RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2011-04551 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: He be allowed to transfer his Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to his spouse. _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT He repeatedly inquired at the Nellis AFB, education office regarding transferring educational benefits to this spouse but was unsuccessful. He also tried to transfer benefits in Apr 2010 and was informed that he was not eligible since he was no longer on active duty. Post 9/11 GI Bill guidelines/policies were not made public in a timely manner and hindered his ability to transfer his benefits to his spouse. The applicant's complete submission is at Exhibit A. _________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant retired from the Air Force in the grade of chief master sergeant on 1 Nov 2009. The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the letter prepared by the appropriate office of the Air Force which is attached at Exhibit B. _________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIT recommends denial. The Department of Defense (DoD) issued a regulation, Directive Type Memo (DTM) 09-003 (reissued 10 Sep 10), 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 applicant is serving in the Armed Forces, which is defined as limited to those individuals on active duty or in the Selected Reserves. The Air Force, in implementing its guidance, developed a communications plan that used the Air Force Personnel Center commander and the Education and Training Sections at each installation to serve as spokespersons to communicate the Post- 9/11 GI Bill transfer to dependent program using internal media, and internal trade publications. There were various news articles about the Post-9/11 GI Bill; most noted the requirement to be on duty on the 1 Aug 09 effective date of the Post-9/11 GI Bill to be eligible to transfer benefits. Some articles mentioned that a service member on active duty or in the Selected Reserve could transfer benefits. The Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), the Department of Defense (DoD), and the Military Services, widely publicized the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the transferability feature. DoD developed a special website, hosted by the Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), to facilitate the transfer of educational benefits. The website system was operational on 27 Jun 09, for the purpose of accepting transfer of benefits applications. The DTM, and Air Force Instruction, states the member must agree to serve an additional term of service, as specified, from the date of the request. Both documents were published on government-hosted websites prior to 1 Aug 09, the effective date of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. The applicant received pre-separation counseling on 13 Aug 09. He declined counseling of education benefits. There is insufficient justification and documentation to support his request. The complete DPSIT evaluation is at Exhibit B. _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: Although the advisory opinion indicates that he declined counseling on education benefits during outprocessing and recommended his request be denied, the actual circumstances were much more complex. In Aug 2009, he was at a remotely located installation without an education office and personnel had to travel 75 minutes each way to reach education services at Nellis AFB for support. He declined general retirement counseling because he communicated directly with the education office the previous week specifically on education issues, and was unable to make the 75 minute drive to Nellis AFB due to pain from a recent surgery. The Air Force and sister services have publicly acknowledged the policy for use or transfer of education benefits under the Post-911 GI Bill was misunderstood at a number of military bases between Aug and Nov 2009 and each service has acted to restore benefits to affected personnel. He requests that his appeal be favorably considered. He is not asking for a benefit that he has not earned, merely the ability to be able to share his earned educational benefits with his spouse, who sacrificed alongside him during his 26 year career. 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 the applicant was miscounseled and not timely made aware of his eligibility and the steps necessary to transfer his benefits to his dependents. As such, we find the evidence submitted sufficient to give the applicant the benefit of doubt in this matter and does not find it reasonable that he would have knowingly elected not to pursue use of this important entitlement. Therefore, we recommend the records be corrected as indicated below. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to the APPLICANT be corrected to show that he elected to transfer his Post 9/11 GI Bill Educational Benefits on 31 Oct 09. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2010-02330 in Executive Session on 11 Sep 12, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR BC-2011- 04551 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 14 Nov 11. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPSIT, dated 6 Jan 12. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 13 Jan 12. Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 4 Feb 12.