G.I. Bill of Rights

The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, also known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). It was designed by the American Legion, who helped push it through Congress by mobilizing its chapters (along with the Veterans of Foreign Wars); the goal was to provide immediate rewards for practically all World War II veterans. It avoided the highly disputed postponed "cash bonus" payout for World War I veterans that caused political turmoil for a decade and a half after that war. Benefits included dedicated payments of tuition and living expenses to attend high school, college or vocational/technical school, low-cost mortgages, low-interest loans to start a business, as well as one year of unemployment compensation. It was available to all veterans who had been on active duty during the war years for at least 90 days and had not been dishonorably discharged—exposure to combat was not required. By 1956, roughly 8.8 million veterans had used the G.I. Bill education benefits, some 2.2 million to attend colleges or universities and an additional 5.6 million for some kind of training program.

Historians and economists judge the G.I. Bill a major political and economic success—especially in contrast to the treatments of World War I veterans—and a major contribution to America's stock of human capital that encouraged long-term economic growth.

Canada operated a similar program for its World War II veterans, with a similarly beneficial economic impact. Since the original U.S. 1944 law, the term has come to include other benefit programs created to assist veterans of subsequent wars as well as peacetime service.

During the 1940s, "fly-by-night" for-profit colleges sprang up to collect veterans' education grants, because the program provided limited oversight. Similarly, for-profit colleges and their lead generators have taken advantage of the post-911 GI Bill to target veterans for subpar products and services. The Veterans Administration, however, does have a GI Bill feedback form for recipients to address their complaints against colleges. President Barack Obama also signed Executive Order 13607 which was to ensure that predatory colleges did not aggressively recruit vulnerable military service members, veterans, and their families.

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