text: SECTION 1. EXPANSION AND ENHANCEMENT OF EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE FOR 
                SURVIVORS AND DEPENDENTS OF VETERANS.
  
      (a) Termination of Durational Limitation on Use of Educational 
  Assistance.--
              (1) Termination of limitation and restatement of continuing 
          requirements.--Subsection (a) of section 3511 of title 38, 
          United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
      ``(a)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter or 
  chapter 36 of this title, any payment of educational assistance 
  described in paragraph (2) shall not be charged against the entitlement 
  of any individual under this chapter.
      ``(2) The payment of educational assistance referred to in 
  paragraph (1) is the payment of such assistance to an individual for 
  pursuit of a course or courses under this chapter if the Secretary 
  finds that the individual--
              ``(A) had to discontinue such course pursuit as a result of 
          being ordered to serve on active duty under section 688, 
          12301(a), 12301(d), 12301(g), 12302, or 12304 of title 10; and
              ``(B) failed to receive credit or training time toward 
          completion of the individual's approved educational, 
          professional, or vocational objective as a result of having to 
          discontinue, as described in subparagraph (A), the course 
          pursuit.''.
              (2) Conforming amendments.--(A) The heading of section 3511 
          of such title is amended to read as follows:
  ``Sec. 3511. Treatment of certain interruptions in pursuit of programs 
                of education''.
              (B) Section 3532(g) of such title is amended--
                      (i) by striking paragraph (2); and
                      (ii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 
                  (2).
              (C) Section 3541 of such title is amended to read as 
          follows:
  ``Sec. 3541. Special restorative training
      ``(a) The Secretary may, at the request of an eligible person--
              ``(1) determine whether such person is in need of special 
          restorative training; and
              ``(2) if such need is found to exist, prescribe a course 
          which is suitable to accomplish the purposes of this chapter.
      ``(b) A course of special restorative training under subsection (a) 
  may, at the discretion of the Secretary, contain elements that would 
  contribute toward an ultimate objective of a program of education.''.
              (D) Section 3695(a)(4) of such title is amended by striking 
          ``35,''.
      (b) Extension of Delimiting Age of Eligibility for Dependents.--
  Section 3512(a) of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking 
  ``twenty-sixth birthday'' each place it appears and inserting 
  ``thirtieth birthday''.
      (c) Amount of Educational Assistance.--
              (1) In general.--Section 3532 of title 38, United States 
          Code, is amended to read as follows:
  ``Sec. 3532. Amount of educational assistance
      ``(a) The aggregate amount of educational assistance to which an 
  eligible person is entitled under this chapter is $80,000, as increased 
  from time to time under section 3564 of this title.
      ``(b) Within the aggregate amount provided for in subsection (a), 
  educational assistance under this chapter may be paid for any purpose, 
  and in any amount, as follows:
              ``(1) A program of education consisting of institutional 
          courses.
              ``(2) A full-time program of education that consists of 
          institutional courses and alternate phases of training in a 
          business or industrial establishment with the training in the 
          business or industrial establishment being strictly 
          supplemental to the institutional portion.
              ``(3) A farm cooperative program consisting of 
          institutional agricultural courses prescheduled to fall within 
          forty-four weeks of any period of twelve consecutive months 
          that is pursued by an eligible person who is concurrently 
          engaged in agricultural employment which is relevant to such 
          institutional agricultural courses as determined under 
          standards prescribed by the Secretary.
              ``(4) A course or courses or other program of special 
          educational assistance as provided in section 3491(a) of this 
          title.
              ``(5) A program of apprenticeship or other on-job training 
          pursued in a State as provided in section 3687(a) of this 
          title.
              ``(6) In the case of an eligible spouse or surviving 
          spouse, a program of education exclusively by correspondence as 
          provided in section 3686 of this title.
              ``(7) A special training allowance for special restorative 
          training as provided in section 3542 of this title.
      ``(c) If a program of education is pursued by an eligible person at 
  an institution located in the Republic of the Philippines, any 
  educational assistance for such person under this chapter shall be paid 
  at the rate of $0.50 for each dollar.
      ``(d)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the amount of educational 
  assistance payable under this chapter for a licensing or certification 
  test described in section 3501(a)(5) of this title is the lesser of 
  $2,000 or the fee charged for the test.
      ``(2) In no event shall payment of educational assistance under 
  this subsection for such a test exceed the amount of the individual's 
  available entitlement under this chapter.''.
              (2) Conforming amendments.--(A) Section 3533 of such title 
          is amended to read as follows:
  ``Sec. 3533. Tutorial assistance
      ``An eligible person shall, without any charge to any entitlement 
  of such person to educational assistance under section 3532(a) of this 
  title be entitled to the benefits provided an eligible veteran under 
  section 3492 of this title.''.
              (B) Section 3534 of such title is repealed.
              (C) Section 3542 of such title is amended--
                      (i) in subsection (a), by striking ``computed at 
                  the basic rate'' and all that follows through the end 
                  of the subsection and inserting a period; and
                      (ii) in subsection (b), by striking ``an 
                  educational assistance allowance'' and inserting 
                  ``educational assistance''.
              (D) Section 3543(c) of such title is amended--
                      (i) in paragraph (1), by adding ``and'' at the end;
                      (ii) by striking paragraph (2); and
                      (iii) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph 
                  (2).
              (E) Section 3564 of such title is amended by striking 
          ``rates payable under sections 3532, 3534(b), and 3542(a)'' and 
          inserting ``aggregate amount of educational assistance payable 
          under section 3532''.
              (F) Paragraph (1) of section 3565(b) of such title is 
          amended to read as follows:
              ``(1) educational assistance payable under section 3532 of 
          this title, including the special training allowance referred 
          to in subsection (b)(7) of such section, shall be paid at the 
          rate of $0.50 for each dollar; and''.
              (G) Section 3687 of such title is amended--
                      (i) in subsection (a)--
                              (I) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 
                          by striking ``or an eligible person (as defined 
                          in section 3501(a) of this title)''; and
                              (II) in the flush matter following 
                          paragraph (2), by striking ``chapters 34 and 
                          35'' and inserting ``chapter 34'';
                      (ii) in subsection (c), by striking ``chapters 34 
                  and 35'' and inserting ``chapter 34''; and
                      (iii) in subsection (e), by striking paragraph (3) 
                  and inserting the following new paragraph (3):
              ``(3) In this subsection, the term `individual' means an 
          eligible veteran who is entitled to monthly educational 
          assistance allowances payable under section 3015(e) of this 
          title.''.
      (d) Other Conforming Amendments.--(1) Section 3524 of title 38, 
  United States Code, is amended by striking ``allowance'' each place it 
  appears.
      (2)(A) Section 3531 of such title is amended--
              (i) in subsection (a), by striking ``an educational 
          assistance allowance'' and inserting ``educational 
          assistance''; and
              (ii) in subsection (b), by striking ``allowance''.
      (B) The heading of such section is amended by striking 
  ``allowance''.
      (3) Section 3537(a) of such title is amended by striking 
  ``additional''.
      (e) Clerical Amendments.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
  chapter 35 of title 38, United States Code, is amended--
              (1) by striking the item relating to section 3511 and 
          inserting the following new item:
  
  ``3511. Treatment of certain interruptions in pursuit of programs of 
                              education.'';
              (2) by striking the items relating to section 3531, 3532, 
          and 3533 and inserting the following new items:
  
  ``3531. Educational assistance.
  ``3532. Amount of educational assistance.
  ``3533. Tutorial assistance.'';
              (3) by striking the item relating to section 3534; and
              (4) by striking the item relating to section 3541 and 
          inserting the following new item:
  
  ``3541. Special restorative training.''.
      (f) Effective Dates.--(1) The amendments made by this section shall 
  take effect on the date of the enactment of this Act.
      (2) Notwithstanding the effective date under paragraph (1) of the 
  amendment to section 3564 of title 38, United States Code, made by 
  subsection (c)(2)(E), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall make the 
  first increase in the aggregate amount of educational assistance under 
  section 3532 of such title as required by such section 3564 (as so 
  amended) for fiscal year 2006.
target: Revises basic educational assistance for veterans' survivors and dependents to: (1) eliminate the present 45 month cap on benefit payments and set an aggregate limit of $80,000; (2) extend from a dependent's 26th to 30th birthday the delimiting age for the use of such assistance; (3) increase the amount of such assistance for survivors and dependents pursuing certain types of education; and (4) authorize the provision of tutorial assistance to such individuals without charge to their educational assistance entitlement.
feat_title: To amend title 38, United States Code, to expand and enhance educational assistance for survivors and dependents of veterans.