RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2011-00755 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: He be entitled to transfer his Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits to his dependent son. ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: He made an error by not transferring his benefits to his son prior to retiring. He thought by putting his son’s name on the form t was all he had to do, and did not realize that everything had to be done before retiring. In support of his appeal, the applicant provides a copy of his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, issued in conjunction with his 31 May 10 retirement and a copy of his Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits letter. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant entered active duty on 15 Dec 89. He was relieved from active duty, on 31 May 2010, with a reason for separation voluntary retirement sufficient service for retirement. He was credited with 20 years, 5 months, and 16 days on active duty service. Post-9/11 GI Bill: Any member of the Armed Forces (active duty or Selected Reserve (SelRes), 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 a specified additional period in the Armed Forces from the date of election. • Has at least 10 years of service in the Armed Forces (active duty and/or SelRes 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. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on 1 Aug 09, no additional service is required. • For those individuals who have an approved retirement date after 1 Aug 09, and before 1 Jul 10, no additional service is required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement after 1 Aug 09, and before 1 Aug 10, 1 year of additional service after approval of transfer is required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 10, and before 1 Aug 11, 2 years of additional service after approval of transfer are required. • For those individuals eligible for retirement on or after 1 Aug 11, and before 1 Aug 12, 3 years of additional service after approval of transfer are required. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: HQ USAF/A1PA recommends denial. However, the Board could find the applicant did not receive adequate counseling about transfer rules and retainability requirements. In this case, the Board could direct AFPC to correct the member's TEB record to allocate benefits to his son. A1PA states the Air Force, in implementing its guidance, developed a communication plan that used the Air Force Personnel Center Commander and the Education and Training Section at each installation to serve as spokespersons to communicate the Post- 9/11 GI Bill transfer-to-dependent program using internal media, internal communication tools, and external trade publications. There were various news articles about the Post-9/11 GI Bill to be eligible to transfer benefits. Some articles mentioned that service members on active duty or in the SelRes could transfer benefits. Notably, since 1 August 2009, the Air Force approved over 42,000 transferability applications. A1PA states the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA), the DoD and the Military Services widely publicized the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the transferability feature. DoD developed a special website, hosted by Defense Manpower Data Center (DMDC), to facilitate the transfer of educational benefits. The website system was operational on 27 June 2009 for the purpose of accepting transfer of benefits applications. The Directive Type Memo (DTM) and Air Force Instruction state the transfer must be made while the member is serving in the Armed Forces. Both documents were published on government-hosted websites prior to 1 August 2009, the effective date of the Post-9/11 GI Bill. A1PA notes the applicant stated he transferred from the MGIB to the Post-9/11 GI Bill and received his Certificate of Eligibility on 12 August 2009. He retired 1 June 2010. The applicant was under the impression that putting his son's information on the form was enough to transfer the benefits to his son. After he retired he realized he had not taken the appropriate action to transfer his benefits. He does not claim that he was incorrectly counseled, nor does he claim he was not aware that he needed to make the transfer while he was on active duty. He admits there is no error or injustice on the government's part, but asks for mercy so that he can send his son to college in the fall of 2011. The applicant had adequate time, opportunity, and access to a plethora of available information about the transfer process between the time he received his Post-9/II GI Bill Certificate of Eligibility and his retirement date. The fact that the former member did not take any action to ensure the request to transfer benefits was properly submitted is not an error or injustice on the part of the Air Force. The complete HQ USAF/A1PA evaluation is at Exhibit C. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 28 April 2011 for review and comment within 30 days. As of this date, no response has been received by this office (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. Although the applicant accepts responsibility for the error of not transferring benefits to his eligible dependent prior to his retirement, he also notes that he made the error based on lack of a clear understanding of the process to make the transfer. While we note the additional steps the Air Force took to insure eligible personnel were informed of this new benefit, it appears the applicant may not have been fully aware of the steps necessary to transfer his benefits to his dependent. As such, we find reasonable doubt that we elect to resolve in his favor. In addition, we do not find it reasonable that he would have knowingly elected not to pursue use of this important entitlement. Therefore, in the interest of equity and justice, we recommend the records be corrected as indicated 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 May 2010, he elected to transfer his Post 9/11 GI Bill Educational Benefits: ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2011-00755 in Executive Session on 10 November 2011, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 25 Feb 11, w/atch. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, HQ USAF/A1PA, dated 21 Apr 11. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 28 Apr 11. Panel Chair