National guard and VA benefits

1. National guard and VA benefits By: Heather Bullerman

2. Overview • Different Types of Military Status • Education • Life Insurance • VA NSC Pension • Drill Pay Adjustments • FAQs

3. Different types of military status

4. Title 32 • Basic Training • Technical School/AIT • Active Guard Reserve (AGR) • Guard Drill • TDY/Annual 15 day training • Counter drug tasking • Funeral Honors

5. Does qualify for VA compensation benefits for any chronic injury or illness obtained while on Title 32 orders. • May qualify for NSC Pension depending on dates and time on orders. • May qualify for VA Healthcare. • Qualifies for VA Home Loan after 6 years, or discharged for a service-connected disability.

6. Title 10 • Federal Activation • Gives service members veteran status • If served in combat theater after 11/11/98, they are eligible for an extended period of eligibility 5 years from their most recent discharge.

7. title 10 continued… • Does qualify for VA compensation benefits for any chronic injury or illness obtained while on Title 10 orders. • May qualify for NSC Pension depending on dates and time on orders. • May qualify for VA Healthcare. • Qualifies for VA Home Loan if served honorably with a minimum of 90 days during a wartime period.

8. State activation • State emergency activation including flood, blizzard, crowd control. • Ordered to duty by their respective State Governor. • Injury/illness not covered under VA, would need to file workers compensation. • Will not qualify for VA Healthcare based on state activation.

9. education

10. Gi bill types Chapter 30 • Montgomery GI Bill (Active Duty) Chapter 31 • Vocational Rehabilitation Chapter 33 • Post 9/11 GI Bill Chapter 1606 • Montgomery GI Bill (Selected Reserve)

11. Montgomery GI Bill Chapter 30 • Service after July 1, 1985 • 36 Months of Entitlement • $1,200 Contribution • Ten years (to use benefit after discharge from active duty) • Types of training - college (undergraduate, graduate), certificate programs, on-the-job training, apprenticeship training, flight training, and non-college degree courses.

12. VA Vocational Rehabilitation (Chapter 31) • Service Connected Disability rated @ 10% or greater that presents a barrier to employment • Usually the veteran has 12 years to utilize • Up to 48 months of entitlement

13. Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606) • National guard and selected reserve need to have six year obligation • Member in good standing – actively drilling • See www.gibill.va.gov for current payment rates. • Types of training - college (undergraduate, graduate), certificate programs, on-the-job training, apprenticeship training, flight training, and non-college degree courses.

14. Post 9/11 Veterans GI Bill (Chapter 33) • Must have at least 90 aggregate days of active service after September 10, 2001, or were discharged with a service-connected disability after serving at least 30 consecutive days after that date. • Have 15 yrs. from date of last discharge/release from 90 consecutive days of active duty • 36 months of Chapter 33 entitlement • Chapter 30 Veterans can elect to receive Chapter 33 benefits but are only entitled to the number of months they had remaining under Chapter 30

15. Transfer of Entitlement to Dependents • Certain veterans may be eligible to transfer • You must make your transfer BEFORE you Retire or Separate from the Military. • You may transfer your education benefits while serving as a member of the Armed Forces, including the SD Army and Air National Guard. • All transfers are approved by respective service branch not the VA. • Service members can no longer transfer if at more than 14 years of service and must make a 6 year commitment.

16. FOREVER GI BILL INFORMATION • More Benefits for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Programs • VA will provide up to nine months of additional Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to certain eligible individuals who: • have or will soon exhaust entitlement of Post-9/11 GI Bill program. • apply for assistance, and • are enrolled in a program of education leading to a post-secondary degree that, in accordance with the guidelines of the applicable regional or national accrediting agency, requires more than the standard 128 semester (or 192 quarter) credit hours for completion in a standard, undergraduate college degree in biological or biomedical science; physical science; science technologies or technicians; computer and information science and support services; mathematics or statistics; engineering; engineering technologies or an engineering-related field; a health profession or related program; a medical residency program; an agriculture science program or natural resources science program; or other subjects and fields identified by VA as meeting national needs. • has completed at least 60 standard semester (or 90 quarter) credit hours in a field listed above, or has earned a post-secondary degree in one of these fields and is enrolled in a program of education leading to a teaching certification. • Priority would be given to individuals who are entitled to 100 percent of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and to those that require the most credit hours. • VA can pay each eligible individual the benefits for up to nine additional months, but the total may not exceed $30,000. VA will not be authorized to issue any Yellow Ribbon payments. • These additional benefits cannot be transferred to dependents. • This expansion becomes effective on August 1, 2019.

17. Elimination of 15-year Limitation to use the Post-9/11 GI Bill Program • The law removes the time limitation for the use of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits for individuals whose last discharge or release from active duty is on or after January 1, 2013, children of deceased Servicemembers who first become entitled to Post-9/11 GI Bill program benefits on or after January 1, 2013, and all Fry spouses. • All others remain subject to the current 15-year time limitation for using their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.

18. Changes to Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance • The new law decreases the amount of entitlement that new eligible individuals will receive under the Survivors’ and Dependents’ Educational Assistance (DEA) program from 45 months to 36 months. This change applies to individuals who first enroll in programs of education after August 1, 2018.  Individuals who first enrolled in a program of education prior to August 1, 2018, would still qualify for a maximum of 45 months of entitlement.  • This law also increases the amount of educational assistance payable for pursuit of institutional courses and institutional courses under the Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program. An eligible person will be entitled to a monthly allowance of $1,224 for full-time coursework, $967 for three-quarter time, and $710 for half-time coursework.  The increases would be effective October 1, 2018.

19. STATE EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS • Veterans Free Tuition Program at State Universities • Reduced Tuition for SD National Guard Members • Free Tuition for Dependents of National Guardsmen Disabled or Deceased in Line of Duty

20. VETERANS FREE TUITION AT STATE UNIVERSITIES • Discharged under Honorable conditions & a current resident • Must have used up all federal entitlements! • Be a veteran per SDCL • Active Duty after August 2, 1990 • Service connected disability rated at 10% or more disabling • Awarded Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal or Campaign Service Medal • Are entitled to one month for each month of qualifying service, minimum of 1 year and maximum of 4 years of undergraduate study

21. REDUCED TUITION FOR SD NATIONAL GUARD MEMBERS • Be a member of SD National Guard Unit throughout each semester or vocational program for which the member applies for benefits • 90% attendance on scheduled drills and annual training • Maintain satisfactory academic progress • Graduate and Undergraduate Courses • State Supported Schools Only

22. Free Tuition for Dependents of National Guard Members that are Disabled or Deceased in the Line of Duty • Children under the age of 25 and spouses that are residents of state • Guard member has died or sustained total disability (P/T) resulting from duty as a member of SD National Guard while on state or federal active duty or authorized training • Entitled to tuition without cost at any state educational institution under the control and management of the Board of Regents

23. On the job training (ojt) • Entry Level • Paid by Salary (not 100% commission) • Under Direct Supervision • Full-Time Position • Permanent Position (not temporary) • Must Have GI Bill Eligibility (any chapter) • Usually Within First Couple Years of Employment • SAA Approves/Inspects All Programs Except Federal

24. Life Insurance

25. Service members’ group life insurance • National Guard or Reserve member scheduled to perform at least 12 periods of inactive duty training per year, OR • Individual Ready Reserve member who volunteers for a mobilization category

26. Veterans group life insurance (vgli) • Servicemember separating, retiring, or being released from Reserve or National Guard assignment and already covered by SGL,I OR • National Guard or Reserve member covered by part-time SGLI who incurred a disability or aggravated a pre-existing disability while performing inactive duty training or traveling to/from duty, OR • Member of the Individual Ready Reserve or Inactive National Guard

27. Vgli continued… • You must apply within one year and 120 days from discharge.  However, Servicemembers who submit their application within 240 days of discharge do not need to submit evidence of good health.  Service members who apply after the 240 day period must submit evidence of good health.  You can convert your SGLI to VGLI through eBenefits.

28. Family servicemembers group life insurance (fsgli) • Spouse or dependent child of an active duty Servicemember covered by full-time SGLI, OR • Spouse or dependent child of a member of the National Guard or Reserve of a uniformed service covered by full-time SGLI

29. Sgli traumatic injury protection (tsgli) • Member of the uniformed services and have SGLI, OR • Suffered an injury that resulted in a qualifying loss between October 7, 2001 and November 30, 2005

30. VA NSC Pension

31. Pension Benefits • Service members must have served 90 days prior to September 7 1980, 24 months after that date or for the entire duration they were activated. • One day of active duty must have fallen during a period of war. • Meet the required income and net worth guidelines.

32. Drill Pay adjustments

33. § 5304. Prohibition against duplication of benefits (a)(1) Except as provided in section 1414 of title10 or to the extent that retirement pay is waived under other provisions of law, not more than one award of pension, compensation, emergency officers’, regular, or reserve retirement pay, or initial award of naval pension granted after July 13, 1943, shall be made concurrently to any person based on such person’s own service or concurrently to any person based on the service of any other person.

34. 10 U.S.C. 12316 • Prohibits the concurrent payment of drill pay with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Compensation and Pension (C&P) benefits.

35. 38 CFR 3.700 (a) Veterans: (1) Active service pay. (i) Pension, compensation, or retirement pay on account of his or her own service will not be paid to any person for any period for which he or she receives active service pay. (Authority: 38 U.S.C. 5304(c)) (ii) Time spent by members of the ROTC in drills as part of their activities as members of the corps is not active service. (iii) Reservists may waive their pension, compensation, or retirement pay for periods of field training, instruction, other duty or drills. A waiver may include prospective periods and contain a right of recoupment for the days for which the reservists did not receive payment for duty by reason of failure to report for duty.

36. Drill pay definition The term drill pay refers to active or inactive duty training/military pay and allowances.

37. Prohibition against concurrent payments • Drill pay cannot legally be paid concurrently with Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Compensation and Pension (C&P) benefits, under 10 U.S.C. 12316 and 38 U.S.C. 5304(c). A veteran must waive either VA benefits or drill pay. • Note: In most cases, it is to the veteran’s advantage to waive VA benefits.

38. Process for identifying recipients • Hines Information Technology Center (ITC) identifies recipients of both VA benefits and drill pay. • At the end of the fiscal year (FY), DMDC sends a tape to the Hines ITC identifying reservists/guard members who received both VA benefits and drill pay during that FY. • Note: If an interruption occurs in getting this data from DMDC, the tape may furnish drill pay data for one or more prior years. • When funning the tape, the Hines ITC updates the ACTIVE RESERVIST field on the M15 screen • Note: If the DMDC sends drill pay data for multiple fiscal years, the number of days displayed in the ACTIVE RESERVIST filed is the most recent fiscal year.

39. Process for identifying recipients continued… • The Hines ITC: • generates VA Form 21-8951 with preprinted identification and drill pay data for each reservist/guard member receiving duplicate benefits • sends the form to the reservist/guard member, and • establishes a 90-day master record diary.

40. VA form 21-8951-2 • To waive VA benefits and retain drill pay, the veteran must • complete VA Form 21-8951, Notice of Waiver of VA Compensation or Pension to Receive Military Pay and Allowances, and • submit a waiver each year in which reserve or guard pay is received.

45. Va form 21-8951-2 con’t • The veteran may proactively submit their own form, or wait for the VA to mail them a prefilled form annually. • If they are filling out their form on their own, or if they change the amount of prefilled training days on the form both the veteran and their commander must sign the form. • If they are just agreeing with the amount of prefilled days, they can just have their guardsman signature on it.

46. Amount of Pay withheld • The VA will withhold compensation day for day of military pay. • Example: Veteran is single at 50% service connected getting $855.41/mo from VA. He had only done his monthly drill and his two week drill which adds up to 63 days of military pay for the year. $855.41 divide by 30 days in a month = $28.51 x 63 = $855.30 debt.

47. Debt management center (dmc) • In 2017 the VA changed how they handled drill pay recoupment. • Once the VA Form 21-8951-2 has been reviewed the VBA sends the veteran a notification letter and sends the debt amount to DMC. • DMC will send the veteran a bill with 3 payment options: • Pay entire bill right away. • Setup an approved payment plan. • DMC will divide the debt by 12 months and automatically begin withholding that amount for one year.

48. What if veteran goes tdy/deployed • If the veteran is going to be deployed for an extended period of time, they should provide a copy of their orders along with a VA Form 21-4138 requesting to stop their benefit until they are released. • Once release they must provide their DD214 to reinstate their benefit. • If they stopped their VA benefit while on orders, you would subtract those days from the VA Form 21-8951-2.

49. FAQs • What if I get hired as a full time technician? • Nothing changes, you are considered a civilian during the week and would still just account for your military drills and camp once a year. • What if I get hired as a full time AGR? • You must notify the VA you are now on active duty and to terminate your compensation benefit. • Once they separate or retire, they may reapply for benefits. • What if I separate/retire? • You will still need to repay any military days you had for the previous fiscal year. If the VA Form 21-8951-2 reflect more days than you performed, adjust the days along with a VA Form 21-4138 and a copy of you NGB22 to reflect the change. • What if I get married or have a child? • You will continue to receive the amount of the increased entitlement since the withholding is from the previous year. • Can I apply for a waiver at the DMC to not repay the overpayment? • No, the VA must recoup military pay and will not approve a waiver of the debt.

50. Questions???