Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 1836 - Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2021 & H.R. 4673 - Ensuring Veterans' Smooth Transition (EVEST) Act

STATEMENT OF ADMINISTRATION POLICY

(House Rules)

H.R. 1836 - Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2021
(Rep. Levin, D-California, and nine cosponsors)

H.R. 4673 - Ensuring Veterans' Smooth Transition (EVEST) Act
(Rep. Takano, D-California)

The Biden-Harris Administration supports efforts that ensure veterans receive timely access to high-quality benefits and services that they have earned.

The Administration supports H.R. 1836, which would expand eligibility criteria for certain education benefits. Current law defines the term "active duty" as those individuals who are on full-time duty in the active military service of the United States, including full-time training duty, annual training duty, and attendance, while in the active military service, at a school designated as a service school by law or by the Secretary of the military department concerned. H.R. 1836 would expand eligibility criteria to include those training in full-time National Guard duty, which includes the National Guard, the Army National Guard, and the Air National Guard, as well as those same members when performing active duty.

The Administration supports the EVEST Act's goal of seamless enrollment in health care coverage. As currently written, H.R. 4673 would require the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to automatically enroll new veterans into VA health care, and notify veterans of their enrollment and instructions on how to un-enroll, if desired. There may be challenges implementing this bill as drafted, and the Administration looks forward to working with Congress on how best to operationalize its objective.