Oklahoma Senate Panel Approves Veteran Education Bill

An Oklahoma legislator is asking lawmakers to expand the education benefits provided to military veterans and their families.

The Senate Education Committee approved a bill Monday from Republican Frank Simpson that would cover costs of public higher education in Oklahoma for the children and spouses of veterans who were disabled or killed in action.

Simpson says the bill would fill in some gaps in the coverage of the federal Post-9/11 G.I. Bill that provides benefits to service members across the country.

He says the bill also reaches out to veterans discharged in Oklahoma by offering them in-state tuition even if Oklahoma isn't where they first entered the military.

The bill now moves to the Senate Appropriations Committee.