The Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 authorizes the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish an educational assistance program for information security, but the department has not begun to award scholarships or offer and disburse loan repayments, although it has taken some steps to implement the program, GAO has said.
The Information Security Education Assistance Program created under the legislation was envisioned as a means for the VA to attract and retain individuals with advanced skills in information security and the law authorizes the VA to establish scholarships for qualified students who pursue doctoral degrees in computer science and electrical and computer engineering at accredited institutions and to offer educational debt reduction for VA employees who hold doctoral degrees in these fields.
According to GAO-10-170R, the department has drafted governing regulations that are now undergoing internal review, and it has developed a budget impact analysis.
The report said that once the department’s internal review is completed, several additional steps are planned before the regulations are issued, including review by OMB and a public comment period.
Department officials anticipate that the debt-reduction portion of the program will begin in 2011, and that the first scholarship candidates will be selected at that time, the report said.