DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 Docket No. 2333-19 Ref: Signature Date From: Chairman, Board for Correction of Naval Records To: Secretary of the Navy Ref: (a) Title 10 U.S.C. § 1552 (b) BUPERSNOTE 1780 dtd 7 Apr 10 (c) DTM 09-003 dtd 22 Jun 09 (d) Title 38 U.S.C. § 33 Encl: (1) DD Form 149 (2) Statement of Service (3) BEAST Service Member History (4) BEAST Family History (5) History of Assignments (6) Member Data Summary 1. Pursuant to the provisions of reference (a) Subject, hereinafter referred to as Petitioner, filed enclosure (1) with this Board requesting, in effect, that the applicable naval record be corrected to establish eligibility to transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits to eligible dependents. Petitioner contends that he had every intention of transferring benefits to his wife prior to retiring, however, with the rush of moving back to the United States upon retiring from the Navy, scheduling his pack out, and finalizing DoD school transcripts for his children, he forgot to submit the paperwork. 2. The Board, reviewed Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice on 31 January 2020 and, pursuant to its regulations, determined that the corrective action indicated below should be taken on the available evidence of record. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of the enclosures (1) through (6), relevant portions of Petitioner’s naval record, and applicable statutes, regulations and policies. 3. The Board, having reviewed all the facts of record pertaining to Petitioner’s allegations of error and injustice, finds as follows: a. Before applying to this Board, Petitioner exhausted all administrative remedies available under existing law and regulations within the Department of the Navy. b. The Post-9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act (Post-9/11 GI Bill, Public Law 110­252) was signed into law on 30 June 2008 and became effective on 1 August 2009. The bill provides financial support for education and housing for service members with at least 90 days of service on or after 11 September 2001. The act also includes provision for qualifying service members to transfer education benefits to their eligible dependents. General descriptions of the essential components of the law were widely available beginning in summer 2008 but specific implementing guidance was not published until summer 2009. c. In accordance with reference (b), the option to transfer a service member’s unused education benefits to an eligible dependent did not require an additional service obligation for those eligible for retirement on 1 August 2009. Additionally, the aforementioned policy indicates education benefits may not be transferred to a new dependents or a dependent with “0” months allocated once the transferor is no longer a member of the Armed Forces. Per reference (c), a member of the Armed Forces is defined as a member serving on active duty or in the Selected Reserve but does not include retirees for the purposes of transferring education benefits. d. Petitioner’s active duty service date was 28 June 1983. See enclosure (2). e. Petitioner earned 20 years of active service on 27 June 2003. See enclosure (2). f. Petitioner submitted Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB) application and requested to allocate 18-months of education benefits to each of his two dependent children on 13 June 2011. Service approved the TEB application on 14 June 2011 without a service obligation per reference (b). See enclosures (3) and (4). g. Petitioner transferred to the Retired List on 30 September 2018. See enclosures (5) and (6). BOARD CONCLUSION Upon review and consideration of all the evidence of record, the Board concluded that Navy Transferability of Post-9/11 GI Bill policy clearly outlined the requirements and procedures to allocate education benefits to eligible dependents, and, accordingly, relief is not warranted. BOARD RECOMMENDATION That Petitioner’s request for correction to record be denied, and that no corrective action be taken. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR CONCLUSION Taking into account the findings of the Board, the Executive Director finds that corrective action is nevertheless warranted in Petitioner’s case, in consideration of reference (d). Reference (d) authorizes the Secretary to permit Service members the ability to transfer unused education benefits to their eligible dependents to promote recruitment and retention for the Uniformed Services. The Executive Director concurred that reference (b), defined the requirements for members to allocate education benefits to eligible dependents. However, the Executive Director disagreed with the Board’s recommendation that no further corrective action be taken. In this regard, the Executive Director noted that Petitioner was approved to transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits; however, he failed to allocate benefits to each of his dependents prior to retiring. Although the Petitioner did not complete the proper administrative requirements, he acquired three dependents (spouse and two children) prior to 1 August 2009; meeting the spirit and intent of transferring education benefits to dependents outlined in reference (d). In view of the above, the Executive Director recommends the following corrective action. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR RECOMMENDATION That Petitioner’s naval record be corrected, where appropriate, to show that: Petitioner elected to transfer unused education benefits to /12-months, /12-months and /12-months through the MilConnect TEB portal on 13 June 2011. Commander, Navy Personnel Command (PERS-314) reviewed the Petitioner’s TEB request and it was approved on 13 June 2011. Note: PERS-314 shall ensure a surrogate transfer is completed reflecting the approved abovementioned allocations. 4. It is certified that a quorum was present at the Board’s review and deliberations, and that the foregoing is a true and complete record of the Board’s proceedings in the above-entitled matter. 5. The foregoing action of the Board is submitted for your review and action.