RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2013-02875 XXXXXXX COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: Her Transferability of Educational Benefits (TEB) election under the provisions of the Post 9/11 GI Bill be changed to Mar 12. ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: The Statement of Understanding (SOU) for transfer of education benefits to her dependents is missing. In Mar 12, she visited the education center to transfer her benefits to her dependents and the Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) at the education center guided her through the process. Everything was taken care of within days, to include extending her enlistment to meet the Active Duty Service Commitment (ADSC). This is unjust because over a year lapsed before she received notification that her application was denied. She immediately contacted the education center; whom contacted the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA); she then contacted the personnel office and was told no information was missing. However, AFPC states her SOU was never completed and her application was disapproved. She was unaware of any missing documents and would have quickly taken action if known sooner. In support of her appeal, the applicant provides an email communiqué of her attempts to correct the error and a copy of her extension of enlistment for the TEB. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachment, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: On 6 May 92, the applicant enlisted in the Regular Air Force and was eligible for retirement effective 5 May 12. On 5 Mar 12, the applicant extended her 16 Apr 10 enlistment for a period of 22 months for the purposes of the Post 9/11 GI Bill TEB. Currently, her date of separation is 15 Mar 16. The Post-9/11 GI Bill TEB requires: Any member of the Armed Forces (active duty or Selected Reserve, 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 4 additional years in the Armed Forces from the date of election. * Has at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces (active duty and/or selected reserve) 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. * a. For individuals eligible for retirement on or before 1 Aug 09, no additional service is required. * b. For individuals eligible for retirement after 1 Aug 09, and before 31 Jul 10, 1 year of additional service is required. * c. For individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 10, and before 31 Jul 11, 2 years of additional service is required. * d. For individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 11, and before 31 Jul 12, 3 years of additional service is required. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIT recommends approval of the applicant’s request, effective 15 Feb 12 with the associated ADSC running to 14 Feb 12 [sic], IAW AFI 36-2306, Voluntary Education Program, Attachment 9, A9.18.1.4.5. DPSIT notes that the Education Center should have counseled the applicant that the TEB SOU was required to complete the process. The applicant obtained the needed retainability during the application period. She states that she was deployed during this time period, which may have affected her completing all requirements within 14 days of the initial notification. The complete DPSIT evaluation is at Exhibit B. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 5 Aug 13 for review and response. As of this date, no response has been received by this office (Exhibit C). ________________________________________________________________ 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 warranting corrective action. The Air Force office of primary responsibility has addressed the issues presented by the applicant and we are in agreement with their recommendation. Therefore, we recommend her record be corrected to show that on 15 Feb 12, she signed an AF Form 4406, Post-9/11 GI Bill Transfer of Educational Benefits Statement of Understanding (SOU) to start her three year ADSC. Accordingly, we recommend her records be corrected to the extent indicated below. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that, on 15 February 2012, she signed an AF Form 4406, Post-9/11 GI Bill Transfer of Educational Benefits Statement of Understanding (SOU) to start her three year Active Duty Service Commitment. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2013-02875 in Executive Session on 28 May 2014, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: , Panel Chair , Member , Member All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 3 Jun 13. Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIT, dated 21 Jun 13. Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 5 Aug 13. 1 2