The Veterans Affairs Department is planning to resume a policy of cutting into the tuition payments from the Post-9/11 GI Bill for veterans with outstanding debts, drawing protests from higher education associations who say that the policy will force colleges to become debt collectors themselves.

Veterans who owe debt to the department -- including advance payments under the Post-9/11 GI Bill that require repayment, as well as debt incurred from other Veterans Affairs benefit programs for housing and medical expenses -- can have future aid withheld to repay the money they owe.

But tuition benefits have been exempt from such withholding since shortly after distribution of educational benefits began under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. In December, the department quietly indicated its intention to resume withholding unpaid debts from veterans’ tuition and fee payments.