Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Michael Bennet (D-Colo.) joined U.S. Senators Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), alongside nine of their Senate colleagues, to reintroduce the bipartisan Purple Heart Veterans Education Act. This legislation would close a loophole that has denied some Purple Heart recipients the ability to transfer their G.I. Bill benefits to their dependents. U.S. Representatives Mike Levin (D-Calif.) and Greg Murphy (R-N.C.) introduced companion legislation in the House.
“Purple Heart recipients have sacrificed so much for our country, and we must do everything we can to support them,” said Bennet. “I was glad to join my bipartisan colleagues on this commonsense bill to ensure every Purple Heart veteran and their families can access the benefits they’ve earned.”
“Purple Heart veterans have made tremendous sacrifices to defend our freedoms, and we as a nation should do everything we can to support them and their families when they return—that includes ensuring all Purple Heart veterans have the full benefits they have earned,” said Murray. “When one of my constituents brought a loophole in the current law to my attention—a disparity that meant he couldn’t transfer his GI Bill benefits to his daughter simply because he received his award after discharge—it was just commonsense to me that we should write a law to fix it. As the daughter of a Purple Heart Veteran, this is personal to me—and I’m grateful to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle for joining me in this effort.”
“Purple Heart recipients are heroes who honorably served our country at great costs, and this oversight that prevents servicemembers who received this distinguished award after their service from transferring their GI bill benefits to their dependents needs to be corrected immediately,” said Tillis. “I am proud to co-introduce this commonsense legislation with Senator Murray to close this loophole and ensure every Purple Heart recipient and dependents are able to further their education.”
Under current Department of Defense policy, Purple Heart recipients can transfer G.I. benefits to their dependents while on active duty regardless of years of service. However, this excludes those who received their Purple Hearts after being discharged from the military. The Purple Heart Veterans Education Act would close this loophole by allowing veterans who received their Purple Heart after their service to transfer their benefits to their dependents.
Specifically, the Purple Heart Veterans Education Act would:
- Permit an individual awarded the Purple Heart for service in the Armed Forces on or after September 11, 2001, to transfer their educational benefits to one or more of their dependents;
- Allow flexibility by permitting the veteran to allocate different amounts, totaling 36 months of benefits to each of their dependents;
- Protect the veteran’s right to their benefits by prohibiting the use of their educational benefits to be treated as marital property or the asset of a marital estate; and
- Honor the veteran’s legacy by allowing their dependents to continue using the unused benefits after their death.
In addition to Bennet, Murray, and Tillis, U.S. Senators Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Angus King (I-Maine), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), and Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) cosponsored this bill.
The bill is supported by: Disabled American Veterans, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
The text of the bill is available HERE.