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H.R.2131 / 109th Congress

New GI Bill of Rights for the 21st Century Act

Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in House · May 5, 2005

New GI Bill of Rights for the 21st Century Act - Revises, expands, or provides new rights and benefits for members of the Armed Forces, veterans, and their dependents and survivors, including, among others: (1) an FY 2006 increase in funding for veterans' medical care; (2) a prohibition until the end of FY2006 on medication copayments and on the imposition of a health care system enrollment fee; (3) an extension until 2010 of Vietnam veterans' eligibility for readjustment counseling services; (4) the collection of data from pre- and post-deployment health assessments, and preventive maintenance post-deployment intervention; (5) the prevention, early detection, and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for returning troops; (6) a Department of Defense/Department of Veterans Affairs Council on Post-Deployment Mental Health; (7) survivors' and dependents' eligibility for family and bereavement counseling; (8) certain educational initiatives; (9) a National Steering Committee on PTSD Education and a PTSD public awareness program; (10) certain benefits and outreach services for disabled veterans; (11) an increase in survivors' dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC); (12) certain pay increases and bonuses for active-duty members; (13) an expansion of benefits under under both the active-duty and reserve Montgomery GI Bill programs; (14) employment assistance for homeless veterans; (15) expanded reserve member eligibility under the TRICARE program (a Department of Defense managed health care program); (16) certain recruitment and retention incentives for Selected Reserve members; and (17) certain pay matters with respect to Federal employees performing active-duty reserve service.

Repeals the: (1) DIC offset from Survivor Benefit Plan surviving spouse annuities; (2) pay reduction and high school graduation requirement for participation in the Montgomery GI Bill educational assistance program; (3) delimiting date for entitlement to basic educational assistance under such program; (4) time limitation on the exclusion of combat zone compensation by reason of hospitalization; (5) tax cut (implemented in 2001) for high-income taxpayers; (6) scheduled termination of the phaseout of personal exemptions; and (6) scheduled phaseout of the overall limitation on itemized deductions.

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Who introduced it

Rep. Edwards, Chet [D-TX-17] · D–TX

Committees

  • Armed Services Committee
  • Ways and Means Committee
  • Veterans' Affairs Committee
172 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Actions

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  1. Referred to the Subcommittee on Military Personnel.

  2. Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  3. Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  4. Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  5. Referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Armed Services, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  6. Introduced in House

  7. Introduced in House

Bill text & related measures

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Related bills identified by Congress.gov

No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.

Source last updated: Aug 15, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

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