According to VA, the set ethics law that has been on aid to Veteran to prevent the Department of Veterans Affairs employed members from them receiving monetary or even owning a stake in for- profit colleges that can rake in millions in G.I. Illogical, unplanned and unintended consequences could be resulted to Bill tuition. And for this reason, the VA is determined to push the suspension of the fifty year old statute.
The Veteran Advocacy groups have it that if the ethnic law is suspended, the for-profit education industry will have an easier way to exploitation of its biggest cash cow for the veterans.
On 14th September this year, in the Federal Register, a proposal was published where the VA claimed that the statute is redundant following the other conflict-of-interest ethnic laws that should apply to all federal staff and to be provided with enough safeguards. The New York Times has it that the statute was enhanced because of a string of scandals that involved the for-profit education industry.
The critics of the proposal after its analysis said that the statute gives providence of additional regulations that give protection from abuse and also the transparency provided is more than enough.
Student Veterans of American’s Vice President of government affairs, William Hubbard email to the Task and Purpose indicated that the statute is of much importance and benefits because it is one of the many bipartisan reform Congress that are implemented to give protection to G.I. Bill benefits from abuse, fraud and waste. He also noted that a thoughtful and robust public conversation is an important step that should be given a platform so as to ensure that even the interests of student veterans is one of the top priorities considered.
The VA argument is that the statute, 38 U.S.C. 3683, when in practice is a punishment to the agency members who do not have anything or take part in any real conflict of interest, and in turn making the statute unjust and detrimental to the VA’s serving ability to the veterans. For instance, a VA doctor who teaches or has ever been involved in teaching at a for-profit school where veteran students attend using G.I. Bill education stands a chance in the statute to be reprimanded.
According to Reveal, it is reported that for-profit colleges have a staggeringly low graduation rate of approximate –7.3%. It is however important to note that the for-profit education industry has a record of having the largest recipient of taxpayer subsidies under the post –9/11 G.I. Bill.
