RICHMOND, Va. — After weeks of back and forth, Virginia Lawmakers say they’ve reached a deal to address concerns over changes to the Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program.
Tuesday evening, Sen. Louise Lucas tweeted a statement, saying the House and Senate have agreed to introduce identical legislation.
I’m happy to announce a deal between the House and Senate on VMSDEP. See our attached press release for more information. pic.twitter.com/ykhFZEm9XB
— L. Louise Lucas (@SenLouiseLucas) July 2, 2024
The move comes one day after a Senate committee chaired by Lucas passed a bill to address the changes.
The Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program allows certain members of eligible military and first responder families to have their college tuition waived.
Watch: Families concerned about VMSDEP changes
Changes made by lawmakers during the 2024 General Assembly session left families across the state wondering if the program would still be an option for them.
This is a story News 3 has been following for weeks, talking to impacted families in Hampton Roads.
“Our kids, they want to do everything they can for us to make sure they’re the top students and the top sons and daughters, that they represent us well. But right now, we’re putting added stress on them," veteran Natalie Jackson said.
Watch: House passes bill to repeal VMSDEP changes
Jackson's family qualifies for the program. Her son hopes to go to college in 2025 with help from the program, but because of the changes Jackson was unsure as of Tuesday if he would have access to the program.
Impacted families across the state have been reaching out to lawmakers and making trips to the Capitol to express their concerns and try to get the changes repealed.
On June 28, News 3 was at the Capitol covering the House’s passage of a bill to repeal the changes with no additional requirements, called a clean repeal, which is what families wanted.
Watch: Gov. Youngkin address VMSDEP
The bill passed by the Senate Monday, while it repealed the changes, still left many families frustrated because it was different than the House bill which meant at the time there was still no resolution for families.
The Senate bill added an additional requirement that students meet a certain academic standard.
In the Senate committee meeting Tuesday, Sen. Richard Stuart said he is worried about the impact the requirement could have on the program.
“If this enactment clause is wrong, it could effectively gut it again," said Stuart. "If you’ve got to have a 2.0 to get into college and to stay in, why isn’t that enough to keep your veterans waiver money? Why are we giving them the ability to set a separate standard that varies across schools?"
Tuesday morning, before knowing a deal would be reached, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin spoke live with News 3’s Blaine Stewart.
“The number one thing we must do is reverse and repeal this damaging language, put this program on full footing so that all these children and, of course, the survivors can go to school. Then, let’s work on a bipartisan basis, everybody is committed to do it, through the fall and address this in normal course," said Youngkin.
Watch: Military members without honorable discharge eligible for expanded VA benefits
A Senate work group and governor's taskforce have been created to study the program.
In a statement Tuesday evening, the governor praised the deal announced by Sen. Lucas.
A full, clean repeal with additional financial support for the VMSDEP program, unencumbered by any other provisions, is great news for our military heroes, first responders, and their families.
— Governor Glenn Youngkin (@GovernorVA) July 2, 2024
Lucas’s statement also says an additional $90 million from the state’s FY24 surplus will be used to help fund the program.
As of Tuesday, the House and Senate were scheduled to be back in Richmond July 18 to consider the new legislation.
