WASHINGTON STATE

Washington State House Democrats

HOUSE DEMOCRATS

2013 Legislative Update

Dear Neighbor,

We’re about one month into this year’s legislative session and my focus is simple: good jobs and a strong economy.  The key to good jobs and a strong economy is a quality public education system that is accessible to all.

Rep. Upthegrove with Ty Somerville
Photo courtesy of Ty Somerville

Recently, I spent some time visiting Green River Community College meeting with faculty, staff and students.  One of the students I met was the student body president, Ty Somerville.  Turns out that Ty is one of our state’s many veterans working towards his college degree.

When I met with him and a group of students, Ty asked if something could be done at the state level to help veterans pay for college.  There is already the G.I. bill through the federal government, but what Ty pointed out to me is that it doesn’t fully cover all our veterans.

Educational benefits through the federal G.I. bill are based on the time of service a veteran has honorably completed.  There are many veterans who serve honorably for less than the time needed to receive full educational funding.

I think we can do something at the state level to help veterans with college expenses.  That’s why I’m sponsoring a bill this year to dedicate a portion of state lottery money to a special program for veterans called the Veterans Innovation Program, or VIP.

VIP is a tiny program created in 2006 to provide very flexible small grants to individual veterans of Iraq & Afghanistan.  This program struggles every year for funding and is set to expire in a few years.  My bill will make the program permanent, provide a steady and stable source of funding and will dedicate a portion of the funds to veterans attending community colleges to help with their expenses.

I’m grateful to Ty and the other students at Green River Community College who brought to my attention the financial aid gaps that many veterans face.  We have to make sure that our veterans – here in South King County and across the state – have the opportunity to graduate from college and get a good job.

We owe it to those who have served our country.  And it supports a strong economy, because we need bright, talented people like Ty out in the workforce.

As always, I welcome your feedback on this or other issues.

All the best,

Dave Upthegrove