RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-04330 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His record be corrected to reflect he transferred his Post-9/11 GI Bill to his dependents in May 2009. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: On or about May 2009, he completed the application to transfer his benefits to his dependents. He received confirmation that his application was complete and approved; however, there is no record of his completed application. This affects the date of his transfer and it affects his active duty service commitment date. The applicant’s complete submission is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant is active duty serving in the grade of colonel. For individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 August 2011, and before 31 July 2012, 3 years of additional service is required. The remaining relevant facts are contained in the letter prepared by the Air Force office of primary responsibility which is listed at Exhibit B. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIT recommends denial. For the first time in history, service members enrolled in 38 U.S.C, Chapter 33 (Post-9/11 Educational Assistance) were able to transfer their benefits to their dependent spouse or children. Any member of the Armed Forces, active duty, or Selected Reserve, officer or enlisted, on or after 1 August 2009, who is eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill, had at least 6 years of service on the date of election may transfer unused Post-9/11 benefits to their dependents. The Department of Defense issued a regulation that authorized the Military Departments to offer service members the option to transfer benefits. The Secretary of the Air Force determined the Air Force would offer the transfer of benefits feature. The transfer must be initiated while the member is serving in the Armed Forces, which is defined as limited to those serving on active duty or in the Selected Reserves. Service Secretary’s were required, as of 22 June 2009 (reissued 10 September 2010), to provide and document individual pre- separation or release from active duty counseling on the Post- 9/11 GI Bill benefits. The Air Force issued guidance requiring pre-separation counseling be documented on the DD Form 2648. However, the Air Force did not engage in a Service-wide effort to seek out members who were already on terminal leave, or who had already completed their pre-separation counseling in order to provide them with additional counseling. The applicant states that he received confirmation that his application was completed and approved; however, there is no evidence that he signed-up for the transfer of benefits. The transferring of benefits process was not made available until the latter part of July. There is no indication in the Total Force Center that the applicant indeed signed-up for the transfer. The complete DPSIT, with attachments, is at Exhibit B. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 15 October 2012, for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit C). As of this date, this office has received no response. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. After careful consideration of the applicant’s request and the available evidence of record, we find insufficient evidence of error or injustice to warrant corrective action. Therefore, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force offices of primary responsibility and adopt its rationale as the basis for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice. In the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The applicant be notified that the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; that the application was denied without a personal appearance; and that the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2012-04330 in Executive Session on 9 May 2013, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: Panel Chair Member Member The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 20 Jul 12. Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIT, dated 24 Sep 12, w/atchs. Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 15 Oct 12.