge, and employees are working mandatory overtime schedules to try and keep pace. IT systems at the office freeze and crash often, causing the restarting of machines, for instance.
The Department of Veterans Affairs is trying to improve customer service for veterans by recently debuting a more efficient, modern version of its primary website, VA.gov.
A lack of consistent leadership has plagued the Department of Veterans Affairs for some time now. The agency claims that more than 45,000 jobs sit empty at the VA.
President Trump nominated James Paul Gfrerer as Department of Veterans Affairs assistant secretary for information and technology, and Gfrerer still awaits Senate confirmation since July.
Withheld GI Bill for Veterans
