Title 38, Veterans' BenefitsRelease 119-110

§3602 Continuation of Educational Assistance Benefits During Emergency Situations

Title 38 › PART III — READJUSTMENT AND RELATED BENEFITS › CHAPTER 36 — ADMINISTRATION OF EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS › SUBCHAPTER I — EMERGENCY SITUATIONS › § 3602

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary can keep paying a person’s education benefits when an emergency disrupts their schooling. This is for people using VA education benefits whose school or training says the program was cut short, delayed, moved, canceled, partly canceled, switched to distance learning, or otherwise changed because of the emergency, and the Secretary finds that change would reduce the benefits the person would get. The Secretary may keep paying a monthly housing stipend and other payments or subsistence allowances under chapters 30, 31, 32, 33, and 35 of Title 38 and chapter 1606 of Title 10 at the same rate the person would have received, but continued payments can total no more than four weeks. This power adds to other emergency authorities the Secretary has, but the combined extra help from all those authorities cannot exceed four weeks. If the Secretary later decides the person did not make progress in their program during the weeks they got this help, those weeks will not count toward the person’s total entitlement to education benefits, housing stipends, or payments under chapters 30, 31, 32, and 35 of Title 38 and chapter 1606 of Title 10.

Full Legal Text

Title 38, §3602

Veterans' Benefits, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Authority.—

(1)If the Secretary determines under subsection (c) that an individual is negatively affected by an emergency situation, the Secretary may provide educational assistance to that individual under the laws administered by the Secretary as if such negative effects did not occur.

(2)The authority under this section is in addition to the other authorities of the Secretary to provide benefits in emergency situations, but in no case may the Secretary provide more than a total of four weeks of additional educational assistance by reason of any other such authority and this section.

(b)Housing and Allowances.—

In providing educational assistance to an individual pursuant to subsection (a), the Secretary may—

(1)continue to pay a monthly housing stipend under chapter 33 of this title, during a month the individual would have been enrolled in a program of education or training but for the emergency situation at the same rate such stipend would have been payable if the individual had not been negatively affected by the emergency situation, except that the total number of weeks for which stipends may continue to be so payable may not exceed four weeks; and

(2)continue to pay payments or subsistence allowances under chapters 30, 31, 32, 33, and 35 of this title and chapter 1606 of title 10 during a month for a period of time that the individual would have been enrolled in a program of education or training but for the emergency situation, except that the total number of weeks for which payments or allowances may continue to be so payable may not exceed four weeks.

(c)Determination of Negative Effects.—

The Secretary shall determine that an individual was negatively affected by an emergency situation if—

(1)the individual is enrolled in a covered program of education of an educational institution or enrolled in training at a training establishment and is pursuing such program or training using educational assistance under the laws administered by the Secretary;

(2)the educational institution or training establishment certifies to the Secretary that such program or training is truncated, delayed, relocated, canceled, partially canceled, converted from being on-site to being offered by distance learning, or otherwise modified or made unavailable by reason of the emergency situation; and

(3)the Secretary determines that the modification to such program or training specified under paragraph (2) would reduce the amount of educational assistance (including with respect to monthly housing stipends, payments, or subsistence allowances) that would be payable to the individual but for the emergency situation.

(d)Effect on Entitlement Period.—

If the Secretary determines that an individual who received assistance under this section did not make progress toward the completion of the program of education in which the individual is enrolled during the period for which the individual received such assistance, any assistance provided pursuant to this section shall not be counted for purposes of determining the total amount of an individual’s entitlement to educational assistance, housing stipends, or payments or subsistence allowances under chapters 30, 31, 32, and 35 of this title and chapter 1606 of title 10.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

38 U.S.C. § 3602

Title 38, Veterans' Benefits

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110