Selected Reservists, including all reserves of the military branches and the National Guard, are starting to feel the effects of an authorization used when mobilizing them – specifically, Title 10, Section 12304b.
Authorized by the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act, the Pentagon started using the code in 2014 to mobilize Reservists and Guardsmen. As of this writing, almost 5,000 had either been, or currently are, activated under this code. However, unlike most of the other mobilization codes, these military members do not accumulate time towards the Post 9/11 GI Bill while deployed, among other lost benefits.
Typically, Selected Reservists would get 36 months of education benefits paid at the 60% rate (tuition, housing allowance and book stipend) for a year-long deployment; under this code they get, or will get nothing, although they served shoulder-to-shoulder with their active duty brethren who do get Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits.
Drawing Down Forces, Drawing Down Costs
Why is the Pentagon using this code? To reduce costs. With the active duty drawdown and more Selected Reserve members being mobilized, the Pentagon did not have the money to support all of their benefits. By authorizing Section 12304b, Congress gave the military branches an option it needed to reduce costs related to activated Reservists.
Unfortunately, many of the mobilized reserve members thought they were accumulating time toward Post /11 GI Bill benefits and had plans to use their newly acquired benefits when they got back from deployment … only to find out they have none once they started applying to use their benefits. Most claim they were not informed at the time of activation that they would not be receiving the Post 9/11 GI Bill and other benefits denied under Section 12304b.
However, there are a couple of “fixes” to this issue:
- President Obama could direct the VA to waive the exemption through an executive order, or
- Congress could approve the National Guard Section12304b Benefits Parity Act proposed by Sen, John Cornyn, R-Texas and Sen. Al Franken, D-Minnesota.
As of this writing, it is setting in the Senate’s Armed Services Committee and has been since its introduction in May 2016.
Franken told Stars and Stripes “The men and women who serve our country lay everything on the line to protect us, and in return, they deserve access to the support and benefits that they’ve rightfully earned. But unfortunately, too many members of the National Guard in both Minnesota and across the country who served on active duty came home and couldn’t get important health care and education support.”
Unless corrected, this denial of benefits under this Section will start to have a recruiting and retention effect as many Selected Reservists either enlist or extend their enlistment for these exact benefits. Hopefully one of the two above fixes will happen … soon.
