Will the Supreme Court’s GI Bill ruling mean more money for vets?

Tuesday’s Supreme Court ruling on veterans education benefits could provide an extra year of federal tuition payments to millions of student veterans, but when officials might start doling out the payouts — if at all — remains unclear.

In the 7-2 ruling, justices said that veterans can use both the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and Montgomery GI Bill benefits to pay for college classes if they meet eligibility for both programs.

Veterans Affairs officials had required veterans attending school to choose one and forfeit the other. But in the opinion for the majority of the court, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson stated that “if service members serve for long enough, they may be entitled to both.”

As a result, advocates say, significant changes in how veterans education benefits are paid out could happen in the next few months.