The federal government shutdown has one SIUC veteran worrying about where the money for her next mortgage payment is going to come from.

Nicole Smith, a senior in Russian from Florida, said she and her husband are both students and veterans. She said they and their 2-year-old son live strictly on their college GI Bills and Veterans Administration work study paychecks.

She said now that the government has shut down, she and her husband will not receive their checks.

Advertisement

Smith said it is hard to believe that she and her husband will not get paid for an undetermined amount of time because the government cannot come to a decision.

President Bill Clinton and Congress could not come to an agreement on the federal budget Monday night, and about 800,000 nonessential federal workers were sent home Tuesday morning.

Charles Crews, SIUC’s certifying official veteran’s coordinator, said a percentage of workers who were sent home because of the shutdown are workers who process federal checks for the Veteran Affairs Department.

Smith said she is worried that when the shutdown is over and she receives her checks, she may be too far behind in her bills.

It’s hard for us, Smith said. We may lose our house.

Students who joined the military and signed up for the GI Bill to help pay their way through college receive their payments through the Veteran Affairs Department.

Depending on which chapter of the GI Bill a veteran is in, the veteran pays a fixed rate out of their military paycheck each month to pay their share of the GI Bill. When they are discharged and go to college, they are supposed to receive their monthly GI Bill paychecks.

Advertisement*

Also, every month veterans must verify their enrollment to the Veteran Affairs Department.

Crews said there are 1,200 SIUC students receiving GI Bill benefits. Of the 1,200 students, 200 did not send their GI Bill certifications in before the government shutdown and will not receive this month’s check until the government opens up again.

Crews said if the stalemate between Clinton and Congress is not fixed by December, the rest of SIUC’s veterans will be affected by next month’s GI Bill.

Curtis Paul, a senior in ornamental horticulture from Alton and a veteran, said although he does not believe the government shutdown will last long, he is still upset about it.

I didn’t do four years in the military to have to borrow money from my parents, Paul said. I held my part of the bargain. I just assumed they would hold up theirs.