New G.I. Bill to cost $100 billion

WASHINGTON, July 9 (UPI) -- A G.I. Bill signed by U.S. President George Bush will cost $100 billion in veterans' education benefits over the next 10 years, budget officials say.

The Congressional Budget Office never got a chance to formally present its figures because the bill, passed by the U.S. Congress and signed by Bush last week, had so much bipartisan support that it was never given a committee hearing. But CBO figures show it will increase veterans' education benefits by $62.8 billion, or 170 percent of current education spending, over the period, the Politico, a Washington publication, reported Wednesday.

In the provisions of the bill, starting in August 2009, veterans will gain the opportunity to get a four-year degree at no cost. It also allows them to transfer benefits to their spouses and children and provides new benefits for National Guard members and reservists.

One reason the bill passed so easily despite its massive cost is that anti-war Democrats want to show they support troops and adding the cost of the G.I. Bill to Iraq war expenses made political sense for them, Politico said.

"I call this, in my own mind, the real costs of war," Senate Majority Whip Richard Durbin, D-Ill., said.

Vietnam War veterans such as Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., and Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., took a leadership role in getting the bill through the U.S. Senate, the newspaper reported.