Reducing Arbitrary Barriers to Apprenticeship Act of 2026

Key Points

• This bill eliminates provisions in veterans education programs that pay less for apprenticeships and on-the-job training than for traditional college. It amends the Post-9/11 GI Bill, the All-Volunteer Force program, and Selected Reserve benefits to ensure veterans get full benefits regardless of which path they choose.
• For Post-9/11 GI Bill users in apprenticeships, the bill sets the housing stipend at the full E-5 with dependents rate for the entire training period, ending the current system where the stipend decreases over time as the apprentice progresses.
• For the older Montgomery GI Bill and Selected Reserve programs, the bill raises the monthly education allowance for apprenticeships to 100% of the standard rate, removing the tiered reduction that currently pays less as training continues.
• The bill waives monthly minimum attendance requirements for veterans in construction apprenticeships, recognizing that construction work is often seasonal or weather-dependent. This applies across all three benefit programs.
• The bill has bipartisan support, introduced by a mix of Republican and Democratic senators including Sheehy, Slotkin, Cramer, Duckworth, Sullivan, and Gallego, and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

Votes

No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.

Related Bills

No related bills have been identified yet.