Virginia gives in-state tuition rates to veterans

Virginia lawmakers in March passed legislation that could trim veterans' college tuition by tens of thousands of dollars every year.

Virginia's military veterans won't have to meet the state's one-year residency requirement before qualifying for in-state tuition rates after the House and Senate unanimously passed legislation and Gov. Robert McDonnell signed the bill into law March 10.

Veterans new to the Commonwealth could save a bundle with the extension of in-state tuition, which is paid for with benefits from the Montgomery GI Bill.

Virginia joins Arizona, Michigan, Ohio and New Mexico as states with similar offers of immediate in-state rates for former service members.

George Mason University's out-of-state students pay $33,388 annually, while Virginians pay $8,864, according to the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. The College of William & Mary charges out-of-state students $42,448, while in-state students pay $12,188.

At the University of Virginia where out-of-state students shell out $42,226, their in-state counterparts pay $16,628. James Madison University charges out-of-state students $28,644. In-state students pay $7,860.

"It's a big step to extend that to veterans," said David Armor, professor of public policy at George Mason who has researched how laws impact education and military manpower. "I would have to think it would be pretty popular on both sides of the aisle given the fact that it would help our servicemen and women ... and I personally think it's a good idea."

Armor said offering tuition as little as one-fourth of current out-of-state rates could attract even more military veterans to Virginia, a state with an already-large military population.

"It would make a significant difference, but it's hard to project the numbers," Armor said when asked if he expected more veterans in his classroom after the in-state tuition bill passed.

There are 822,300 military veterans living in Virginia, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Maryland is home to 471,200 veterans, and there are 37,300 veterans in Washington, D.C.

California has the largest veteran population, with almost 2 million.

That high veteran population is why Glen Lacroix, a student at the University of Arizona and president of the school's chapter of the Student Veterans of America, helped push an Arizona law last year that granted in-state rates to veterans who hadn't met the one-year residency requirement.

Lacroix said former service members weren't getting into public California universities because budget cuts had decreased class sizes and made the state's university system far more selective.

"It used to be that if you had a 3.0 GPA, you were in," he said. "Now, [applicants] with 3.7 GPAs have to wonder if they're getting in."

Lacroix and other veteran advocates were pleased when Arizona legislators passed a law granting in-state rates to veterans with honorable discharges. The law there takes effect in time for the fall 2011 semester.

State laws that can serve as recruiting tools for military veterans Lacroix said, have proven popular with local business owners who look for former servicemen and women to fill job openings.

"You bring veterans in by being veteran friendly," Lacroix said. "Most veterans come to a place and they want to stay and build a life there. And a lot of employers, when they're hiring, want to hire veterans because they have experience and leadership."

State lawmakers grappling with budget shortfalls and scrutinizing budget items one line at a time find veterans' in-state tuition legislation particularly appealing, he said. Drawing just 1,000 veterans from California would bring about $10.7 million in tuition and fees for Arizona State University over the next year, for example.

"If you show them the money, they'll follow it," Lacroix said.