RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2013-02949 COUNSEL: NONE XXXXXXX HEARING DESIRED: YES ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: He be allowed to transfer his Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to his dependents. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: While on active duty he was instructed by the Education Office that the Transfer of Educational Benefits (TEB) had to be accomplished while he was on active duty. He was told he could transfer all or some of the benefits on-line. Therefore, he went on line and did as instructed; transferring a month to each of his children. Recently he attempted to transfer benefits to his son so that he could attend college this fall and was told his dependents were not loaded in “milConnect.” He called the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) and was instructed to submit VA Form 22-1990E, Application for Family Member to use Transferred Benefits. When he called to get a status he was informed TEB could only be completed while he was on active duty. He accomplished this task in Jul 2010. However, he was told the steps he took in Jul 2010 were just the first steps and additional steps were required to complete the process. He was never notified that additional steps were required. In support of his request, the applicant provides copies of screenshots from the DVA and Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC) websites. His complete submission, with attachments is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant entered the Air Force on 8 Jan 1987 and became retirement eligible on 8 Jan 2007. He retired from the Air Force effective 1 Feb 2011. Post-9/11 GI Bill Transferability: Any member of the Armed Forces (active duty or Selected Reserve, officer or enlisted) on or after 1 Aug 2009, who is eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Post-9/11 GI Bill Eligibility: Any member of the Armed Forces (active duty or Selected Reserve, officer or enlisted) on or after 1 Aug 2009, 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 2009, through 1 Aug 2013. 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 2009, no additional service is required. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIT recommends denial. DPSIT states that while the applicant asserts he completed all TEB requirements; a TEB application was never initiated according to DMDC, as well as in the Right Now Technology (RNT) application. Additionally, he never contacted the Total Force Service Center (TFSC) to inquire about his application status. Based on the information contained in the applicant's case, the Education Office provided accurate guidance on the need to apply while on active duty, to apply online, and to give one month to each dependent. However, the Board may approve the applicant’s request if they find there was an injustice to the extent the applicant did not receive adequate pre-separation counseling as required by law and DoD regulation and that he was not personally notified about the need to transfer while serving on active duty. The complete DPSIT evaluation is at Exhibit C. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: He disagrees with DPSIT’s advisory. He reasserts that he was instructed by the Education Office to transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to his dependents while he was still on active duty. Moreover, he was told that he could transfer all or some of the benefits on-line. He went on line and did as he was instructed and transferred a month to each of his children. He was unaware that he had to contact the TFSC or that additional steps were required to complete the transfer process. His complete submission is at Exhibit D. ________________________________________________________________ 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 made aware of the steps necessary to complete the transfer of 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, in the interest of justice, we find the evidence sufficient to grant the requested relief and recommend his records be corrected as set forth 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 31 Jan 2011, he elected to transfer his Post-9/11 GI Bill Educational Benefits to his dependents. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR BC-2013-02949 in Executive Session on 16 Apr 2014, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: , Panel Chair , Member , Member The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 14 Jun 2013, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant’s Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPSIT, dated 26 Jun 2013. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 7 Aug 2013. Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, undated. 2 3