BY STEVE MISTLER
A bill that bolsters veterans services and provides tuition waivers at public colleges for National Guard members received unanimous support Friday, just two days after funding for the proposal sparked a nasty floor debate in the House of Representatives.
The bill approved Friday was amended to change the funding source, which ostensibly fanned partisan discord on Wednesday. The amended proposal contains many of the same provisions that were presented earlier this week. It includes new positions at the Bureau of Veterans Services designed to help veterans entering school and homeless veterans. The bill also provides a sales tax exemption to veterans’ organizations supporting treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder.
The slate of proposals was developed by a veterans commission created by legislation sponsored by Rep. Jared
Golden, D-Lewiston, a Marine Corps veteran. The commission found that less than half of the estimated 140,000 veterans in Maine are enrolled with the federal Department of 
Veterans Affairs and are not receiving health care and other benefits for which they are eligible. The commission also found that Maine has one veterans service officer for every 20,000 veterans in the state, a ratio that is far behind that of other states.
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