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Dear Certifying Officials,
Thank you for joining our September Office Hours. During the September Office Hours, we reviewed and discussed the DGIB Updates, Section 1013: Risk Based Surveys, Section 1015: Clarification on Waivers, VRRAP Updates and FY22 SCO Annual Training Requirements.
Note: We have also included additional information from the August Office Hours.
During Office Hours, we referenced several resources created to support your understanding of the changes and communicate information to beneficiaries. Below, you will find a summary of hyperlinked resources outlined during the sessions for the September Office Hours.
September Office Hours Recap
All the information shared during September Office Hours can be found in the presentation. If you received this as a forwarded message, please sign up for the GovDelivery subscription to receive future announcements directly to your inbox. Please ensure that you subscribe to the EDU School Certifying Officials topic.
Office Hours Questions and Answers: Questions and answers from the Office Hours sessions can be found at this website. Please bookmark as this site will be updated regularly.
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DGIB Updates
Did you hear about the first ever automation of Post-9/11 Original Claims applications?
As of August 2022, VA started fully automating Post-9/11 applications for the first time in 78 years of the GI Bill®.
To learn more about the recent process improvements, visit the resources below:
As we continue to move forward towards a modernized system, the next major release for DGIB is Enrollment Manager, the new system that will replace VA-ONCE, please view the Enrollment Manager Teaser Video for more information.
Basic functions in Enrollment Manager will be the same as VA-ONCE. However, it will have a more intuitive user interface and real time information sharing leading to quicker processing and benefits received by students sooner.
Have you created your ID.me or Login.gov account? SCOs can access the VA Education Platform Portal using their ID.me or Login.gov accounts. Once logged in, SCOs will be redirected to the Enrollment Manager system.
New users will request “first time” access from VA, while existing SCOs will use their VA-ONCE credentials to access Enrollment Manager when logging in for the first time.
To learn how to create a VA.gov account using ID.me, watch the ID.me Video.
Look out for additional training coming soon and below is a list of upcoming trainings:
- SCO EM Workshops
- E-Learning Modules
- User Guides and Job Aids
- Access to resources – FAQs, handbooks and training videos
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Section 1013 & Risk Based Surveys
Public Law 116-315 "The Johnny Isakson and David P. Roe, M.D. Veterans Health Care and Benefits Improvement Act of 2020", established new requirements for risk-based surveys of educational institutions. Section 1013 amended title 38, United States Code, by inserting 38 USC §3673A that directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), in partnership with State Approving Agencies (SAA), to develop a comprehensive program to conduct risk-based surveys and establish a searchable database.
The purpose of a Risk-Based Survey (RBS) is twofold:
For the SAA to conduct a compliance action as an agent under contract for the Federal Government assessing various legislative and VA determined risk factors.
For the SAA to ensure that education and training institutions with approved programs meet all Federal and state statute and regulations aligning to the GI Bill.
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Section 1015 Clarification on Waivers
Public Law 116-315, Section 1015 requires accredited institutions to participate in Title IV in order to be approved for GI Bill benefits, with a few exceptions.
Note: If a school cannot meet the minimum requirements for Title IV, the school can still be approved for GI Bill, but the SAA needs to verify the program does not meet the minimum.
Waivers expire December 31, 2022
What to do: Reach out to your State Approving Agency.
To help inform impacted GI Bill students, we published:
- Isakson and Roe webpage updates
- Isakson and Roe Summaries webpage updates
- Post-9/11 GI Bill webpage updates
- Announcement and reminder social posts across various platforms
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VRRAP Updates
VRRAP will expire on December 10, 2022
(This date is on a Saturday)
Students seeking to participate in VRRAP must be actively enrolled in an approved program prior to December 10, 2022. Beyond this date, they are considered late.
Students enrolled in VRRAP prior to December 10, 2022, will be paid through the entirety of the program, if it extends beyond the VRRAP expiration date.
Department of Labor, High Demand Occupations
Note: Schools are required to report VRRAP graduation or program completion information to VA.
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SCO Annual Training Requirements
August 31, 2022, marked the end of the Annual Training window. During September 1-30, there is no training in progress for existing SCOs. For new SCOs, training is continuous throughout the year.
For more information about SCO training requirements, please visit this webpage.
Note: You can view the number of modules completed in the SCO Training Portal in the Your Completion Status table.
SCO Training Portal
Additional SCO Resources
For additional information about SCO requirements, navigate to the updated School Certifying Official Handbook, the Resources for Schools page and the School Certifying Official Training.
For more information or questions about any event, please email us at the Education & Training mailbox.
For specific information about GI Bill benefits, please visit the GI Bill website.
Upcoming Office Hours Schedule
To view the dates for the upcoming Office Hours sessions, please visit the National Training Team- Schools Training calendar.
Upcoming Dates:
November Office Hours - 16 and 17
December Office Hours – 7 and 8
January 2023 Office Hours – 18 and 19
Registration Links for October Office Hours
SCOs October 26
SCOs October 27
August Office Hours Recap
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All the information shared during August Office Hours can be found in the presentation.
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Chapter 31 Retroactive Inductions
Effective April 1, 2021, Education Service (EDU) stopped counting entitlement used in Chapter 31 VR&E toward the possible 48 months of entitlement available under two or more VA education programs. VR&E continues to count entitlement used in other VA education programs towards the possible 48-months of entitlement under Chapter 31.
For claimants who used VA education benefits first and who meet specific criteria as outlined in 38 CFR 21.282(c), a retroactive induction into VR&E may be provided.
A retroactive induction means the EDU benefit used previously is terminated, then repaid under Chapter 31 when advantageous to the student and otherwise approved.
For more information, please view these resources:
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Legislation and Policy Update:
Isakson and Roe Section 1009
On August 1, 2022, Section 1009 of the Isakson and Roe Act went into effect impacting GI Bill students enrolled in school while on active duty for at least 30 continuous days.
Section 1009 states GI Bill students impacted will now receive Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) from the DoD instead of Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) from VA.
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Clarification of Chapter 35 Applicability to 38 U.S.C §3679(e)
Per section 103 of the Veterans Benefit and Transition Act of 2018, PL 115-407 effective August 1, 2019, schools are not allowed to penalize or prohibit a GI Bill student from attending or participating in courses while awaiting VA payment (for up to 90 days).
Ch 35 was not in the initial language but is in there now because of PL 117-68.
Update: CH 35 is paid to the student directly, not the school. Therefore, the changes made by PL 117-68 to 38 USC § 3679(e) have no impact, and schools need not change their current policies or procedures related to this statutory provision to address the addition of Chapter 35 to 38 USC §3679(e). Effective July 27, 2022.
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We truly appreciate you taking the time to attend our Office Hours. We look forward to continuing regular sessions and providing material to support your role. Please be on the lookout for your next GovDelivery invite for Office Hours and additional resources.
Respectfully,
Education Service
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