February 6, 2008 On behalf of the more than 107,000 members of the Association of the United States Army, I write to thank you for offering the language in H.R. 3780 as an amendment to the Higher Education Reauthorization Act. The amendment addresses the disparity between in-state and out-of-state tuition rates that imposes an unfair burden on our military families. The provisions of the legislation would require states to charge in-state tuition to active duty members and their dependents if they meet one of three key criteria: the servicemember’s legal residence is in the state; the servicemember is stationed in the state; or education at the institution was started at in-state rates by the servicemember or dependents, but the servicemember was required to transfer out of state. With all of the hardships military families face as they serve our nation, moving from place to place every few years, they should not have to be penalized financially for that service when educating their children. AUSA stands ready to assist your effort to enact this legislation into law. GORDON R. SULLIVAN General, USA Retired