Student-veterans would see fewer false promises regarding education benefits from unscrupulous for-profit schools if a Senate version of the budget reconciliation bill moves forward.

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) released its portion of the so-called “megabill” last week, and unlike the House-passed version, it does not repeal a rule limiting for-profit institutions to receiving 90% of their funds through federal sources.

By striking the “90-10 rule,” the House version would end protections for student-veterans established in recent years, again making them targets for colleges seeking income from GI bill benefits.

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“MOAA and our fellow advocacy groups fought hard for these protections, and we’re thankful the Senate HELP Committee proposal would leave them in place,” said Jeff Goldberg, MOAA’s director of Government Relations for veteran and retired affairs. “But there’s no guarantee the Senate version will win out as the reconciliation bill comes together; we need our members to remain engaged with their lawmakers and keep this critical rule on the books.”

The House version not only provides an untested enforcement model to replace the 90-10 rule, it would also cost $1.6 billion over 10 years – an unnecessary added cost in a time of budget efficiency.

MOAA joined dozens of advocacy groups in a May letter to House and Senate leaders seeking to protect the 90-10 rule, and took part in a press conference to raise awareness of the issue among lawmakers:

Before the rule was expanded to include GI bill and other veterans education benefits as part of the federal funding limit, student-veterans became “dollar signs in uniform” – popular targets for all manner of education programs, some of which left veterans facing aggressive recruiting tactics and false promises.

The Senate HELP Committee’s version of the reconciliation bill would keep these protections intact. It must be approved by the full chamber, then survive a House-Senate negotiation, to remain in the final bill.

This process allows an opportunity for MOAA members and others to make their voices heard on the importance of blocking the 90-10 rule repeal. Reach out to your lawmakers in both chambers today and help MOAA preserve the value of service-earned education benefits.