RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2011-00318 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: YES ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: He be entitled to transfer his Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits to his dependents. ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: He was not aware or properly briefed that his benefits had to be transferred while on active duty. During the time he was on permissive temporary duty (TDY), convalescent leave, and terminal leave; and was not aware that the legislation had passed. As a result, he was not adequately briefed on the requirements nor provided an opportunity to elect Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB) for his children. In support of his appeal, the applicant provides a personal statement and a copy of his inquiry made through his Member of Congress. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant entered active duty on 28 Jan 83. He was relieved from active duty, on 30 Sep 09, with a reason for separation of voluntary retirement: sufficient service for retirement. He retired on 1 Oct 09 after serving over 26 years, 8 months, and 3 days on active duty. Post-9/11 GI Bill: Any member of the Armed Forces (active duty or Selected Reserve (SelRes), officer or enlisted) on or after 1 Aug 09, who is eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill, and: • Has at least 6 years of service in the Armed Forces on the date of election and agrees to serve a specified additional period in the Armed Forces from the date of election. • Has at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces (active duty and/or SelRes on the date of election, is precluded by either standard policy (service or DoD) or statute from committing to 4 additional years, and agrees to serve for the maximum amount of time allowed by such policy or statute, or • Is or becomes retirement eligible during the period from 1 Aug 09 through 1 Aug 13. A service member is considered to be retirement eligible if he or she has completed 20 years of active duty or 20 qualifying years of reserve service. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on 1 Aug 09, no additional service is required. • For those individuals who have an approved retirement date after 1 Aug 09, and before 1 Jul 10, no additional service is required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement after 1 Aug 09, and before 1 Aug 10, 1 year of additional service after approval of transfer is required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 10, and before 1 Aug 11, 2 years of additional service after approval of transfer are required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 11, and before 1 Aug 12, 3 years of additional service after approval of transfer are required. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: HQ USAF/A1PA makes no recommendation, but notes that if the Board finds there was an injustice to the extent that the member did not receive adequate pre-separation counseling, as required by law and DoD regulation, and was not personally notified about the need to transfer while serving in the Armed Forces, DoD has provided the Air Force with the technical/operational capability to execute the transfer without a need for the Board to return the member to active service. A1PA states the Air Force, in implementing its guidance, developed a communication plan that used the Air Force Personnel Center Commander and the Education and Training Section at each installation to serve as spokespersons to communicate the Post- 9/11 GI Bill transfer-to-dependent program using internal media, internal communication tools, and external trade publications. There were various news articles about the Post-9/11 GI Bill to be eligible to transfer benefits. Some articles mentioned that service members on active duty or in the SelRes could transfer benefits. Notably, since 1 August 2009, the Air Force approved over 39,000 transferability applications. A1PA states the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), the DoD and the Military Services widely publicized the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the transferability feature. DoD developed a special website, hosted by Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), to facilitate the transfer of educational benefits. The website system was operational on 27 June 2009 for the purpose of accepting transfer of benefits applications. The Directive Type Memo (DTM) and Air Force Instruction state the transfer must be made while the member is serving in the Armed Forces. Both documents were published on government-hosted websites prior to 1 August 2009, the effective date of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. A1PA notes the applicant states that he did not receive briefings about Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits before he began permissive TDY, convalescent leave, and terminal leave in mid- June 2009. He stated that he was no longer performing official duties when the guidance was formally published and available later that summer, and he retired effective 30 Sep 09. The Board could find that there was an injustice if members on active duty on 1 August 2009 were not sufficiently counseled about the need to execute a transfer while serving in the Armed Forces and did not have ready access to DoD and Air Force guidance because of their terminal leave status. The transfer date could be effective as early, as 1 August 2009 and there would be no need to place the member on active duty since the Transfer of Educational Benefits (TEB) system allows for correction of the record by Air Force personnel. The complete HQ USAF/A1PA evaluation is at Exhibit C. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: The applicant noted the current status of his eligible dependents and awaits the Board’s decision. The applicant’s complete response is at Exhibit E. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of error or injustice. While we note the steps the Air Force office of primary responsibility indicates were taken to inform eligible personnel of this new benefit, it appears that through no fault of the applicant he was not timely made aware of his eligibility and the steps necessary to transfer his benefits to his dependents. In addition, we find no basis to question the applicant's account in this matter and do not find it reasonable that he would have knowingly elected not to pursue use of this important entitlement. Therefore, we elect to resolve any doubt in this matter in behalf of the applicant and recommend the records be corrected as indicated below. 4. The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issue(s) involved. Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that on 30 September 2009, he elected to transfer his Post 9/11 GI Bill Educational Benefits: ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2011-00318 in Executive Session on 25 August 2011, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 24 Jan 11, w/atch. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, HQ USAF/A1PA, dated 28 Feb 11. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 4 Mar 11. Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 19 July 2011. Panel Chair