Lawmakers to act on tuition aid for Iowa N

DES MOINES —State lawmakers are promising swift action to cover tuition expenses for National Guard members attending Iowa colleges and universities.

Iowa National Guard announced in December it is reducing the maximum Education Assistance Program award from 90 percent of tuition to 50 percent. That could be a loss of up to $1,300 per semester for students at Iowa’s regents’ universities. The cuts went into effect for the spring semester meaning Guard members currently enrolled in college classes will have to find other sources of assistance to pay their bills.

“We clearly need to fix this,” said Iowa Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Daryl Beall, D-Fort Dodge.

Beall and his counterpart, House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Royd Chambers, R-Sheldon, are promising to take up the issue when their respective committees meet Wednesday.

A record number of applicants for education assistance combined with flat state funding and rising tuition caused the Guard to reduce the award amounts to ensure all qualified applicants get some financial support, Col. Gregory Hapgood said.

“We thought the funding would be adequate,” Chambers said, “but the total number of students was underestimated.”

One short-term fix would be to use unencumbered funds appropriated to the Iowa College Student Aid Commission or other state agencies, Chambers said. Or the Legislature could approve a supplemental appropriation to cover the tuition assistance, added Rep. Cecil Dolecheck, R-Mount Ayr, who chairs the House Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

Some Guard members who were deployed more than once will be eligible for federal GI Bill benefits, Chambers said. That will decrease the amount of state funds needed.

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(c)2012 The Gazette (Cedar Rapids, Iowa)

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