TOPS for veterans debated
A joint legislative committee began addressing an issue Thursday in state law that causes Louisiana military veterans to lose their eligibility for TOPS scholarships if they re-enlist.
The state Senate Select Committee on Veterans Affairs and the House Special Committee on Military and Veterans Affairs met, in part, to discuss ways to fix the apparent problem that impacts some veterans.
Committee co-Chairman and state Sen. Robert Adley, R-Benton, is planning to propose legislation next year to assist veterans who serve a second tour of duty. Adley requested help from the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance, called LOSFA, to develop the necessary language in the legislation.
The Taylor Opportunity Program for Students provides the cost of tuition and some fees to high school graduates who achieve certain grade-point averages and standardized test scores.
There are military exceptions for veterans who start college within five years of graduating from high school. But, currently, those who re-enlist in the military to serve a second tour of duty lose their TOPS eligibility.
LOSFA Executive Director Melanie Amrhein said the state uses legal “exceptions” to assist those who just miss the five-year window. For instance, she said someone who enlists in a six-year nuclear submarine program can still receive TOPS aid through the “exceptions.”
But re-enlisting falls too far outside of the five-year period, she said.
“We really felt like it was outside our authority,” Amrhein said.
LOSFA General Counsel George Eldredge said legislation from Adley or someone else likely will be required to address the issue.
“In my view, it would be very simple for the Legislature to provide an exception ... for no matter how many times they re-enlist as long as it was during wartime or a national emergency,” Eldredge said.
When TOPS was first made law, he said, no one anticipated the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks or wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Adley contends that veterans should not be punished for choosing to serve in the military for a longer period of time than TOPS allows.
TOPS requires a student to graduate from high school with at least a 2.5 grade point average — on a 4.0 scale — in a core set of academic courses. The student also must score a 20 — out of a possible 36 — on the ACT college board test, or an SAT equivalent.
There are greater TOPS awards for higher GPA and ACT scores as well.