Senators Jim Webb (D-VA), Chuck Hagel (R-NE) and Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) reintroduced the “Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act” (S.22) Thursday and announced Senator John Warner (R-VA) as one of four lead co-sponsors of the bill.

Warner is a World War II and Korean wars veteran and recipient of benefits under the original GI Bill, as well as a former Navy Secretary whose 30 years in the Senate includes service as Chairman of the Armed Services Committee. His support adds renewed momentum to the year-long efforts to strengthen educational benefits for the nation’s veterans.

Warner joins 32 other senators in support of the measure. The bill would provide service members who have served since September 11, 2001 with improved educational benefits similar to those provided to World War II-era veterans. The House companion bill, H.R 2702 was introduced by Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA) and currently has 96 cosponsors.

“After six and a half years of service, our nation’s men and women in uniform deserve a GI Bill that rewards their service and invests in their future,” says Webb. “I see the educational benefits in this bill as crucial to a service member’s readjustment to civilian life and as a cost of war that should receive the same priority that funding the war has received the last five years.”

“The tragic loss of life and limb we have suffered thus far underscores the level of commitment and patriotism that these warriors possess,” says Warner. “We owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude for their selfless service. Our country must provide our service members with a GI Bill fit for a time of war, just as it did for me so many years ago.”

Just this week, the American Legion and Military Officers’ Association of America added their endorsements to the widespread support offered by the nation’s leading veterans’ service organizations. Other supporting organizations include: the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Vietnam Veterans of America, the Air Force Sergeants Association, the Enlisted Association of the National Guard of the United States, the American Association of Community Colleges, and the National Association of State Universities and Land Grant Colleges.

Under the updated S.22 bill, service members returning from Iraq or Afghanistan could earn up to 36 months of benefits, equivalent to four academic years. Covered benefits would include the established charges of their program, up to the cost of the most expensive in-state public school; a monthly stipend equivalent to housing costs in their area; and a small stipend per semester for books.

In an effort to reduce the cost of private institutions, Webb and Warner worked collaboratively to include incentives for private schools to further offset the tuition costs above what the benefit provides. A new program would be created in which the government will agree to match, dollar for dollar, any voluntary additional contributions to veterans from these institutions.

The bill also provides equity among active duty and National Guard and Reserve members by adjusting the benefit scale based on cumulative active duty service instead of the branch or service designation. This idea has been advocated by the nation’s major veterans’ groups, and recognizes the important, bipartisan work of Senator Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas and others last year.

The bill also ensures that service members do not lose their benefits if they are called to serve during school. It uses vouchers instead of cash payments to limit potential fraud. It also allows the military to provide additional incentives for retaining or filling critical military skills.

“In keeping with the spirit of the original World War II GI Bill, this improved legislation will give this new generation of veterans an educational benefit similar to what the original ‘greatest generation’ received,” says Webb.

Hagel says, “America owes the men and women who make the sacrifices and carry the burdens of war and military service more than just our gratitude. Our nation has helped our veterans of every war since World War II. Congress should provide these men and women with modernized and relevant GI education benefits that are worthy of their sacrifices. It is only fair and right that our service members have the educational resources to meet the demands of the 21st century. There can be no higher priority for America than our soldiers and their families who have given so much to all of us.”

“We often talk about honoring our veterans and their service. Now it’s time to show them,” says Lautenberg. “We need to help veterans handle the high costs of tuition, housing, books and more. For veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, our bill would do just that. Helping those who served our country is not just our responsibility, it’s our duty.”