New G.I. Bill gives vets options Published Aug. 10, 2009 By Public Affairs staff reports LAUGHLIN AFB, Texas -- The education center's Christine Engel has been working hard to spread the word about the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill. Engel, chief of education and training at Laughlin's Education Center, has been speaking at monthly forums sponsored by the education center and speaking at as many commander's calls as possible. The message the education team is pushing is that the new G.I. Bill, signed into law June 20, 2008, and that went into effect Aug. 1, enables servicemembers to transfer benefits to family members and offers housing stipends as well. Also, Ms. Engel and the education center staff been speaking to groups, but they have also been providing one-on-one counseling. Engel said their motivation in spreading the word is very simple. "Each member's situation is different and we want to make sure that members make the right decision on how to best utilize their education benefits of which G.I. Bill they choose," she said. Servicemembers have a number of decisions to make, everything from which plan to use to if they should use it themselves or transfer to a family member. According to a Department of Defense news release, with the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill servicemembers are eligible for 36 months of educational benefits the equivalent of four, nine-month academic years. To qualify for the transfer benefit servicemembers must have six years of service on active duty or in the Selected Reserve on or after Aug. 1 and commit to an additional four years of service. Servicemembers have the option to use or transfer as much of their benefits as they want to, and they can revoke or re-designate who receives the benefit at any time, Bob Clark, the Pentagon's assistant director for accessions policy said. The unused benefits can be transferred to a spouse, two children or any combination, he said. But children cannot start using the benefit until they're 18-years-old or have a high school diploma or equivalent. He added that servicemembers can add names only while on active duty, and not after separating or retiring from active-duty service. Only eligible dependents' names will appear on the registration Web site, he explained. Once servicemembers register on the site and designate who the benefits will be transferred to, the application will be processed through their appropriate service branch. After the service verifies eligibility to transfer the benefits, the application will be forwarded and processed again through Veterans Affairs. Finally, when the selected dependent decides to use the benefit, he or she must go to the Department of Veterans Affairs Web site and fill out an online application to request a certificate of eligibility, Clark said. The certificate then can be taken to the school to be processed by its Veterans Affairs representative and used to request tuition, payment for books and the living stipend, which varies by institution and location, he continued. Of the 25,000 who've already applied, more than 15,000 have been approved, and of those, 5,500 dependents already have requested certificates to start their education. "It has been a very fast, long run-up to the first of August, which is upon us. I see this as a wonderful opportunity for our veterans, our servicemembers, in particular, the families of our career members to give them the opportunity to further their education and reach their dreams," Clark said. Most servicemembers who have at least six years of military service as of Aug. 1 and agree to serve an additional four years qualify, he said. Department officials have proposed measures to support servicemembers who have at least 10 years of active service but can't serve the additional four because of service or department policy. They would, however, have to serve the maximum time allowed before separating from the military, he said. Another provision will cover servicemembers who will reach the 20-year service mark, making them retirement-eligible, between Aug. 1, 2009, and Aug. 1, 2013. Clark explained how servicemembers who complete 20 years of service will be able to transfer the benefits: -- Those eligible for retirement on Aug. 1, 2009, will be eligible to transfer their benefits with no additional service requirement. -- Those with an approved retirement date after Aug. 1, 2009, and before July 1, 2010, will qualify with no additional service. -- Those eligible for retirement after Aug. 1, 2009, but before Aug. 1, 2010, will qualify with one additional year of service after approval to transfer their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits. -- Those eligible for retirement between Aug. 1, 2010, and July 31, 2011, will qualify with two additional years of service after approval to transfer. -- Those eligible to retire between Aug. 1, 2011, and July 31, 2012, will qualify with three additional years of service after approval to transfer. For more information, contact Ms. Engel at 298-4673. There's also information available at http://www.defenselink.mil/home/features/2009/0409_gibill/ or http://www.gibill.va.gov/ WWW.DefenseLink.mil contributed to this story.