Section 31-6-4 Educational Benefits for Children of Deceased or Disabled Veterans or Prisoners of War.

(a)(1) Any child whose father or mother meets any of the following criteria may attend any qualifying school for a period of five standard academic years, not to exceed 45 months or the equivalent of 45 months if enrolled part-time, pursuant to the tuition reimbursement guidelines as provided in subsection (c): a. Was killed or died in line of duty or is listed as missing in action or is or was a prisoner of war or whose death or permanent total disabilities were service-connected while serving as a member of the armed forces; b. Died from a disability incurred from military service, as established by the State Department of Veterans’ Affairs, after having been discharged under conditions other than dishonorable and after having served at least 90 days consecutively in the armed forces prior to and/or subsequent to the date on which the disability occurred, or who was honorably discharged by reason of a qualifying service-connected disability after serving less than 90 days; c. Was killed or died while on state active duty status as defined in Section 31-12-1, or whose death results proximately and within three years from an injury received while on state active duty status; or d. Has been assigned 100 percent permanent or total disability rated by the United States Veterans’ Administration, or was discharged or retired from the armed forces with a 40 percent or more disability and maintained that percentage. (2) Training under this section must be initiated prior to the child’s thirtieth birthday, and must be completed within eight years after its initiation, except for delays caused by military service during the training period, and in no case may training be received under this chapter beyond the thirty-eighth birthday of the child. (b) The educational benefits provided by this section to children making application for benefits for the first time beginning with the fall term of the 2014-2015 academic year, and thereafter, shall be limited to undergraduate courses of study only, and the value of tuition paid shall be limited to the in-state tuition rate of the qualifying school attended. (c) For those first filing for benefits under this chapter on or after July 31, 2017, and for those attending a qualifying private school, the educational benefit shall be for tuition reimbursement and books and fees reimbursement. The value of tuition paid per semester hour (or equivalent) shall be limited to four hundred dollars ($400). The value of the books and fees paid per semester shall be limited to one thousand dollars ($1,000) per student. (d) For the purpose of the minimum disability requirement provided for in subdivision (a)(4), the dependent of any veteran whose disability rating as of July 31, 2017, is at least 20 percent but less than 40 percent shall qualify for the benefits of this chapter, provided that the dependent shall file application for the benefits before July 31, 2023, and the dependent is reasonably expected to be eligible to attend a qualifying school in the next academic year.