WASHINGTON, May 14 (UPI) -- U.S. veterans are rushing to take advantage of a new GI Bill that thanks vets for their service since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, officials said.
The Christian Science Monitor reported Thursday that there is some concern that the generous GI Bill could lure some service members out of the armed forces.
The newspaper said since May 1, more than 25,000 veterans have signed up for the new GI Bill. It will pay 100 percent of in-state college tuition, housing and other expenses.
When the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs opened the program's online registration site two weeks ago, the system crashed from the weight of interest, the Monitor said.
This program will cost taxpayers $62 billion during the next decade.
One provision says that if service members remain for at least one more four-year term, they can transfer their GI Bill benefits to an immediate family member.
"The GI Bill, as we see it, will be a net positive for retention," said Bill Carr, deputy under secretary for military policy at the Defense Department. He said about 88 percent of service members who participated in a Pentagon survey about the GI Bill say the transferability option is important to them.
