[House Hearing, 110 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR
GUARD AND RESERVE FORCES
=======================================================================
FIELD HEARING
before the
SUBCOMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY
of the
COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
MAY 16, 2008
FIELD HEARING HELD IN SOUTH BEND, IN
__________
Serial No. 110-87
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
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COMMITTEE ON VETERANS' AFFAIRS
BOB FILNER, California, Chairman
CORRINE BROWN, Florida STEVE BUYER, Indiana, Ranking
VIC SNYDER, Arkansas CLIFF STEARNS, Florida
MICHAEL H. MICHAUD, Maine JERRY MORAN, Kansas
STEPHANIE HERSETH SANDLIN, South HENRY E. BROWN, Jr., South
Dakota Carolina
HARRY E. MITCHELL, Arizona JEFF MILLER, Florida
JOHN J. HALL, New York JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas
PHIL HARE, Illinois GINNY BROWN-WAITE, Florida
MICHAEL F. DOYLE, Pennsylvania MICHAEL R. TURNER, Ohio
SHELLEY BERKLEY, Nevada BRIAN P. BILBRAY, California
JOHN T. SALAZAR, Colorado DOUG LAMBORN, Colorado
CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ, Texas GUS M. BILIRAKIS, Florida
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana VERN BUCHANAN, Florida
JERRY McNERNEY, California STEVE SCALISE, Louisiana
ZACHARY T. SPACE, Ohio
TIMOTHY J. WALZ, Minnesota
Malcom A. Shorter, Staff Director
______
Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
STEPHANIE HERSETH SANDLIN, South Dakota, Chairwoman
JOE DONNELLY, Indiana JOHN BOOZMAN, Arkansas, Ranking
JERRY McNERNEY, California JERRY MORAN, Kansas
JOHN J. HALL, New York VACANT
Pursuant to clause 2(e)(4) of Rule XI of the Rules of the House, public
hearing records of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs are also
published in electronic form. The printed hearing record remains the
official version. Because electronic submissions are used to prepare
both printed and electronic versions of the hearing record, the process
of converting between various electronic formats may introduce
unintentional errors or omissions. Such occurrences are inherent in the
current publication process and should diminish as the process is
further refined.
C O N T E N T S
__________
May 16, 2008
Page
Transition Assistance Program for Guard and Reserve Forces....... 1
OPENING STATEMENTS
Chairwoman Stephanie Herseth Sandlin............................. 1
Prepared statement of Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin............. 52
Hon. John Boozman, Ranking Republican Member..................... 3
Prepared statement of Congressman Boozman.................... 53
Hon. Joe Donnelly................................................ 4
WITNESSES
U.S. Department of Labor, John M. McWilliam, Deputy Assistant
Secretary, Veterans' Employment and Training Service........... 41
Prepared statement of Mr. McWilliam.......................... 69
U.S. Department of Defense, Jane Burke, Principal Director,
Military Community and Family Policy........................... 42
Prepared statement of Ms. Burke.............................. 71
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, James A. Whitson, Director,
Eastern Area, Veterans Benefits Administration................. 44
Prepared statement of Mr. Whitson............................ 76
______
American Legion, Department of Indiana, Stephen W. Short,
Department Adjutant............................................ 33
Prepared statement of Mr. Short.............................. 65
Blosser, Staff Sergeant Donald A., Granger, IN................... 26
Prepared statement of Staff Sergeant Blosser................. 63
Indiana National Guard:
Major General R. Martin Umbarger, Adjutant General of Indiana,
Joint Forces Headquarters.................................... 6
Prepared statement of Major General Umbarger................. 53
Major Cathy Van Bree, Director of Family Programs, Joint Forces
Headquarters................................................. 9
Prepared statement of Major Van Bree......................... 55
Colonel Roger D. Peterman, Transition Assistance Advisor....... 10
Prepared statement of Colonel Peterman....................... 56
Masapollo, Lori, Niles, MI....................................... 24
Prepared statement of Ms. Masapollo.......................... 62
McCool, Dawn, North Liberty, IN.................................. 23
Prepared statement of Ms. McCool............................. 60
Saenz, Roy, South Bend, IN....................................... 20
Prepared statement of Mr. Saenz.............................. 57
Whitehead, Gary M., Elkhart County Veterans Service Officer,
Elkhart, IN.................................................... 35
Prepared statement of Mr. Whitehead.......................... 68
Williams, Elizabeth L., Indianapolis, IN......................... 19
Prepared statement of Ms. Williams........................... 57
SUBMISSION FOR THE RECORD
Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, Indianapolis, IN, Charles
T. ``Tom'' Applegate, Director, statement...................... 80
TRANSITION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR GUARD AND RESERVE FORCES
----------
FRIDAY, MAY 16, 2008
U.S. House of Representatives,
Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity,
Washington, DC.
The Subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 1:00 p.m., at
Indiana University--South Bend, Wiekamp Hall, Room 1001, 1700
Mishawaka Avenue, South Bend, Indiana, Hon. Stephanie Herseth
Sandlin [Chairwoman of the Subcommittee] presiding.
Present: Representatives Herseth Sandlin, Donnelly and Boozm
an.
OPENING STATEMENT OF CHAIRWOMAN HERSETH SANDLIN
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.
The Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Subcommittee on Economic
Opportunity hearing on the Transition Assistance Program (TAP)
for Guard and Reserve Forces, provided by the U.S. Department
of Defense (DoD), U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and
the U.S. Department of Labor (DoL), will come to order.
I'd like to thank my good friend and Ranking Member, Mr.
John Boozman of Arkansas, for joining us here today, for his
leadership on the Subcommittee, and for the productive
bipartisan working relationship that we enjoy.
I would also like to thank Congressman Joe Donnelly, from
here in Indiana, for his hospitality in inviting us to South
Bend. I'm honored to be here today. Mr. Donnelly is a hard-
working, valued Member of this Subcommittee, who also works in
a strong bipartisan manner to provide our Nation's
servicemembers, veterans, and their families the best available
programs and services they need and deserve.
Much progress has been made in education benefits,
vocational rehabilitation services, employment programs, and VA
Home Loan programs; however, I think everyone would agree that
we must remain vigilant to guard against any decline in
benefits or services, and we must continue to address unique
needs experienced by members of the National Guard and Reserve
Forces and their families.
Like many of my colleagues on the Subcommittee, the State
of South Dakota has had servicemembers who have been activated
in support of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of these
brave men and women have returned injured and are currently in
need of healthcare and employment services. They, like all
disabled veterans from around the country, deserve our best
efforts to provide a seamless and effective transition from
military service to civilian life and the work force.
Earlier last year, this Subcommittee held its first hearing
that included the Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment
and Training Service programs that were created to assist
veterans with employment assistance and protect the
servicemember's employment rights. While these programs have
proven to be quite successful in certain parts of the country,
today we will receive testimony from servicemembers who could
benefit from these programs but who may not be aware they
exist.
Like my colleagues here today, I have had the opportunity
to meet with local government officials and veterans back in my
district in my home State of South Dakota. I have had many
opportunities to speak with leadership staff, the Governor of
South Dakota, Mike Rounds, and the Adjutant General of South
Dakota's National Guard, Major General Steve Doohen, about ways
to improve existing veterans' programs.
I am glad that we have succeeded in making some progress
for our Nation's Reserve Forces. Included in the final version
of the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008, we were able
to gain bipartisan support for the language that would allow
mobilized members of the Reserve Forces to use their Chapter
1607 education benefits for 10 years after they separate from
service. While this is progress in the right direction, we must
remain committed to expanding all benefits to help meet the
needs of our servicemembers in the 21st century without
sacrificing the quality of the services and the programs for
veterans of past wars.
Furthermore, our Subcommittee has been working with the
full Committee Chairman, Congressman Bob Filner of California,
to address the immediate needs of servicemembers and their
families who face possible foreclosures on their homes. The
Ranking Member of the full Committee, Steve Buyer, also from
Indiana, has also been working with us to address the
foreclosure crisis and its impact on our Nation's veterans.
As we have heard at a recent Subcommittee hearing, data
specific to veterans does not exist or is limited in scope,
leaving us with an incomplete picture that makes it hard for us
to get a good idea of how the current mortgage problems are
affecting our veterans. But, because veterans and their
families come to us and talk with us about the problems that
they are having, we know that there is more for us to do as
they encounter these problems, to protect against the
instability that results from losing one's home.
Today, thousands of veterans throughout our country deserve
better, and we must do our best to ensure they are afforded the
protections they need as they adjust to life after their
military service.
I am particularly interested in hearing about the issues of
concern from National Guard and Reserve members, veterans and
their spouses, and the actions the administration is taking to
resolve the concerns of employment, education, rehabilitation,
and housing, to provide effective transition assistance. We all
know the effort it takes to undergo innovative approaches to
assist soldiers and their families before, during, and after
deployment. I look forward to learning more about the
strategies employed by the leadership here in Indiana.
I look forward to working with Mr. Boozman, with Mr.
Donnelly, and the Members of this Subcommittee to ensure that
all of our servicemembers are provided both proper training to
complete their mission and the proper benefits to help them
readjust and succeed in life after the military.
[The prepared statement of Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin
appears on p. 52.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. I now recognize the distinguished
gentleman from Arkansas, Mr. Boozman, for any opening remarks.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN BOOZMAN
Mr. Boozman. Thank you, Madam Chair. It's truly good to be
here, and I want to welcome and thank our panelists for taking
time out of their very busy schedules to come and share. I know
this is going to be a very productive field hearing. I also
want to thank Mr. Donnelly so much for inviting us to be here.
It's been a real pleasure working with him on the Subcommittee.
You know, I think our Subcommittee, I think the Veterans'
Affairs Committee, in general, is the kind of thing that you
want to see in Washington, since the people working together--
you know, there's a difference between Republicans and
Democrats in some areas, but when it comes to veterans, we're
on the same page.
So, again, thank you for being here, and thank you in the
audience for also being here. I also want to thank our
Chairlady for her hard work and leadership in so many different
ways.
Indiana has certainly always been well-represented in the
defense of our country, from the Indiana territory militia
formed in 1801 to the 196,000 Hoosiers who served in the Civil
War to those now serving in the 76th Brigade Combat team. And,
in fact, I was visiting with the General; Arkansas also has the
39th Brigade deployed, and they're not too far from each other,
serving in Iraq.
It's no secret that today's National Guard and Reserves are
now an operational force and no longer a strategic reserve.
That's one of the reasons that H.R. 5684, a bill that Ms.
Herseth Sandlin introduced, which we very much support,
contains a very significant upgrade to the education benefits
of the Guard and Reserve.
Our Guardsmen and Reservists share many of the challenges
of military life with their active-duty counterparts. They also
face some unique difficulties, and we should endeavor to
minimize those negative centers to the Service. One such
challenge is, the members of the Guard and Reserves face
multiple transitions in their deployment cycles. It's not easy
to leave your job and support your family, health insurance,
retirement benefits, seniority, and other factors important to
all of us. When the servicemember returns home, we should do
everything in our power to ease that transition.
I, especially, am very pleased with you, Madam Chair, in
that you and I have visited several States where they have had
solid programs to smooth the transition from combat to civilian
life, and I'm really eager to learn about how Indiana meets
that responsibility. I'm also very pleased that you've invited
several wives to testify, because, without their strong
support, we would probably have to rethink how we structure our
Armed Forces.
Finally, I want to thank each of those here who wear or
have worn the uniform for their service. And I believe we owe a
special recognition to the spouses, who pay the bills, raise
the children, fix the appliances and the car, and take care of
the myriad of things that keep a family intact while the
servicemember is deployed. My dad was in the Air Force for 20
years, and I know how tough it is when mom or dad is away for
extended periods of time. So, a special thanks to the family.
And, with that, I turn it over to you, Madam Chair.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Boozman appears on
p. 53.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Boozman.
I would now like to recognize the distinguished gentleman
from Indiana, Mr. Donnelly, for any opening remarks he may
have.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOE DONNELLY
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
The first thing I'd like to say is how grateful we are to
you and to Ranking Member Boozman for being here, being with
all us to hear the concerns and the ideas of everyone in
Indiana. We know how exceptional the servicemen and women from
Arkansas and South Dakota are, and we have great gratitude to
them, as well.
Also, I would just like to mention--and I know General
Umbarger was with the family yesterday--we lost a young man on
May 10th, Joseph Ford, the first member of the 76th Brigade,
who was killed. And it is with deep and heart-felt feeling in
all of us that we honor him here today.
And, General, thank you for being with the family
yesterday, and I know you'll be with them again in the next few
days.
To my fellow Members of the House Veterans' Affairs
Subcommittee, I want to thank all of you for coming to South
Bend, to the 2nd District of Indiana, a place that has
exceptional pride in both our country and all those who serve.
The topic of transition assistance is a timely subject around
the country and here in Indiana. As was said, we have over
4,000 young men and women from our Guard in Iraq. The members
of Company F, 151st Infantry of the Indiana National Guard,
arrived home safely just last week back to South Bend, and they
are dealing with all the transition assistance issues that any
family could have to work with.
I want to recognize the immense contributions of these
people in F Company, of those who are serving right now, and
the men and women here on the home front who are waiting for
them to come back, trying to hold things together.
As the fourth largest National Guard in the country,
Indiana is a source of tremendous pride for our State. These
men and women citizen soldiers selflessly serve to protect us
in the event of natural or manmade disasters at home and also
on the field of battle thousands of miles away. We are in both
Iraq and Afghanistan, and over 10,000 have served overseas
since September 11th.
The strain on the members and their spouses and the family
is great. Guardsmen and Reservists come home, just a few days
removed from the war zone, and must readjust, almost on the
run, to their lives as civilians. Weighing in are such
challenges as returning to work during an economic downturn,
resuming family responsibilities, seeking an education, getting
things back together on the job front. Unfortunately, many also
return home bearing physical injuries or the invisible wounds
of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). We owe a lot to our
Hoosier men and women who put their lives on the line for our
safety, but, most of all, we owe all our veterans the promise
that, when they return home, they will have the access to the
services they need to smoothly transition back to civilian
life. Transition assistance can help us to provide this.
I want to thank Sergeants Roy Saenz and Don Blosser, Mrs.
Elizabeth Williams, Mrs. Dawn McCool, and Mrs. Lori Masapollo
for being here today to give your firsthand accounts of the
transition assistance process and what your families have gone
through.
I also mentioned him before, but I want to thank Major
General Umbarger. We are fortunate to have you leading our
National Guard here in our State. I want to recognize Indiana
Department of Veterans Affairs Director, Tom Applegate, for his
testimony today, and to thank him for the work he does on
behalf of the veterans.
Finally, I want to recognize all the VSOs who are here. You
are the lifeline for all our veterans throughout the
Congressional District. I want to thank the representatives of
the Departments of Veterans Affairs, Labor, and Defense for
being here today, and we look forward to all the testimony. You
have given your heart and soul to this country, you have
continued on afterward, and we want to thank you for your
efforts, and we want to make sure that we're treating our
veterans the right way.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Donnelly.
I would like to thank all of the panelists who will be
testifying before the Subcommittee today.
For all of you in the audience, this is a formal hearing of
the Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity.
We've had a chance to visit with the witnesses ahead of time,
to review their testimony, to invite them formally to be on our
schedule of witnesses today. The questions that Mr. Boozman,
Mr. Donnelly and myself will pose will be directed to the
witnesses.
We are more than happy to visit with others in attendance
for any questions you may have of us or others that have joined
us as witnesses following today's hearing. Unlike more informal
settings, today is a formal hearing of the Veterans Affairs'
Committee, and we look forward to hearing from our scheduled
witnesses. Their written testimony will be made a matter of
hearing record, and they will be summarizing their testimony so
that we have time for questions for each of our four panels
today.
Let me welcome our first panel, Major General Martin
Umbarger, Indiana Adjutant General; Major Cathy Van Bree, with
Indiana National Guard Family Programs; and Mr. Roger Peterman,
with Indiana National Guard Transition Assistance.
Again, I would like to remind all of you, our witnesses,
that your entire written statements will be entered for the
hearing record. I think that our lights here will be working,
correct? Each of you will be recognized for 5 minutes. When it
gets down to the yellow, that's your signal to try to
summarize, if you can. I'm usually not too hard when the 5
minutes are up, but, again, we do have four panels, and we want
to make sure that there's plenty of time for questions. If you
could just monitor that and try to wrap up within 5 minutes,
we'd appreciate it.
General Umbarger, we're going to begin with you. Thank you,
again, for your service here in the State of Indiana, the great
partnership that I know you have with so many fellow adjutant
generals across the country, and for your service on behalf of
the men and women that you represent here in Indiana. You are
now recognized for 5 minutes, General.
STATEMENTS OF MAJOR GENERAL R. MARTIN UMBARGER, ADJUTANT
GENERAL OF INDIANA, JOINT FORCES HEADQUARTERS, INDIANA NATIONAL
GUARD; MAJOR CATHY VAN BREE, DIRECTOR OF FAMILY PROGRAMS, JOINT
FORCES HEADQUARTERS, INDIANA NATIONAL GUARD; AND COLONEL ROGER
D. PETERMAN, TRANSITION ASSISTANCE ADVISOR, INDIANA NATIONAL
GUARD
STATEMENT OF MAJOR GENERAL MARTIN UMBARGER
Major General Umbarger. Well, thank you, Madam Chair--
Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin, Congressman Boozman, my good friend
Congressman Donnelly. Thanks for your support for the National
Guard and all the soldiers of Indiana. Other Members on the
Subcommittee, distinguished guests of the audience--I see a lot
of veterans sitting behind me--God bless you. Thank you for the
service to the country that you've given to us.
It's a great opportunity for me speak on the issues
regarding the care, treatment and benefits of our soldiers,
airmen and families. Soldiers and airmen of the Indiana
National Guard continue to answer the call on behalf of our
Nation and the State of Indiana. As you know, the National
Guard is a dual-missioned organization. We have a State mission
in support of local first responders in their time of need,
responding to manmade and natural disasters of our State. Our
other mission is the Federal mission of reinforcing the Army
and the Air Force in their missions all over the world.
Since 9/11, I think you must agree, our great soldiers and
airmen have done this important mission, and they've done it in
spades. We currently have over 14,500 soldiers and airmen
assigned to the Indiana National Guard, and we're extremely
proud and boast of being the fourth largest Army National Guard
in the Nation. We are presently at 106 percent of our
authorized strength, and, over the past 3 years, Indiana has
ranked in the top five States in the Nation in recruiting and
retention. We are present--each of the past 3 years, the
Nation's top recruiter has come from our ranks.
Over 14,000 soldiers and airmen have been deployed to fight
against the Global War on Terror. Presently, we have 4,133
Indiana Guardsmen, both Army and Air, deployed to multiple
sites worldwide, doing a variety of missions. No State has more
deployed than Indiana, at this time.
The accomplishments of our brave soldiers and airmen are
many, but the stresses of the multiple deployments have taken a
toll on our force and caused many adjustments to be made by my
Joint Force Headquarters' Indiana staff to support them during
the pre-deployment, deployment and post-deployment phases.
Prior to 9/11, what used to be a normal baseline of events,
insufficient staffs of maybe one deep assisted with providing
benefits to soldiers, airmen, and families. Today, in order to
provide care of our soldiers, airmen, and their families is
sweeping changes, administrative procedures, changes to the
authorizations have been made.
Prior to 9/11, the staffing of the Indiana Guard was either
one or two deep or non-existent concerning veterans' services
to servicemembers and their families. Since 9/11, and the
multiple deployment of our Hoosier Guardsmen, we have created a
new directorate on my Joint Force staff--Indiana staff. The
directorate is called my ``Civil Military Affairs
Directorate.'' We are one of the only few States which have
caused--created this J9 Directorate to support servicemembers,
their families, and employers during pre-deployment,
deployment, and post-deployment.
I gave you a handout of that. It kind of shows you,
normally, this would be conducted by our personnel. They have
personnel for so many needs, and our personnel on pay and
awards and whatnot, and we felt the need to put these key areas
under a--one directorate. And you see the different programs. I
show the circle. They're all, in fact, to assist the soldier.
It's Family Programs, Veterans Assistance--Veterans Transition
Assistance, which I have Roger here, who works for me, and
Cathy on the Family Programs. Our Ceremonial Unit. We give
honors to those that have given the ultimate. Our Chaplain's a
very important part of a key component when we have an issue
with the family. Our band will--ultimately, everybody wants our
band, and we love our band for going away and coming home, but
that, too, is linked to those wonderful occasions when linked
back to the family, and our Command Historian are all linked to
that.
Several other changes in the staffing priority were also
made to assist the servicemember through innovative techniques
and hard decisions. The Indiana National Guard Relief Fund was
established to assist families that incur economic difficulties
during deployment. This 501(c)(3) fund was established as a
result of many Hoosiers and organizations wanting to contribute
financial assistance in many, many ways to our soldiers and our
families. The fund assists families during times of economic
difficulties as a result of their deployment.
What I had was many officers would tell the Guard's story,
and we'd talk to people who'd say, ``What can we do, General?
Tell me.'' And we'd get calls from a lady who gives us $20, all
the way to Lily Endowment, who has given us over $750,000, and
they don't even want me to talk about it. But this is the way
we get money in that we can use for issues of families of which
we have no means or no way to help them. So I'm very, very
proud of that program.
We also have the Stay-Behind Title 10 Officers and Non-
Commissioned Officers that are each authorized at each Armory
Headquarters. These professional soldiers are very important to
the continuity and support to the servicemember during the pre-
deployment, deployment, and post-deployment phases. As an
example--and it would be very much like there is in the 39th
out of Arkansas--we have 17 Title 10 soldiers, combined with
military technicians, that man our 28 armories that were
vacated by the--by the Brigade going off.
Initially, in the early stages after 9/11, when the unit
was deployed, everybody went. There was nobody staying home.
And our Armory and the Department of Defense said, ``See if you
can't keep a certain number on Title 10 status and stay home to
work with and assist with the families,'' and we want to thank
you for that. It's--that's a very good thing.
Our number one asset in the Indiana National Guard always
has been and will continue to be our people, our soldiers, and
our airmen. All the weapon systems, vehicles, and military
equipment are absolutely essential to our mission, but nothing
is more important than our servicemembers and their families.
During these demanding times to provide professional military
units for Federal missions in support of our Nation, and
provide support for Homeland Security missions, we must have
instituted many initiatives to provide support to the
servicemember. In many cases, we have re-assigned personnel in
order to provide the proper support, if you will, taking it out
of hide. However, recently, I am very pleased to say that we
have received additional funding and authorizations which
enables me to provide this much-needed support to our soldiers
and airmen.
One program, the Community-Based Health Care program,
CBHCO, is a great program assisting our wounded warriors. In
the past, once our soldiers returned, they were quickly
demobilized off Title 10, which was bad for our soldiers and
their families. The Army CBHCO program allows our wounded
warriors to remain on Title 10 close to or at home, work at a
military facility while their medical issues are being
resolved. The sustainment of this program and others to assist
the servicemember is an absolute must. With the exception of
the Veterans Transition Assistance Officer, Roger Peterman,
which requires at least one more advisor, we are now staffed at
a sufficient level to provide the proper support, but I am
concerned that these resources may some day be pulled from us.
This would be a huge mistake. As we have learned the hard way
as a Nation over the years, caring for our wounded and our
veterans must continue long after the conflict ends.
I will--I thank you, key Members of Congress, for providing
the funding programs for such as the Yellow Ribbon
Reintegration program. Programs such as this that care for our
soldiers and families prior to deployment, during the
deployment, and long after their return is critical to their
proper reintegration back into their civilian careers. As a
Nation, we have come a long way in taking care of those that
are serving our country. I thank all of you for your support
you have given to our heroes that have volunteered to serve
their State and country. I thank you for the privilege and
opportunity to be with you today. I am very proud to wear the
uniform and serve in the ranks of these great young men and
women, the few who are serving for the benefit of the many of
our Nation.
Madam Chairman, this concludes my testimony.
[The prepared statement of Major General Umbarger appears
on p. 53.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, General.
Major Van Bree, you are recognized.
STATEMENT OF MAJOR CATHY VAN BREE
Major Van Bree. Madam Chairwoman and Members of the
Subcommittee, thank you for this opportunity to speak to our
soldiers and their family members concerning issues surrounding
those.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Could you move your microphone a
little closer to you, please?
Major Van Bree. Due to the large number of our
servicemembers deploying recently, the Department of Defense,
the Office of Secretary of Defense, and the State of Indiana
have all taken notice that the families of our servicemembers
need support and assistance. To that end, resources have been
delivered, resulting in increased staff and resources in
childcare and youth programming, family assistance, family
readiness, mental health, and resource and referral through the
Military OneSource, through Military Family Life consultants,
and other agencies that have stepped up to this challenge.
Indiana National Guard soldiers and airmen are now
experiencing the largest deployment, as Major General Umbarger
stated earlier. You will find some detailed information in the
supplement I provided entitled ``Family Programming
Capabilities.''
In the last 8 months, the Indiana National Guard Family
Programs staff has grown from a staff of six to now 32 full-
time personnel in order to better respond to the needs of the
personnel--to the personnel and to their families. This staff
serves all servicemembers and their families within Indiana, to
include the National Guard, Reserves, active duty, and the
retirees from all branches of the military.
The resources we provide during pre-mobilization,
mobilization, and post-mobilization are completely invaluable
to our customers. These services include, but are not limited
to, TRICARE training and assistance, Family Readiness Group
planning and program implementation, youth programming,
marriage enrichment seminars through the Strongbonds program,
free mental health counseling, homecoming support, financial
classes, unit rear detachment training, National Guard Relief
Fund financial grant requests, as well as a myriad of other
services that you'll find on slide six of that supplement.
Financial issues are the number one topic we assist
families with when they are facing and/or returning deployment.
We assist families with the financial issues through those
services that we now have. The Family Assistance Specialist,
the Family Readiness Support Assistant, our Military Family
Life Consultant, and also our Military OneSource that have just
newly been delivered to family programs.
It is critical that we continue on with the funding of
these programs in the future years. Our families now trust
these services, they now rely on these services, and to take
them away would be a huge detriment. Unfortunately, most of
these new programs are only funded for 12 to 36 months. We
serve as a combat multiplier on the battlefield, as we are able
to focus on the families while Combatant Commanders can now
focus on their mission. Further, we are a retention tool that
far outweighs any cost.
The transition process is not over once the servicemember
returns from mobilization. Some servicemembers take up to 12
months or longer to fully re-integrate into their family,
civilian employment, and/or their community. We take Indiana
citizens out of--excuse me. We take Indiana citizens out of our
State, away from their loved ones, away from their careers, and
send them into a hostile environment. We cannot expect them to
return mentally, emotionally, or physically as they departed
Indiana. Assisting the servicemembers and their families within
this transition process is essential. Some servicemembers are
now volunteering for their third and fourth deployments. The
revolving door of deployment is a strain for them, as well as
their parents, their spouses, their children, and civilian
employers, which can effectively be addressed by our programs,
Transition Assistance and Employer Support of the Guard and
Reserve.
TRICARE is a part of that transition. While the financial
benefit of TRICARE is sufficient, there are many issues within
TRICARE that we need to address. Little to no provider coverage
is available in some areas of Indiana, as many families travel
over 45 minutes to get to their primary care provider.
Referrals are cumbersome and takes weeks to months in some
instances. Mental health outpatient services are not covered
past the six free sessions initially available each calendar
year. Claims processing is slow to providers, and reimbursement
to families is slow, taking many months in some cases. Lack of
providers and lack of updated provider lists are also a key
complaint from our family members.
TRICARE is a wonderful option to our servicemembers and
their families, but has these--has some logistical constraints.
Families transition from their current TRICARE--excuse me--from
their current insurance to TRICARE, and back and forth to their
civilian insurance, up to three and four times during their
military career, and have little time to trip over the
logistical roadblocks in their way. TRICARE needs to be more
user-friendly in order to reduce the amount of stress the
families already endure.
And that concludes my testimony.
[The prepared statement of Major Van Bree appears on p.
55.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Major.
Colonel Peterman, you are now recognized.
STATEMENT OF COLONEL ROGER D. PETERMAN
Colonel Peterman. Madam Chairwoman, Members of the
Subcommittee, I appreciate this opportunity to testify before
you today in reference to the Transition Assistance Advisor
(TAA), and Employer Support of Guard and Reserve, commonly
referred to as ESGR, as it applies to the pre-mobilization,
mobilization, and post-mobilization of our Indiana soldiers.
The TAA program is primarily designed to serve the members
of the National Guard and their families. Additionally, we
proudly serve the members of all Reserve components, veterans,
and their families. The Transition--as the Transition
Assistance Advisor, I work to provide a statewide point of
contact in assisting members with access to veterans' benefits
and medical services. Services are provided at all phases of
soldier deployment in conjunction with other Indiana National
Guard directors. The TAA also provides assistance in obtaining
entitlements through the TRICARE Health System and access to
community resources.
The Transition Assistance Advisor works to build a
community partnership through the National Guard, Reserves, DoD
services, Department of Veterans Affairs, Indiana Department of
Veterans Affairs, the veterans service organizations (VSOs),
and the local communities. The TAA provides communication and
coordination between these partners. We provide education and
support to all eligible servicemembers and their families. A
very important factor of this process is raising the awareness
and the understanding of the available State and Federal VA
benefits, as it--and the other various community agencies that
can assist our servicemembers.
Help is provided to the individual servicemember, ensuring
that they are aware of the entitlement programs, access to
metal care--mental care and benefits of TRICARE. There are many
deadlines that require action, such as post-dental care.
Servicemembers and their families needing counseling are
advised where and how to get the help they need. Information is
provided on insurance, such as Servicemembers' Group Life
Insurance and Traumatic Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance.
The TAA supports the VA and the local communities in helping
develop job fairs designed to help servicemembers, veterans,
and their families to find jobs. Assistance is also provided to
our servicemembers in locating their lost DD-214s.
Transition Assistance is provided during pre-mobilization,
mobilization, and demobilization. During homecoming events,
information is made available to servicemembers and their
families in the form of VA--a form of brochures on VA benefits,
educational opportunities, re-employment rights, and other
relevant resources. At that point, the re-integration process
has started.
At 90 to 120 days, the Seamless Transition is conducted at
the local unit or at a community center. Many organizations are
brought together to ensure our soldiers receive the information
and resources needed to return to several--to civilian life.
Representatives at this event include finance, legal, VA
benefits, VA Medical Center, Department of Labor, County
Service Officers, TRICARE, Chaplain, Small Business
Administration, Secretary of State, Employer Support of the
Guard and Reserve, family programs, American Legion, the
Disabled American Veterans (DAV), Veterans of Foreign Wars
(VFW), and American Veterans (AMVETS).
The TAA program is successful because we care about
soldiers, veterans, and their families. Over 90 percent of the
TAAs are veterans or spouses of military members. Many TAAs
have worked through the disability process. They have
experienced the process and can help guide the servicemember
through it. We helped build strong partnerships and coalitions
with the VA Service Organizations, family programs, the
Department of Labor, and the Employer Support of Guard and
Reserve. Major Van Bree and I, the Family Programs Director,
work closely on a daily operational level because our work
overlaps. We are both serving as members of the Adjutant
General's staff.
Now, I'd like to talk a little bit about a volunteer
organization in which I serve as the State Chairman. Employer
Support of the Guard and Reserve. The Employer Support of the
Guard and Reserves--Reserve is a volunteer organization through
the Department of Defense.
The mission of the ESGR is to gain and maintain active
support of all public and private employers for the men and
women of the National Guard and Reserves. Additionally, this
volunteer organization provides education, consultation, and,
if necessary, informal mediation between the employer and the
employee of Guards and Reserves.
The ESGR is required to inform employers and their National
Guard and Reserve employees of their rights and
responsibilities to the Uniformed Employment and Re-Employment
Rights Act, USERRA, Title 38 of U.S. Code chapter 43. Indiana
has 16 school-trained Ombudsmen who serve to mediate the issues
between the employer and employee in the military. Currently,
Indiana also has 105 volunteers serving around the State.
In summary, the ESGR's goal is to support the American
employers who share their employees with the Department of
Defense to ensure the national security. ESGR helps employers
to understand their vital role that they play in the defense of
this country. We develop and promote culture in the American
employer and the value of military service of these employers.
Madam Chairwoman, this concludes my testimony. Thank you
for this opportunity to speak before you on behalf of the
Transition Assistance program and the ESGR. I would now
entertain your questions.
[The prepared statement of Colonel Peterman appears on p.
56.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Colonel. Thank you for your
good work.
I'd now like to recognize Mr. Boozman for the first round
of questions.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you, Madam Chair.
General, the DoD, have you visited with them about adding a
Title 10 type--Title 10 days following deployment to the
transition program? Have you--is that something that you would
like to get done, or----
Major General Umbarger. You mean for a select few, or for
the entire----
Mr. Boozman. For the entire.
Major General Umbarger. Uh, I've never addressed that. I
guess I would say----
Mr. Boozman. Is that something you'd be in favor of?
Major General Umbarger. No. I don't know that I would be
quite for that or not, because what we find, as our soldiers
come home--I mean, they're--we're citizens first and soldiers
second in the Reserve component. And we'll find, when they get
into demobilization process, most of--the majority of them want
to go home and see their families and get re-integrated back
into the workforce as soon as they possibly can.
I wouldn't mind having a limited ability for those that--
and we have some of that. We've got what's called Operation
Warrior Trainers, where we have a soldier who's come back from
a deployment, and we have two or three wanting to stay on for
12 months or 24 months to train others that are going over,
like, at Camp Atterbury, and we do this a lot. So it's just--we
have the ability to do that. I don't know that I'd want
everyone to stay on Federal service the minute they come home.
Mr. Boozman. How about the--not being able to drill post-
deployment for 90 days; would you be in favor of changing that.
Major General Umbarger. You know what? What I'm in favor
of--and I've thought about this a lot, and it differs with
Adjutant Generals, certainly. I feel like 90 days should be the
option. We will find some of our soldiers would not want to
come in. They want to be with their family, and getting back
into the system, and they don't want to come back to drill that
first 30 days. But we have found most want--they want to come
back to the friends they've been to war with. And I think it
ought to be their call for 90 days.
And then, what we talked about, that Seamless Transition,
on that third month when they come back, that's when we bring
them back and we give the awards and we have all of these
wonderful groups that are there. So they kind of get a chance
to think, hey, you know, the euphoria of getting home is kind
of over their back, getting ready to become a citizen. Hey,
maybe I can improve myself. So that's a great time for us to
have them to have this Seamless Transition program we explained
to you, and it works very, very well. But I think it should be
an option, not enforced either way; a mandatory, or you can't
come back.
Mr. Boozman. Mr. Peterman, the--are the members paid for
their TAA classes in--that they appear--that they go through
post-deployment? Are their families allowed to come? A lot of--
--
Colonel Peterman. Their families are invited and encouraged
to come. What we have found, as the General said, when our
servicemembers get home, first of all, they want to go home,
and you're standing between them and going home. So, the
process, we don't get a lot of them. We see better success at
the Seamless Transition, but, being a guy, he doesn't want to
admit that he has problems. And what we have found, that if the
spouse accompanies them, when he is asked, ``Do you have
problems or issues,'' he'll say no. And she says, ``Let me tell
you about the problems he really has.''
Also, from my ESGR experience, where we have employers that
are constantly calling us and saying, Hey. Johnny Jones went
off. He was a great employee. When he came back, he's a
different person. How do we address that? And, so,
consequently, we're working on programs to work with the
employers on the PTSD. So that's an issue that we see rising
every day.
Mr. Boozman. Major Van Bree, you're fighting the battle, it
sounds like you mentioned, in trying to get insurance and some
of the difficulties there. I know, in our area, it's always a
battle making sure that there's providers under that insurance
plan when there's nobody there to do it, you know.
I'm worried about divorce; you know, things like that. What
do we--what would you have us--what area would you like us,
really, to focus on, in the sense that the divorce problems,
things like that going on? Are these financial, or are they----
Major Van Bree. Sir, most of the issues that we have with
TRICARE is provider support. I, personally, have had to change
doctors two times--or, three times now, because previous
doctors might have not taken TRICARE, or they might have taken
it and then they decided to pull out of it because they didn't
care for the program. That seems to be consistent, I wouldn't
say 100 percent, but, obviously, at my level, I kind of get the
issues that people below me cannot resolve on their own--on
their own level.
Divorce, obviously, takes a lot of--adds to that problem, I
should say. But the biggest problem that we have is the
provider support and, you know, where to find those doctors and
where to find the list of providers in your area, because those
lists that are provided are rarely updated, and, if they are--
you know, if they are updated, they're just plain inaccurate.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you very much.
Thank you, Madam Chair.
If you would, it would really be helpful if you would just
jot down, you know, some of those things that you come across,
as far as the problems in dealings with TRICARE. And if you
would let us have that, that would be helpful.
Major Van Bree. Sure.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you. General Umbarger, The J9
Directorate. They have great programs in Arkansas and South
Dakota, as well, but that model that we use in Indiana, has
that been shown to other States, or has--have other States
inquired as to that?
Major General Umbarger. You know, just this past, I think
it was 3 months ago, we went to the Army Guard there at
Alexandria, and we presented our home State, saying what we're
doing, and this is one of the programs that we presented to
General Vaughn and his staff, and--General Vaughn's the
Director of the Army Guard--and they really, really liked it.
It's just something we created ourselves, and we felt like
we needed--really needed it, and I think there's two other
States that picked it up. We have shared it with others to
consider. It may not be the answer for everyone, but what I
found is, you know, in the Armed--Army, we have J1, personnel;
2, intelligence. So, the J1 is so involved with promotions and
awards and all the issues of mobilization and demobilization.
So, what you found was Family Programs and all these issues to
support the families and problems, it didn't raise to the
level, which it should.
That's why we set up a separate directorate, and I think
it's--I'm very proud of it. I think it is the way to do it, and
we would share it with any State that they might--if they want
a copy to show our successes with it.
Mr. Donnelly. Is there a clearinghouse, for instance, that
the 50 different Guards can go to and see best practices in
this area or that area, much like you put the components of the
J9 together.
Major General Umbarger. Not that I'm aware of. You know,
I've got to be honest. It's almost like, you know, the States
are--I mean, we're all independent States, and we kind of run
our organizations a little better. But we do share--if there is
something like this that is really successful, it's--we meet
three times a year as a body, the Adjutant Generals, and that's
where a lot of things like this are discussed.
Mr. Donnelly. And, Major Van Bree, in your testimony, you
talk about mental health visits. There are six free visits per
year. What happens after those six free visits?
Major Van Bree. Then you have to pay out of your pocket,
sir.
Mr. Donnelly. Which makes the ability to receive the mental
health assistance----
Major Van Bree. Right.
Mr. Donnelly [continuing]. Much more----
Major Van Bree. What I have right now is, I have two
military Family Life consultants who do solution-based
counseling. It is not long-term counseling. It's not medical
counseling for PTSD or anything such as that. If the family
needs long-term counseling, they would need to go through a
mental health provider, through these six free visits, and then
have to pay out of pocket for the rest, or use a supplemental
insurance if they have one.
Mr. Donnelly. Then, the other question I have for you is,
in terms of TRICARE, you know, we'll be hearing testimony about
the unavailability of it in certain areas because of doctors
not accepting it. What are your suggestions to make TRICARE
more acceptable to local physicians or to make it a program
that medical clinics want to be a part of.
Major Van Bree. Well, it does need to be enticing to them
to take TRICARE, but I can't speak to what those would be. I
don't know if it's a higher pay-off or, you know, financial
pay-off for them, or pay-out. I don't know what that would be.
I can't speak to that--to the dollars of that, or maybe just
more timeliness of paying claims, because that seems to be an
issue, too.
If I go to the doctor, and they are not getting their
reimbursement from TRICARE, of course, I'm liable because I
signed, saying that I will take--accept financial liability. So
I'll pay my whatever--$300 or whatever that case may be, until
TRICARE pays. So, either TRICARE is going to pay the doctor's
facility, or TRICARE will pay to me. And it seems that
sometimes it takes too long. It takes 4, 5, 6 months sometimes.
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. And, Colonel Peterman, in regards to
the employers, have you found, when it's the second deployment,
the third deployment, it becomes much more difficult for that
particular employer in regards to the individual.
Colonel Peterman. Absolutely. What we find, employers that
are involved with the first rotation, it's great. They're very
supportive. We have employers that are paying full salaries and
benefits to the Guardsmen and Reservists. When it comes to the
second--let's say, for the third time--and, as General Umbarger
mentioned, there are people who are on their fourth tour--
they're saying, ``Hey. When do we get a break from this thing?
You know, we keep having to replace this individual. We have to
guarantee their job,'' and, in many cases, they have to go out
and hire an additional person to come in and to fill in during
that year. And, at the end of that year, when that
servicemember comes back, then they have a decision to make.
And we find, at times, they don't want to give up the person
they just hired, even though the law says that they have to.
So there are getting to be more and more concerns and
problems with employers based on the multiple deployments.
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you.
Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Donnelly.
General, what year did you establish the J9 Directory?
Major General Umbarger. Oh, gosh. What? I'd say over a year
ago.
Major Van Bree. Yes, sir.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. To be clear, I think, Major Van Bree,
you mentioned you went from six to now 32 full-time employees.
Is this all State funding?
Major Van Bree. No. None of it.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. It's all Federal funding. Is that all
DoD and TAA?
Major Van Bree. I believe my dollars come from NGT, so
where they originate I can't really tell you, ma'am, but they
all go through our different contract companies. I have seven
other contract--excuse me--seven different contract companies
that those dollars go to to provide those services.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Okay. In providing those services, the
second panel we're going to hear from are folks who have been,
maybe, unaware of all the programs that exist. Can you describe
the outreach, either pre-deployment, during deployment, and
post-deployment, to spouses and families about the different
programs that are available through the Federal or State
agencies.
Major Van Bree. Yes. If you go to the types of support that
are provided, it spells out some of the heavy hitters. I won't
say that it's--that it is all-inclusive, but it's slide six.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Yeah. I see that. What kind of
outreach do you do?
Major Van Bree. Well, the marketing and so forth that we
do, unfortunately, we do not have the funds to pay for a
marketing person. So, what I do is, I take my Family Assistance
Specialist and I take my--all my contractors, basically, and
have them market their own programs. And, you know, it's a
double-edged sword because, while they're marketing, they're
not servicing, you know, like they should be, obviously.
They're not getting in the weeds with these people.
So, the outreach is going out through the pre-deployment
and talking with the units, talking with the family members,
conducting pre-deployment briefings, and having them--you know,
basically marketing our services to them to tell them what they
are. You know, saying, ``Hey, dude. These services are now
available to you.'' Now, these are all new within the last 8
months, so we've--I mean, we've really been hitting it hard.
And then, during deployment, obviously, we conduct outreach
calls. Every 30 days, the family member will get an outreach
call to say, you know, ``How you doing? What can we do for you
today?''
And then, after deployment, we conduct post-deployment
briefings to do the Seamless Transition and work with
Transition Assistance, ESGR, and all the other DSOs that come
in and talk to our servicemembers and their families. And we're
willing to integrate into that, as well. And for those old or
new families that are not in the deployment cycle currently, we
offer all those services and then some in focusing on financial
assistance and so forth to try--you know, to kind of intern for
TRICARE issues that they have during transition.
Major General Umbarger. Madam Congresswoman.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Yes.
Major General Umbarger. One thing that, you know, might
help us a lot is positions come as part of the supplemental
support, you know, in the Global War on Terror. The concern
that I have is that when the supplemental--and I know, as a
Nation, we'd like to see them go away, but they're not in the
base budgets of the Army or of the DoD, and I would be afraid
there would be a bill payer, as I said in my testimony, long
after, it's hopefully sometime, you know, where our soldiers
aren't being deployed. Still, the veteran issues and the
soldier issues and the family issues continue. So I'm always
asking--I'm afraid the Army--big Army or the Air Force might
use that as a bill payer for other things.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Very good point, General. I'm glad you
clarified, because that's why I wanted to know, the breakdown,
and knowing that this is primarily Federal funding, we know
it's coming through the emergency supplemental. A number of us
in Congress--and I know that Mr. Donnelly was in a press
conference at the beginning of this conference--was calling on
the Pentagon and the administration to include more of the
spending in the regular budgeting process on budget.
I can understand emergency spending in the first year or
two, maybe three, but we are well beyond emergency spending, in
my opinion, at this point. This is much easier to predict,
especially as it relates to the programs that you're
administering. They are so important to the servicemembers.
Colonel Peterman, is the outreach, that Major Van Bree
described, similar to the programs you're administering as it
relates to the followup and the outreach?
Colonel Peterman. Yes, ma'am. They overlap each other, and
I work with servicemembers and veterans well after this, any
time they have a problem or concern, whether it be navigating
VA, whether that's getting education. Sometimes it's issue, I'm
working some--with some soldiers now on purple hearts. We cover
through all stages. And it's ongoing.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. I have two more questions. I'll wrap
up quickly.
In response to Mr. Donnelly's question on the impact of the
multiple deployments on employers, are you seeing an increase
of USERRA claims for those who have been deployed more than one
time?
Colonel Peterman. I would say not at this point. They're
calling and they're saying, ``When are we going to get some
relief?`` When we saw a real spike, when the brigade was
mobilized and we had 30--3,300 soldiers that were--left their
jobs and going with the--and the cases spiked. We expect
another big avalanche when they return home, which they're due
back in December. So, in March of next year, we see the
caseload is going extremely high.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you. One last question.
General Umbarger, the housing crisis. Any sense of how many
of your servicemembers are experiencing problems? Have you been
tracking this in any of the programs that you've been
administering under your command?
Major General Umbarger. I really can't say that we've seen
a big spike in the number of issues. I mean, we have soldiers
getting into economic difficulties, but, at this time, it
hasn't been part of a deal that they've made that they cannot
handle anymore being on the other side of a loan for a home or
something.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. That's good to hear. Hopefully, the
lenders will be working closely with the families, particularly
in light of the challenges with the deployment.
Well, I thank you all for your testimony and your response
to our questions. I'd like to see if Mr. Boozman or Mr.
Donnelly have any follow-up questions at this time.
Mr. Boozman. I don't have any follow-up. I do think,
though, that the panel and you make a very good point about the
base budget and the fact that it doesn't include such stuff so
that we don't--so that we won't have to worry about some of
these things that are very, very of necessity, you know, in
going forward, taking people. You know, we've made a
commitment, to a lot of people with the war, and, for a number
of different reasons, we need to increase the budget. So I
appreciate you bringing that up. I appreciate your comments,
Madam Chair.
Mr. Donnelly. Nothing further.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Well, thank you for your continued
service to our Nation, for the protection of our Nation, and,
certainly, your service to our servicemembers here in the great
State of Indiana. Thank you.
I'd now like to invite our witnesses on our second panel up
to the witness table. Joining us on the second panel of
witnesses is Mrs. Elizabeth Williams, National Guard member and
spouse of a member of the Indiana National Guard; Mr. Roy
Saenz, a member of the Marine Reserve Company; Mrs. Dawn
McCool, spouse of a National Guard member; Mrs. Lori Masapollo,
spouse of a Reservist; and Mr. Donald Blosser, member of the
Indiana National Guard. We welcome you to the Subcommittee
Field Hearing, and we appreciate your time and your testimony.
As I mentioned prior to the first panel of witnesses, your
written statements will be made part of the hearing record in
their entirety. If you could summarize your opening statement
within 5 minutes, it will give plenty of time for follow-up
questions.
Mrs. Williams, we'll start with you. You are recognized.
STATEMENTS OF ELIZABETH L. WILLIAMS, INDIANAPOLIS, IN (INDIANA
NATIONAL GUARD MEMBER AND SPOUSE OF DEPLOYED INDIANA NATIONAL
GUARD MEMBER); ROY SAENZ, SOUTH BEND, IN (FORMER MEMBER OF THE
MARINE CORPS RESERVES); DAWN MCCOOL, NORTH LIBERTY, IN (SPOUSE
OF INDIANA NATIONAL GUARD MEMBER); LORI MASAPOLLO, NILES, MI
(SPOUSE OF ARMY RESERVIST); AND STAFF SERGEANT DONALD A.
BLOSSER, GRANGER, IN (INDIANA NATIONAL GUARD MEMBER)
STATEMENT OF ELIZABETH L. WILLIAMS
Ms. Williams. Madam Chairwoman and Members of the
Subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to be here today and
to testify on my views and experiences in regards to the
Transitional Assistance Program, and the ability of our family
to cope with re-adjustment needs and the deployment of my
spouse, Captain Christopher Williams.
My husband is scheduled to return this month for his second
year-long deployment. In 2003, he deployed for, approximately,
15 months. Then he deployed for the second time in June of
2007, and is expected to turn--return any day.
There has been significant progress in the efforts to
provide transitional assistance to the soldiers and their
families since my spouse's first deployment experience. During
his 2003 deployment, I can recall very little assistance
available to support the families of the deployed
servicemembers, outside of the Family Readiness Group and
Military OneSource. That's certainly not the case today.
There's a lot more available.
It appears as though the Family Readiness Group is often
used as the primary source of communication and information
dissemination as it pertains to families and their available
resources. Without the unit having a functioning Family
Readiness Group, the soldiers, and especially the spouses, can
often be left in the dark. I acknowledge that perhaps my
testimony is also based on the fact that I am also a
servicemember, as well as a spouse; therefore, I have the
advantage of understanding the military and how it functions,
as opposed to those spouses who may not.
My husband deployed with a small detachment, which does not
have a functioning Family Readiness Group. The little
detachments can easily fall through the cracks, from time to
time, even with the wonderful system that we have recently
established. It appears as though our system may be designed
for at least company-sized units and, when small units deploy,
similar to my husband's unit, they can easily be forgettable.
Perhaps those units could be assigned to a Family Readiness
Group which has already been established, or there could be a
secondary means of communication other than the Family
Readiness Group, used to distribute information to spouses and
family members of the deployed military members.
I have recently learned that we now have many new tools and
resources in place, such as the Family Assistance Centers and
the Family Readiness Support Assistants. We could never have
too many of these. We already have 15 Family Assistance
Centers; however, we really could use more Family Readiness
Support Assistants to ensure the family Readiness Groups are
functioning properly and the Transitional Assistance Program
benefits and resources are communicated effectively. Because
sometimes we have family members who are already stressed out.
And, so, it takes a lot of extra time. They may be overwhelmed
with the additional load that they have because their family--
because of the soldiers who are deployed.
And, so, sometimes it might be helpful to have a--they may
not be able to participate in Family Readiness Groups the way
that they would like to. So, if they're already stressed, then
for them to also head to--which is a great outreach. It's a
great outreach. It's a great way for some people to really be
able to get involved and that, but there may be some family
members who aren't able to--and, also, who aren't located
geographically within a--you know, a close area to where it
makes sense for, you know, them. Even though our Family--we--
our--they offer great opportunities to be able to video
conference and that type of thing.
But, yeah. Maybe just putting more Family Assistance
Centers, like a stable organization that can be there, even
when the Family Readiness Groups, perhaps, are not able to
function in the way that they would like, or when there are
small detachments, maybe it could help to cover those.
But, Madam Chairwoman, this concludes my prepared
testimony, and I'd be pleased to answer any questions you or
your Members of the Subcommittee might have.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Williams appears on p. 57.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you very much.
Mr. Saenz, you're now recognized.
STATEMENT OF ROY SAENZ
Mr. Saenz. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman and Members of the
Subcommittee, for this opportunity to speak with you about my
transition. My name's Sergeant Roy Saenz. I served in the
United States Marine Corps Reserves for 8 years, from August
1997 to August of 2005. While I was in the Reserves, I was
activated twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
My first deployment was with Engineer Company B here in
South Bend. Prior to leaving to our theater of operations and
when we were returning, we went through a series of debriefings
in Kuwait. This series was approximately 3 days' worth of
classes that we had. The debriefing I remember the most was the
medical brief. We were given a questionnaire, asking about any
issues we may have. Two things stood out; one, quote, If we had
any issues, we would be placed on medical hold in Camp
Pendleton until they were resolved, end quote; and, two, quote,
We're not telling you not to put any issues on the
questionnaire; just that you would be on medical hold, quote.
This meant that we would not be able to return home with
our unit. Meanwhile, we were already aware of plans that were
being made for our reunion back home in South Bend. Friends and
family had been glued to the newspapers, following our every
move, because we had an embedded reporter with us. So, at both
ends of the phone lines, everyone wanted to be reunited, not
stuck in California.
When we arrived in California, at Camp Pendleton, many
units were returning there. So there was a very tight and quick
schedule to get us through our briefs. We again went through a
medical brief. This time, however, we waited in line and met
with the doctor for a quick and very basic evaluation. If we
brought anything up, they told us, ``You can stay. We will do a
full evaluation, but you will have to wait until next week.''
Again, this meant that we would not be able to return home with
our unit. Myself, I was in a unique position, where my mother
and younger brother, who live in Arizona, had already flown to
South Bend to meet us. So, the incentive to report anything,
even minor, was trumped by the desire to reunite with family
and friends.
Upon arriving in South Bend, we received 3 days of leave.
After that, we had a variety of classes over the course of the
next week. Representatives from the Marine Corps League,
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, and American
Legion came with the intent of mostly increasing membership;
however, through their comments, we did hear, ``Make sure you
keep a copy of your selective reenlistment bonus (SRB) and
medical records, and take your DD-214 to the county recorder's
office.''
My return from my second deployment, which was with Bridge
Company Bravo from Folsom, Pennsylvania, was very much the
same; however, upon returning, this time through Camp Lejeune,
they informed us that we would not be held in Camp Lejeune;
that we would be fixed once upon returning to our home unit.
This time, as an attachment, I was then to spend 3 days with
the unit in Folsom, Pennsylvania, and then be returned to my
unit in South Bend.
I have a couple of issues that I would like to bring to the
Subcommittee's attention. The first one is that the educational
process and opportunities that are available to servicemembers
while on active duty, there's a lot of downtime while you are
in Iraq and the opportunity to take classes. And, upon
returning, while I was on medical hold, there was opportunity
to take continuing education classes for college. This
information was not revealed to me until June of 2005, which
was 23 days prior to me coming off of active duty.
The programs that were made available and the information
was very inconsistent at that point in time, with things such
as the REAP program, Reserve Education and Assistance Program.
And the 2 years active--continuous active duty buy-in--it is
Active Duty Reserve GI Bill. And there's a lot of information
about that at that time that we weren't aware--made aware of
due to the local unit levels not having the information readily
available.
The next thing that I would like to bring up to the
Subcommittee is the filing of a claim process. Being in a
unique position, where I fell off of contract at the end of
my--coming off of active duty, whereas previously mentioned,
the 90 days of hold for optional drilling, I chose not to do.
But when coming off, I immediately filed for my VA Service
claim. The process took about 8 months for the initial
decision. Post to that, I continued to receive treatments for
PTSD at a local VA, which is a local clinic here in South Bend.
Eventually, I went to the Work One force--I'm sorry, Work
One office, which is the unemployment office here in St. Joseph
County. At that point, I happened to stumble across a sign that
said, ``Are you a veteran? Have you talked to a VA
representative?'' Fortunately, I spoke with the representative.
He informed me about the Vocational Rehabilitation Programs
Coordinator in Fort Wayne, Indiana. So I met with him, and he
was very thorough and very informative. I, later on, had
medical issues that I--from injuries that I received in Iraq,
which landed me in the hospital in May of 2007.
As of May of 2008, the VA is still declining to pay this
bill. It is during this process and during the compensation and
pension pro--examination that I realized that there was a
miscommunication and very limited communication between the VA
benefits compensation and pension and the VA medical side.
The last point that I would like to also illustrate is the
PTSD factor. One of my Marines called me about a week--after a
month we came--from when we came back. Because we were attached
to a different unit in Folsom, Pennsylvania, the commanding
officer at the local level here's response was, ``He's Folsom's
problem, not ours.'' Unfortunately, this Marine was later on
discharged Other Than Honorably. These--this Marine, who served
honorably, reached out to the unit, and we failed him due to a
system that was not prepared for handling the PTSD of Reserve
Marines--or Marines, and, by command, was not willing or
prepared to handle the mixed issues with units.
My recommendation to this Subcommittee is as follows:
Evaluate Reserve troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for
PTSD related-issues at 45, 90-day and one-year mark. These
evaluations should be done whether the servicemember is still
on active duty, active reserves, individual ready reserves, or
off of contract.
The VA--the second recommendation is, the VA Medical and
Benefits Departments develop a more efficient communication
system to allow for a faster and smoother process of claims by
veterans.
Third is, currently, there are no efficient programs post-
service that inform veterans of programs and assistance
resources in their local regions. Many veterans get frustrated
and give up on the system.
Fourth, better inform Reserve servicemembers, while still
under contract, of programs available while on active duty,
better inform them of programs available post-service using
available resources, such as VA service representatives, other
local veterans' representatives, including but not limited to
unemployment agencies.
Fifth would be establish a way for troops to deal with
Administration problems that occur after they separate from
service, such as unresolved pay issues.
And my last recommendation would be--which is probably the
most important, at this point, for when the troops go to
veteran status--is to re-evaluate what services can be offered
at the local level. Many veterans do not have the flexibility
of schedule nor the means to travel long distances to receive
assistance.
My experience in 2007 was, I made eight trips to Fort
Wayne, which was over 2\1/2\ hours; two trips to Marion, over
2\1/2\ hours; and six trips to Indianapolis, over 3 hours one
way, to receive assistance through the VA system.
That concludes my testimony. Thank you.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Saenz appears on p. 57.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you very much.
Ms. McCool, thank you for being here. You are now
recognized.
STATEMENT OF DAWN McCOOL
Ms. McCool. Thank you, Subcommittee Chairwoman Sandlin,
Congressman Boozman and Congressman Donnelly. I really
appreciate the opportunity to share my experience today. My
husband is currently a member of F Company 151st infantry. He
was deployed in 2003 to Afghanistan for 15 months. His unit was
deployed again in 2007 to Iraq, and Jim stayed back as the Rear
Detachment Commander.
The main source of the assistance when he was deployed was
the Family Readiness Group. Unfortunately, it was not up and
running, you know, as we had hoped. It was--mainly consisted of
three women. We did try to involve a lot more family members,
but it was very low. It just--the support was not there.
Colonel Warrick did try to help us, you know, get it going. We
had planned a big family day at Culver Military Academy. Had a
humongous turnout for that. And we had also planned one for the
zoo, so we got a call list of all the guys that were currently
deployed. Had a lot of people respond by saying, yes, they
would be there, and we had maybe 20. So it was a very tough
experience, but it's nice to hear that there are more--you
know, more resources out there than what I was aware of at the
time that he was deployed.
Okay. The one resource that was provided on a broad scale
for the Family Readiness Group was a conference they held at
Scott Field, and that was just information on making the Family
Readiness Group stronger, things that we could implement to
help build up the--you know, the success for the Family
Readiness Group. It also--but it--you know, it did not mention
the fact, you know, anything abut the transition for the--when
the guys came home. We were just kind of in the dark.
My husband returned to the U.S. in July of 2005, and he
came home in August of 2005. Once we found out that they were
coming home, there was a whole new, you know, set of emotions
that set in. It was just trying to, you know, reintegrate him
into the family. Our three children--you know, it was great to
have dad home, but, you know, it was just--it was a big--it was
a struggle.
He was--when he got home, he got to stay home without
returning to his full-time job for Shindler Elevator for 5
months, so that was, you know, a time for us to get to know
each other again. And I, you know, currently work for AM
General, where we build the military Humvees, and it is--they
were very, very supportive. Anything, you know, I needed. And I
definitely, you know, want to say thank you to them.
And I think that concludes my testimony.
[The prepared statement of Ms. McCool appears on p. 60.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you.
Ms. Masapollo--am I pronouncing that correctly?
Ms. Masapollo. Masapollo; yes.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you for being here, as well. You
are now recognized.
STATEMENT OF LORI MASAPOLLO
Ms. Masapollo. Okay. And thank you, Madam Chairwoman
Sandlin, Congressman Boozman, and Congressman Donnelly. And
thank you for the invitation to be here today. I appreciate it.
Can you hear me okay?
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Can you pull that a little bit closer?
Thanks.
Ms. Masapollo. I'm rarely quiet.
I am Lori Masapollo. My husband is Lieutenant Gary
Masapollo. He's with the U.S. Army Reserves, and he has been a
commissioned officer for 22 years, and, as we speak, he is
currently at Fort Benning, out-processing from the fourth full-
term deployment that he has had since 9/11. We're no stranger
to deployments. Unfortunately, I am a stranger to most of the
Transition Assistance Programs that I've heard mentioned here
today. And I would think that probably a lot of that has to do
with the fact that, like Ms. Williams testified, my husband
does not deploy with a full regiment behind him and take off
from a structured environment. He's usually gone--going in
small groups, sometimes just on his own, as he did on this one,
and that resource of having Family Readiness Groups and a
community of like-minded people who are also deploying with
him, and their families left behind, doesn't exist for us. And,
so, we tend to fall through the cracks on a lot of these
programs.
But I wanted to testify today, he's been gone 41 of the
last 79 months, and, actually, I think that was conservative,
in that I think it's more like 42 or 43 of the last 79 months.
And that has certainly left issues with our family. And while
he's getting ready to retire when he comes home from this, I
would like to address some programs that we would have seen to
be beneficial to us over the course of his service and,
certainly, what we are concerned about is out there existing
and made aware to younger Reservists that are currently serving
and/or do Reserves.
As Gary comes off this deployment, he needs to find a job,
and that is his primary concern right now, and a great deal of
stress to him. He currently--or, before deployment, in the past
several years, he was a contracted Army employee who taught
Military Science and International Law classes at the
University of Notre Dame for the Fighting Irish Battalion. He
had to give up that contract when he took his last deployment
so they could fill his position. So he's coming home
unemployed.
He's 45 years old, and that's the first time he's been in
that situation. He is very nervous. So--and I think he's facing
a lot of the same stress situations that most veterans do. If
you've spent most of your life in military service and you're
coming home to a job market like this one, he's worried. How do
you find a new employer that's not going to see his 25 years in
the military and look at what he's done and not see that as
intimidating or think, good grief. This guy must be too
regimented, you know, to work well in the civilian work force.
That is a major concern for him.
And I think if we would have--you know, what we're doing to
combat that has been entirely on our own. We are reaching out
to fellow servicemembers who have already transitioned. We are
seeking out third-party Web sites. We're doing everything we
can to try to update his resume and help craft it in such a way
that he is seen as an asset, which I believe him to be.
So, if the military does offer any kind of resume crafting
assistance, job placement, some of the support where you are
partnering employers who have interest in military personnel,
or would be, you know, amenable to that sort of thing, we've
never been offered that. In fact, I can tell you that, right
now, at Fort Benning, what he got handed was, ``If you got any
questions, try this Web site,'' stamped him, and sent him on,
you know.
If he's unable to find work, his education will probably
need to be brushed up or rede--you know, recenter him to
different employment skills that will make him employable
somewhere else. If there is anything out there, he does not
know when I'm speaking with him, and he has never been given
any information about what education assistance is available to
him now, and GI Bill would not apply. He doesn't know what's
out there. But that sort of thing would be very helpful,
because we're going to have to come up with something when he
comes home.
When he comes off active duty and goes to find employment,
healthcare coverage is a major concern for us. Gary and I have
five children. One of our sons has since deployed with the Air
Force, but the other four depend on us for healthcare. And I
will echo that finding TRICARE providers in this area is very
difficult. Keeping one for any length of time is practically
impossible. If they are involved with the program, they
frequently get out.
I'm also very concerned that Gary's going to come home with
more stress than on previous deployments, because he is
unemployed, and that--it can lead, possibly, to some more
psychological issues than what he's had in the past. We do miss
him very much when he's gone, but when he comes back here,
there's a large period of re-adjustment to bring him back into
the family, to make him feel like he is contributing, and he
has concerns there.
Again, during out-processing at Fort Benning, they simply
told him, ``Go to a VA Hospital. Find your VA Hospital. If
you've got issues, go there,'' or, as you indicated, ``If you
want us to do a full work-up on you here and discuss it, you'll
be held.'' And it's kind of the issue that it's almost a
threatening circumstance. He certainly doesn't care to spend
any more time at Fort Benning, Georgia, than he needs to. He
wants to come home to his family, and I would think that that's
like most Reservists coming home; they want to get on with
their lives. They're not interested in being held up. But our
closest VA Hospital is hours away and not really a viable
option, and he does have issues.
I mean, mentioned in my comments, Gary, when he was
drilling, as the regular Army has downsized, these Reservists
are being asked to more frequently augment troops and go back
in to do multiple deployments. He's 90 miles away from drill,
in Homewood, Illinois, or Gary, Indiana. Those people have
never reached out to me. This last time he deployed as an
individual augmentee, he went with a pool and left 308 to take
this last assignment, which means he's really off everybody's
radar, and there is nobody following up with us to make sure
that we have the resources we need to cope pre-, post-, or
during deployment.
So I think that anybody who takes on a Reservist's role
right now is really a wonderful patriot, because there's not
really a lot of perks involved with this job right now. When
they leave--you know, when you're gone as often as they are,
he's coming home to rusty skill sets for business. You know,
there's a lot that the rest of the world continued to learn and
grow and do that he is behind on when he comes back to the
corporate world. He has lost promotions, small 401K nest eggs,
because he hasn't been home to contribute, and, except for this
latest tour, he had to maintain two households.
MacDill Air Force Base has somehow condemned on-base
housing. They put him out into a private sector apartment, a
furnished apartment, at $3800 a month. When you do that,
combined with renter's insurance, food, and waiting to get
reimbursed, sometimes 2 to 3 months later, while you're also
maintaining your home expenses here for us, that's a lot of
financial burden to place on someone when they're away. While
we had the resources to deal with that, I think there's a lot
of young Reservists that do not, and that's a financial burden
they should not be made to cope with.
That's over time. My apologies, but thank you for allowing
my testimony today.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Masapollo appears on p. 62.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Of course. We appreciate it very much.
Mr. Blosser, you are now recognized.
STATEMENT OF STAFF SERGEANT DONALD A. BLOSSER
Sergeant Blosser. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman and
Subcommittee Members, for the opportunity to speak with you
about the transition experience. My name is Staff Sergeant
Donald A. Blosser, for the Indiana National Guard.
I served for 12 years in active duty, from 1980 to 1992,
and I was stationed at Fort Lewis, Washington, when I was sent
to Arizona Army--or, National Guard, the unit for deployment to
what, at the time, was Operation Desert Shield. We were motor
transfer operators. We deployed from Arizona to Saudi Arabia in
January 1991, returned August 1991. The call-up went
sufficiently, although One Stop and other services provided was
not around at the time or was in the process of going in. We
did not see the Veterans Affairs representatives at the time.
We had general medical exams, as is preliminary exercise.
On the return, we did not stay in Arizona for a prolonged time,
and returned back to Fort Lewis. Upon return to Fort Lewis, we
were placed in units that we would like to go to, because Fort
Lewis was drawing down, and our unit was gone when we came
back.
We did meet with representatives and agencies on active
duty that mostly were medical and some VA. I spent from
September 2005 to present with the Indiana National Guard. I
went back to my civilian job, driving trucks, from 1992 to
2005. One large lure for joining the National Guard was to
finish what I had started, to retire and to serve my country.
And to receive my benefits. And this was--I was not receiving
it due to a youthful oversight.
I was put on active duty status in July of 2006 and
deployed to the region on October 2000--correction, October 7,
2006. I deployed with the National Guard unit out of Camp
Shelby, Mississippi, and there were 55 soldiers from the State
of Indiana who joined the unit of Mississippi, in order to
bring it to 299 strong. There were soldiers from Kentucky,
Tennessee, Michigan, as well, to reach its number. This was
difficult at times because it brought together different
mentalities from different parts of the country.
When I returned on September 25th, 2007, from Iraq, I
demobilized at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. I spent 3 days out-
processing. They broke the days down into areas--groups; one
was personnel, one was meeting representatives, one getting
information on the One Stop, the Veterans Administrative
benefits, and TRICARE. They gave us stations to visit, and the
whole unit had to pass through. We were issued a check-sheet
that had to be initialled by each representative to assure that
we covered each station. The medical area had nine substations.
The benefits station had five organizations represented. Once
you went to final station, you were cleared.
The State of Indiana had representatives at Camp Shelby to
assist us, and any equipment, weapons to get transferred back
over, and to help us make reservations for travel back to the
State of Indiana. The representatives from Indiana were
professional and represented--the Indiana National Guard was a
constant, from the advance before deployment, when a lieutenant
from the Joint Force headquarters in Indianapolis and I were
the advance party. We met with the commander and made
arrangements and were joined by three to four other Indiana
representatives who helped transfer the equipment.
Upon return, there were Indiana representatives there to
take care of our equipment. We had no worries as far as who was
being transferred from one State to the next. All Indiana
representatives were very sharp and smooth during the process.
The Kentucky representatives were sharp, as well, and they had
72 soldiers that had deployed. Michigan and Tennessee did not
have representatives, but we're talking groups of about 12
people.
There was a true, individual concern for each soldier
passing through. We were told that we would be going through
this again in about 90 days at the State level. Around the
middle of January, we did this at the 38th Infantry Division
Headquarters Armory in Indianapolis. I completed medical
questionnaires, saw a doctor, and met with representatives from
the Veterans Administration, One Stop, the VFW, American
Legion, and other support groups, including TRICARE. That event
went fairly well. I'm comparing this from when I came back from
Desert Storm.
I had been deployed with Dayton Freight Line for 9 years. I
put them in an award for the State--from the State, because I
told them I was leaving to serve. They wished me well, told me
to be safe, and took care of my family while I was overseas. I
did not ask questions. All they asked for was document orders,
showing that I was being deployed. While I was gone, they
checked on my family twice, they also checked and gave her
profit sharing checks, and gave her any assistance that she
needed.
When I came back, they gave me a pro-rated profit sharing
check, welcomed me back with open arms, and . . . I have heard
of the horror stories of some civilian jobs out there that
don't receive the servicemembers as well as I received with my
civilian job.
To end on a positive note, overall, I must say that the
soldier is better informed and taken care of. In my situation,
the TRICARE needs to see improvement. And this concludes my
statement.
[The prepared statement of Sergeant Blosser appears on p.
63.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you very much, Mr. Blosser.
I thank all of our witnesses. I would now like to recognize
Mr. Donnelly for the first round of questions.
Mr. Donnelly. The first question I have is for Ms. McCool
and Ms. Williams. Has there been any--in the Family Readiness
Group, is there any standard process that is used, or is it
different from time to time?
Ms. Williams. Sir, I believe there is a standard process--
standard operating process, but--for procedures, but if the
unit--if it's not stood up, you know, in the beginning, or if
they don't--coming into it in the beginning, then they never--
those, you know, processes and procedures are never employed.
Mr. Donnelly. So it's pretty easy to get lost between the
cracks in this process.
Ms. Williams. From the smaller detachments, I think so,
sir. Our--I mean, our Family Readiness Program is outstanding.
We have a wonderful State that does a great job, great
leadership. They support their soldiers and families, and, if
you were to call, at any point in time, to the Family Programs
office and say, hey, I need help with this, I believe they
would do everything they could to help. I think it's just when
a lot of information--if information is disseminated through
the Family Readiness Group, if you don't have a functioning
Family Readiness Group, then that's where you can have an
issue. But if you have another conduit, such as the Family
Assistance Centers, and they could disseminate the information,
I think that would be really helpful as a backup.
Mr. Donnelly. And the next thing is just a comment I have.
We heard from Sergeant Saenz about the long distances you had
to travel for hospital-type care.
Mr. Saenz. Yes, sir.
Mr. Donnelly. And we heard from Ms. Masapollo about the
long distances, and we've been talking about that in this area
for a significant amount of time, and we're fortunate to have
folks from the VA here. And, to you, I say, this is the hole in
the yard. And what I mean by that is, from this spot, in this
building, your closest VA hospital is 2\1/2\ hours away. It's 3
hours to Indy, it's 2\1/2\ hours to Fort Wayne, 2\1/2\ hours to
Battle Creek, 3 hours to Chicago, and we are the place that has
been forgotten.
And it is not just--I bring this up because we have seen,
firsthand today, the effect that this has on our community;
that this is not just a desire to fill up a hospital building
or fill up medical care, but it is directly impacting the lives
of the people who serve our community, and we have truly been
the area that has been forgotten about. At least from what I
see. Has your experience been the same?
Ms. Masapollo. Yes. Yes, it has.
Mr. Donnelly. And, Ms. Masapollo, in regards to your
husband's employment at Notre Dame, is he appointed and placed
there by the Army, or is that an appointment by military aid?
Ms. Masapollo. The Army placed him there, and then he
contracted through Comtech----
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. So----
Ms. Masapollo [continuing]. For that position, but he did
have to relinquish it when he was deployed so they could fill
it. Otherwise, they would not have a professor for the
program--for the ROTC program.
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. And I guess my question, then, in
followup is, is there not something else to guarantee him when
he's not deployed to serve his country?
Ms. Masapollo. No.
Mr. Donnelly. Then I think Mr. Peterman can talk to you
later about that, as to how that adds up. Maybe you could
assist me on that.
Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you, Madam Chair.
Again, thank all of you for serving in your different ways,
and the--I do think it's important that we get this smaller
group thing fixed in the sense that, hopefully, as the war
winds down, I think the deployments that we have in the future,
hopefully, at some point fairly soon, will be of that nature.
You know, it's one thing when the whole brigade leaves, and
things, and you've got all of that support, but the other
situation, as we--again, as this thing winds down, which it
will do, at some point, that we have the ability to outreach to
those smaller groups.
I thank you, Madam Chair. We appreciate you bringing that
to our attention.
Hopefully, we can get you fixed up, Mr. Saenz, with some of
your problems. I don't know what Mr. Donnelly--you know, Joe,
myself, and the Chairlady will see if we can get some of these
things addressed a little bit more timely. The bureaucracy is
so frustrating and I know that that is frustrating. And, so, we
appreciate your reminding us of that. I guess, sadly, I have
constituents like you that remind me, it seems like, on a daily
basis, as they run into the bureaucracy, also. But we do
appreciate your service. And, again, thank you very much for
your very, very helpful testimony.
Thank you.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Boozman. I fully agree
on this issue regarding the smaller detachments, and I think
that we will be able to follow-up with a later panel here
today. When we get back to Washington to address this issue, we
will have some creative ideas that maybe some States are coming
up with. I think, certainly, we're seeing it with the National
Guard, with some folks that are volunteering for additional
deployments, and then maybe, in certain terms, are being
brought to full strength with units of prior deployment.
I'm particularly concerned about our Reserve members,
because even in South Dakota, we know exactly who to go to when
we want to find out what's going on with different Guardsmen
from the State; where they are in-country, what are the dates
of demobilization. We can get everything, but we don't always
have the same kind of contact, the go-to contacts--for all of
these different Reserve units in the State. When they're
getting attached to larger units it's very difficult.
I think, Ms. Masapollo, you've highlighted, from the family
perspective, just how difficult this is, particularly when
there are multiple deployments.
I do want to spend a little bit of time with my questions
for you, Mr. Saenz, as it relates to the education benefits. I
appreciate the recommendation you've made to the Subcommittee
today as it relates to followup in identifying and re-assessing
for PTSD. I think that's a very important recommendation, that
we have spoken with our colleague from the full Committee and
our Health Subcommittee in our districts and other colleagues'
districts, and in especially looking at re-evaluating services
at the local levels to assist folks.
Let's talk about this education benefits issue that you
experienced. Can you explain that in just a little bit more
detail to me about what was available to you in-country during
the deployment, and the fact that you weren't aware of some of
the benefits until 23 days right before de-activation.
Sergeant, just cover that again for me.
Mr. Saenz. The--most Marine Reserves, when they join on,
there's the Collect Reserve GI Bill that is part of the initial
contract right.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Which is pertaining to our Chapter
1606 Benefit.
Mr. Saenz. Yes, ma'am. What was going on when we were
coming off of deployment is, in the Administrative systems, the
units for almost all rela--all branches of military, there's
information that they have, primarily regarding educational
opportunities. For example, while you're on active duty, you
can go to college, and they basically pay for it, whether
it's--if you're stationed in a certain area for a long period
of time, you're able to go to a local university there if your
command allows it. Other folks choose online opportunities. And
those items are paid for.
A lot of times, now, while we're--our troops are deployed
to Iraq and Afghanistan, they are in a position where there's a
lot of downtime, and where they could use something of that
nature, whether it be a correspondence or an online, because
there are a lot of bases now that have the online capabilities,
so that the--they would be able to plug into those types of
things. However, that information's not getting to them.
Whether it be a unit level issue or a branch issue, the
information's just not getting to them that these are available
options for them.
The second part of that is that the REAP Program, Reserve
Educational and Assistance Program, it came out and was
approved by the House and the Senate, roughly, about two--the
end of 2004/early 2005. That program, while it was marketed
at--to us at the unit level as an opportunity to increase in
your moneys available for post-contractual service to--for
education, however, when all the dust settles, it was more of a
re-enlistment type of feature. So there's about 2 to 3 years'
worth of servicemembers who were either coming off of active
duty--or, coming off the Reserves or right during that time, or
just to, that never saw the opportunity to plug into that
resource.
There are many--on my second deployment, I volunteered, as
well, with a small unit from South Bend. There was four of us
that attached to Folsom. Again, it's a very similar situation
with a lot of these spouses here, where you're augmenting a
unit. Well, that information, again, is not necessarily sent
out to you. But what a lot of us were trying to do was
volunteer to get two consecutive years, to be able to buy into
the Active Duty GI Bill, because that was the way that we
understood it.
Well, in a lot of cases, we ran into roadblocks because the
higher-ups did not want that to happen. So we had come off of
one set of orders before going on to the next set of orders,
which would give you a gap in service so that we wouldn't have
that two consecutive years; therefore, a lot of us, during that
time period, were trying to at least accumulate 2 years of
active service because it was our impression that then we would
be able to qualify for the REAP Program. Unfortunately, we
missed out on both opportunities.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Well, I am pleased to inform you we
have taken some steps to address this. Not all, which would get
it to your particular circumstances or some of those that you
have served with. I mentioned, the National Defense
Authorization Act--and this is going to require additional
oversight from our perspective, as well as our colleagues and
Armed Services Committee. We made sure that the Chapter 1607
now can be utilized by selected Reserve members for 10 years
following separation of service, and that it's no longer 2
consecutive years but three cumulative. I believe that's right,
right?
I understand the frustration that you experienced there,
and we have had concerns. We've had a number of Subcommittee
hearings where we've asked some folks with the Federal agencies
just how the new program was being marketed, if at all.
Clearly, there have been problems, and we appreciate you
explaining, in more detail, your experience that we can take
back and continue to work to address these shortcomings in
effective administration of the new program that was designed
to reward your service, not be so difficult to access.
Before recognizing Mr. Boozman and Mr. Donnelly for any
followup questions they may have, let me pose two further quick
questions. First, Ms. McCool, you state in your written
testimony that it would be very helpful, and I think families
would benefit from some sort of compilation to have a book or a
pamphlet of the services that would be provided and available
to servicemembers, their spouse, and their families.
Have you discussed that idea with the Family Readiness
Group or with anyone in the Indiana National Guard?
Ms. McCool. Currently, you know, I've talked to my husband
about it, as he, you know, is a Rear Detachment Commander, to
try to come up with a--you know, a pamphlet or something just
so--you know, even if it's a phone number--just somebody that
the families can contact to let them know, I'm having this
problem, you know, and try to get them the help that they need,
because there is help out there, and they just have to be able
to find and access those types of services.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Right.
Then a question for Ms. Williams, Ms. McCool, and Ms.
Masapollo. We are aware that we are going to get a little tight
on time, so just a yes or no response. Were you, at any time
during your spouse's deployment, contacted by anyone from the
Department of Defense, the VA, or the Department of Labor?
Ms. McCool. No.
Ms. Williams. No.
Ms. Masapollo. No.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Ms. Williams.
Ms. Williams. No.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. No? Okay. Ms. McCool, no. We do not
want to leave you out, Mr. Blosser, so let me just say I'm glad
that your transition sounds like it was smoother than many.
Sergeant Blosser. Yes.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. It sounds like it's because of, sort
of, the learning as we go and the great work of the Indiana
National Guard in the present, in partnership with other
agencies during the demobilization. I'm very supportive of
this. Thank you for being here and for sharing your thoughts
and insights.
Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Donnelly. The only other thing I'd like to say is to
thank Dayton Freight Line for being such an exceptional
employer. They really serve as a model to everyone.
Sergeant Blosser. Thank you.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Boozman. No, I--that's exactly what I was going to say.
I've heard very much, we do appreciate it.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you.
Thank you all for being here and for testifying. We know,
in service to one's country, in addition to your own members of
your family, there is a team effort here, and we certainly
appreciate the insights that you have offered and the
information that, again, we can take back to Washington. We
look forward to following up with these various agencies. Thank
you very much.
We are now going to ask that our witnesses on Panel Three
please come forward. Participating in the third panel is Mr.
Stephen Short, Department Adjutant, Indiana, the American
Legion; and Mr. Gary Whitehead, Service Officer for the Elkhart
County Veterans of Indiana.
Because we have to wrap up the field hearing no later than
3:45, I am going to have to ask you to do everything possible
to keep your summary of your written statements to 5 minutes so
that we have plenty of time for questions and have enough time
for our fourth panel, where we have the representatives from
our Federal agency joining us today.
We very much appreciate Mr. Short and Mr. Whitehead for
your service and your continuing service for our Nation's
veterans and to veterans here in the 2nd Congressional District
of Indiana. Thank you.
Mr. Short, we will start with you. You are recognized for 5
minutes.
STATEMENTS OF STEPHEN W. SHORT, DEPARTMENT ADJUTANT, AMERICAN
LEGION, DEPARTMENT OF INDIANA; AND GARY M. WHITEHEAD, ELKHART
COUNTY VETERANS SERVICE OFFICER, ELKHART, IN
STATEMENT OF STEPHEN W. SHORT
Mr. Short. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman, Members of the
Subcommittee. Thank you for the great opportunity to present
testimony today. Since you all have a copy of my complete
testimony, I will try to highlight the concerns and
recommendations of the American Legion with regard to the
enhanced Transition Assistance for members of the National
Guard and Reserves.
After the fall of the Soviet Union but prior to September
11th, 2001, the Bush and Clinton administrations began a
sizeable drawdown of our active military force structure,
placing an increasingly large burden on the Reserve components
of the United States military to fight our Nation's war. During
that time, Congress enacted Public Law 101-510, which
authorized the creation of the Transition Assistance Program,
or TAP, to assist service--servicemembers from several areas
back into the civilian work force. The Disabled Transition
Assistance Program, or DTAP, was created by the Department of
Labor and the Department of Veterans Affairs to assist not only
disabled military servicemembers but their families back into
civilian life.
As I previously mentioned, our Reserve forces have become
an enormous portion in total force structure. With continued
DoD reliance on the 1.8 million Reserve and National Guard
troops, it becomes imperative that we continue to attract and
retain well-qualified individuals. Without providing proper
incentives for these individuals to enlist and re-enlist, our
military will be hard-pressed to accomplish our Global War on
Terror mission. Currently, many National Guard and Reserve
troops are returning from the war in Iraq and Afghanistan only
to encounter problems with their Federal and civilian
employers. They face the prospect of no job, loss of promotion
in benefits, and job promotions. Federal law, as we know, is
supposed to protect these servicemembers from losing jobs,
benefits, and promotions, but, sadly, in many cases, we've been
unable to accomplish this because of the lengthy deployment and
multiple deployments.
The American Legion believes that these servicemembers
would greatly benefit from a stronger and enhanced service
provided by the Transition Assistance Program, particularly
with regard to the employment, mental health, and small
business components. On the other side of the coin, along with
multiple deployments of Reservists, it's had a catastrophic
effect on employers, as well. Currently, the Small Business
Administration offers military Reservists the Economic Injury
Disaster Loans to businesses that can provide evidence that
their activated Reservist is critical to the success of the
company.
The American Legion recommends that the Small Business
Administration should be part of any Reservist or National
Guard TAP briefings, and act in an advising capacity to veteran
businessowners and to assist them with resources and
information to help lessen the impact of activation on their
bottom line.
Another issue of great concern to the American Legion is
the availability and use of the Montgomery GI Bill, educational
funds for Guard and Reserve members. Currently, the Montgomery
GI Bill pays an average Reservist $317 a month compared to his
active-duty counterpart, who is paid $1101 a month. In
addition, rising tuition costs force many Reservists to rely on
commercial loans to supplement the Montgomery GI Bill. When
Reservists are forced to withdraw from school due to the
military obligation, the commercial loan must still be paid
regardless of whether the student finishes the course, adding
to the cumulated debt of that servicemember. The American
Legion recommends that TAP briefings include an education
representative to provide National Guard and Reserve members
this kind of information so they can avoid undue financial
hardship.
Currently, under the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act,
this exists for servicemembers with regard to actions
terminating leases, evictions, foreclosures, default
judgements, as well as providing for lower interest rates on
loans, credit cards, and protecting against lapses or
terminations of insurance policies. With increased reliance on
Guard and Reserve units, creditors residing in remote areas
outside the traditional military towns are not aware of this
act. As a result, servicemembers are experiencing financial
difficulties and, in some cases, being financially ruined
because this piece of legislation is unknown. If the Transition
Assistance Program was made mandatory, much of this confusion
could be avoided. Currently, the Navy Transition Assistance
Program reps discuss personal financial planning during
workshops and seminars, but the Reserve components need to have
this issue addressed during Transition Assistance, as well.
The simple fact is that the normal percentage of Reserve
component troops are separating from Service without the
benefit of Transition Assistance Programs. Currently, Reserve
component pilot programs for TAP are underway in Oregon,
Michigan, and Minnesota. The Department of Defense and
Department of Labor reports indicate that, in Oregon, 40
percent of the attending servicemembers were looking for
employment. The American Legion recognizes the value of this
program and recommends that it become mandatory for all
transitioning servicemembers. We recommend that this task be
accomplished in the following ways: Incorporate TAP into the
unit's training schedule months before activation. Have the TAP
briefing during the unit's organization date of a holiday/
family day that would include spouses. Activate the unit for a
weekend, either before or after deployment. Make TAP briefings
available to units at their mob station, prior to moving into
theater, and spend an extra day or two at the demob site to
include TAP.
In closing, the American Legion re-affirms its strong
support of the Transition Assistance Program, but also
encourages the Department of Defense to require that all
separating and active duty servicemembers, including those in
the Reserves and the National Guard, be given an opportunity to
participate in TAP training not more than 180 days prior to
their separation or retirement from the Armed Forces, and
followup counselors not later than 180 days after separation
from active duty. We also support efforts to mandate that all
servicemembers be given the opportunity to participate in TAP
and DTAP.
Madam Chairwoman, that concludes my remarks, and I'll be
happy to answer questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Short appears on p. 65.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Short.
Mr. Whitehead, you are recognized.
STATEMENT OF GARY M. WHITEHEAD
Mr. Whitehead. Good afternoon, Madam Chairwoman and
Subcommittee Members. It is a tremendous honor to be here
today. I have been a County Service Officer for 22 years, after
I retired from the Navy July 1986. I'm one of 91 Service
Officers in the State of Indiana. Each county, besides Marion
County, has a County Service Officer.
When Indiana Guardsmen and Reservists return home, they're
required to complete at least 3 days of classes covering
everything from seeing a Chaplain to having a briefing from
one--from an individual from Work Force One concerning their
re-employment rights.
Even today, when I interview a World War II veteran, Korea,
or Vietnam veteran, I ask them if their disabilities were
documented in their service medical record, and they advise me
that they were not because they would have had to stay on
active duty several more days, and they wanted to get home to
their loved ones. This is still happening today, but at least
they are given the opportunity and the knowledge that there are
people out in their communities that will be--provide
assistance for them. Like the old saying, ``You can lead a
horse to water, but you can't make them drink,'' sometimes our
veterans are just like that; they think getting medical care or
compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs is
welfare.
I have spoken with Paul Curtice, the VFW State Service
Officer, and he advised me of all of the information that he
and the DAV Service Officers put out during their presentation
to our returning veterans. Here in Indiana, several months
after the Guardsmen and Reservists have settled back into the
community, they are given a program which was referred to
earlier as the Seamless Program, which is run by the
Department--Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs. And the
Department of Veterans Affairs, they work together in this
program, and they conduct the training with the units, keeping
them informed about their benefits.
Personally, I feel that the Department of Veterans Affairs
and the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs and the military
Department of Indiana is doing something--is doing everything
that they can to make sure our soldiers are informed of their
benefits and rights as Veterans. It is the veteran's
responsibility to follow up with their claims for compensation
and healthcare. They are--I like refer to it as a toolbox, and
they're given a lot of tools, and they have to use--be able to
use these tools. The only thing that bothers my fellow Service
Officers--and there a number of them here in the audience--and
myself is that, when these training sessions are scheduled in
our communities, we are not invited to participate since we are
not a part of Department of Veterans Affairs, or the DOV.
Overall, the Transition Assistance Program provided to our
troops is very good, and all of us, working together, can make
our veterans get re-adjusted back with their families and their
communities.
Thank you very much for listening to me, and this completes
my testimony. God bless America.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Whitehead appears on p. 68.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Whitehead.
Mr. Short, I'm a proud member of the American Legion
Auxiliary. It's always nice to----
Mr. Short. Same for me, ma'am.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin [continuing]. See members of the
American Legion from other States. Me, too. I appreciate your
insights and your mention of the pilot program for Reservists
in Oregon, in Michigan, and Minnesota. It's something important
for our Subcommittee to follow up, to determine the
effectiveness of those pilot programs. Again, they may have
been established as we were working our way through all of
these deployments and de-activations, and we have had some
people fall through the cracks. I'd be very interested in
getting both of your perspectives on what we have heard from
the prior panel on the smaller detachments, and Ms. Masapollo
and her husband's situation, in particular, as it relates to
transition assistance.
Mr. Whitehead, I agree in terms of the toolbox that
veterans have and the responsibility to use those tools, but
we've got to make sure they're getting the toolbox or that, you
know, once they get the toolbox, they know everything that is
in it. I mean, a lot is going on at the time that they are
transitioned back into civilian life.
Any perspective you would like to share on this issue with
the smaller detachments?
Mr. Short. Yes, ma'am. My unit, the Army Reserve Unit, was
deployed in this war, as well, in 2003, but I was with a
battalion-sized unit. We also had soldiers who were, both prior
to our deployment and after our deployment, cross-leveled or
augmented, as the term was used here earlier. And the--our
Family Readiness Group was outstanding at the battalion level,
but as was testified before, these folks that are cross-
leveled--and we had a lot of--probably 25 troops from other
States from the Army Reserve sent to us to accomplish our
mission, and I don't know of any contact that their units--
they--of course, they had no Family Readiness Group. This was
early in the war, 2003.
And, so, our--my experience was probably limited to the
fact that we were not--we hadn't learned this process yet. But
I had troops that were cross-leveled, too, from Illinois and
Wisconsin, that, you know, basically never heard from their
folks, and I didn't find out if their families had been.
But the Family Readiness Group is critical to maintaining
contact and information flow to the families. And I heard one--
one of the testimonies referred to the fact that their Family
Readiness Group, their FRG, was very small and not very
effective, and that can be a killer, as far as keeping the
folks well-informed.
My battalion commander and I would do video conferences
with our FRG leaders about every other month and let them know
specific issues that were going on. So I'd say that's probably
very true, because the--in Reserve programs, you got so many
units that are missing people in specific job skills--
engineers, medics; that type of thing--so you get a lot of
cross-leveling, and these folks are from, usually, other
States. And our Family Readiness Groups would try to look after
them, but a lot of that fell through the cracks, too, ma'am.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you.
Mr. Whitehead.
Mr. Whitehead. Yes, ma'am. What we see, as the County
Veteran Service Officers, we actually don't see that veteran
until he's home and he's completed everything. Here in Indiana,
the Director of Veterans Affairs for the State made us, as
County Service Officers, go through a one-day training to
provide assistance and be able to do it with what General
Umbarger had mentioned earlier, the military relief fund. And,
so, we have been trained to assist the families with those
applications for any financial assistance and things.
Other than that, we, as County Service Officers, we're at
the bottom. You know, we don't really see them, and we don't--
unless that family member comes into our office, we don't know
who's on active duty, we don't know about the dependents, and
we wish we were a part of the wheel, but, here again, we
aren't. And, like Mr. Short said, here, in one hand, you have
the Reserves. In the other hand, you have the National Guard.
The National Guard goes through this TAP program through Camp
Atterbury here in Indiana. I don't know what the Reserves are
doing. I know the active-duty people are required to go
through, you know, a three-day TAP class, but the Reserves----
Mr. Short. I have--if I can comment, I have to say that the
State of Indiana, with regard to my troops, was fantastic. I
received letters from the Department of Veterans Affairs from
Indiana. And this was early. I came home in June of 2004, and I
wasn't in a position where I needed any educational assistance
or employment assistance, but I would get a constant barrage of
letters from the Department of Veterans Affairs, wanting--
offering the opportunity to attend groups. And I've got to say
the State of Indiana, not just the National Guard, but the
entire structure of the Department of Veterans Affairs has done
a wonderful job, in my opinion.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you.
Mr. Whitehead. The only thing I'd like to add is, I had
spoken with a couple gentlemen that had been through TAP, and
actually, it was Mr. Curtice of the VFW, and I asked if we
somehow, the County Service Officers, could get a list of those
National Guardsmen that are coming home from their units into
our communities. Besides getting the letter from the State of
Indiana, welcoming them home, we could also get them a letter
from my County Service Office. Here I am. My hours.
I never wear a coat and tie to work. It's just, sometimes
that makes--I feel that it makes that veteran feel
uncomfortable. Here's another government person telling me what
to do. And if I can come down to his level and be able to get
that trust in him, I'm gonna make it to second base with him.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you both.
Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you, Mr. Whitehead. You guys do a great
job. You really do, and we really appreciate your hard work.
Tell me the type of people that we're talking about today,
as they come and visit with you, what are the major problems
that you're seeing as a result of maybe not getting enough
information, you know, through the TAP process or all these
other things that we try and do. What are they asking you to
help them with, primarily?
Mr. Whitehead. Basically, getting into the healthcare
system. And then I--we--I work very close with the Fort Wayne
VA, Veterans closest hospital. And I can--once I get the
medical application, look at the DD-214 to make sure they have
their in-country--you know, their awards and things, making
sure that their dental has been completed prior to discharge, I
fax that medical application to Fort Wayne. Within a week, they
get a phone call from our South Bend Clinic, getting them in.
We also--the vets--Fort Wayne has a Vet Center, and they go
to my office once a week to do counseling so my veterans don't
have to travel to Fort Wayne. And we have worked--I have a--an
extra office that they're able to counsel veterans without
having to make--and they also counsel wives and veterans
together.
We worked with the court systems to be able to use the Vet
Center counselors for those veterans that have gotten DUIs and
things. Instead of paying through the court system, we're able
to use the VA and the Vet Centers at no cost to the veteran.
Mr. Boozman. Very good. Thank you.
Mr. Whitehead. Yes, sir.
Mr. Boozman. Mr. Short, again, we appreciate all that you
guys do. We on the Veterans' Affairs Committee really do the
best we can to tip the sphere and try and push these things
forward, but we couldn't do that without the veterans and
reservists' organizations. And, so, we appreciate all that you
do.
And I don't mean this bad or in any disrespect to anybody,
but I'm so glad that you're a fairly young guy. One of the--I
say that in the sense that one of the great problems that we
have is that the people--the greatest generation, is getting
older, and it's very difficult as they come to Washington and
we look at them. You know, that trip is getting much, much
harder for them to make every year. And we see people like
this, people at home, you know--one of the neat things about
this job is, you get to meet a lot of different people that you
normally wouldn't meet. And some of my dearest friends have
been that generation that are involved in the VSOs, but we're
losing them, you know. And I get--seems like I get an E-mail
once a week of somebody that's done so much, and yet, they're
starting to pass away.
So it's good that--I think that's a great challenge that
you have and I have in encouraging the VSOs, if we're gonna
continue to push things forward in the future, you know, it's--
we just got to do that. So, thank you for your hard work.
Appreciate all you do.
Mr. Short. You're welcome, sir.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Donnelly. I want to thank Mr. Whitehead for your
service and to all the VSOs who are in the audience here. We
have a number of them from around the district. And, also, to
all of the State. You're the frontline, and we sure appreciate
it.
And, Mr. Short, I wanted to ask you--I want to thank you
for your service, too, especially to your young look, as well,
but also in regards to the employment situation. Has that
become more difficult, as we go on here year after year?
Mr. Short. Yes, sir. It seems like, in the recent year and-
a-half that's just past, it's getting more difficult. And I
think that's one of the reasons the education benefit is so
critical; because that gives the returning veteran an option to
redo themselves in terms of their skill sets and their
knowledge. And, as long as we can continue to improve the
education benefits, that may be a little bit of a hedge against
the employment issue, too.
Mr. Donnelly. I mean, we--it's a--it's hard on the
employers----
Mr. Short. Oh, absolutely.
Mr. Donnelly [continuing]. As you well know.
Mr. Short. Yes.
Mr. Donnelly. It's--is it the kind of thing where the
employers are now saying, We just--it's making it tough to keep
our business going.
Mr. Short. I haven't heard that, specifically, from
employers, because it's been my experience the employers we
talk to appear to be very patriotic and want to be as
supportive as they can. And the gentleman that was from ESGR
here before, I know his--he gets a lot more calls on that than
I do, but I get an occasional call. And so far in Indiana, at
least, I've been very happy with the cooperation employers are
showing to our servicemen.
Mr. Donnelly. And that's really important, because, when
the young man or woman comes home, they need to work,
obviously.
Mr. Short. It can--they--as was testified by one of the
spouses, the re-adjustment can be huge, regardless of whether
that person has PTSD issues or not. And adding that employment
issue to the mix can make it a really difficult family
situation.
I should mention, too, that the various VSOs--and I can't
speak specifically for the Legion, but I know the VFW and the
AMVETS and DAV, we have programs. Our program is called
Temporary Financial Assistance, which we give a lot of
referrals to. And the American Legion, as well as the other
service organizations, will provide, if there are minor
children at home in a veteran's family, regardless of when that
veteran serves, and they've got a problem with a rent payment
or a medical bill or a utility bill, an issue like that, they
can apply to us, and we give one-time grants to these folks to
try to keep them afloat. And I know these other organizations
have similar programs. So we put our money where our mouth is,
too.
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you very much, and, again, Gary. You
really are--on behalf of all the VSOs, and to all of you, we
say thank you very much.
Mr. Whitehead. Just one--I'd just like to make a quick
comment. Mr. Donnelly, you spoke earlier about, here in
Michiana being a no-man's land. It's true. We have over 72,000
veterans in this area, and, for us to get any care at all, it's
Battle Creek, you know, Chicago, Crown Point, Fort Wayne,
Marion, and Indianapolis. And we're just here in limbo, and
it's hard to tell a World War II veteran, 80 years old, he's
going to have to drive to Fort Wayne to get a hearing test. And
it's getting tough.
And the one--the other thing I think I--we're dealing with
is our younger men that are coming back, and women that are
coming back, from the war. None of their friends can
communicate with what they've experienced, you know, and
they're having a hard--that's what they're having--a hard time
adjusting. Their friends don't know what they went through in
Afghanistan, killing people. You know, it's just Vietnam again,
you know, but this time it's with their friends, and they turn
to drinking and they turn to drugs. And I'm seeing a lot of
that.
Mr. Short. Madam Chairwoman, one other point. This war has
seen a--in my unit, we've experienced this. We're seeing a huge
increase in the amount of female soldiers that are going into
critical jobs that it's not like it was even during Vietnam,
and I think everyone needs to stay aware of the fact that, for
years, you were basically dealing with the issues of male
veterans, but we also have a huge percentage of female veterans
who are coming back who may have different issues. That needs
to be monitored, as well.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you for mentioning that. I, and
a number of my colleagues, introduced a bill specifically to
address women veterans' healthcare needs. I know that a number
of our medical centers around the country have undertaken their
own initiatives, but recognize the need to address various
access barriers to access for women veterans for healthcare,
looking at pilot programs to provide childcare during the time
that they're receiving treatments, especially if they're
suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. I appreciate
your comment in that regard, for not only healthcare but other
transition needs for female veterans.
I thank you both for your ongoing service to our Nation's
veterans, for the insights you've offered today, and for your
very hard work in addition to your own service to our country.
Thank you for being here today.
Mr. Short. Thank you.
Mr. Whitehead. Thank you.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. We appreciate it very much.
We now invite our final panel today to the witness table.
Participating in our fourth panel is Mr. John McWilliam, Deputy
Assistant Secretary for the Veterans' Employment and Training
Service, U.S. Department of Labor. He is accompanied by Ms.
Heather Higgins, the Acting Regional Administrator for
Veterans' Employment and Training Service, U.S. Department of
Labor; Ms. Jane Burke, Principal Director for the Military
Community and Family Policy, U.S. Department of Defense; and
Mr. James Whitson, the Director, Eastern Area, U.S. Department
of Veterans Affairs who is accompanied by Dennis Kuewa, the
Director of Indianapolis Regional Office, U.S. Department of
Veterans Affairs.
Thank you all for being here, and for listening to the
prior testimony from the prior three panels, as well. Again, in
the interest of time, if you can summarize your opening
statement in 5 minutes, your entire written statement will be
entered for the hearing record.
Mr. McWilliam. it's good to see you. Good to see you here
in South Bend. I generally see you in Washington before the
Subcommittee. You are now recognized.
STATEMENTS OF JOHN M. McWILLIAM, DEPUTY ASSISTANT SECRETARY,
VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
LABOR; ACCOMPANIED BY HEATHER HIGGINS, ACTING REGIONAL
ADMINISTRATOR FOR, VETERANS' EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING SERVICE,
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR; JANE BURKE, PRINCIPAL DIRECTOR,
MILITARY COMMUNITY AND FAMILY POLICY, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
DEFENSE; AND JAMES A. WHITSON, DIRECTOR, EASTERN AREA, VETERANS
BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS;
ACCOMPANIED BY DENNIS KUEWA, DIRECTOR, INDIANAPOLIS REGIONAL
OFFICE, VETERANS BENEFITS ADMINISTRATION, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
VETERANS AFFAIRS
STATEMENT OF JOHN M. McWILLIAM
Mr. McWilliam. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman, Ranking Member
Boozman, and Congressman Donnelly. Thank you for the
opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee to discuss the
U.S. Department of Labor's role in providing transition
services to our returning servicemembers.
The mission of the Veterans' Employment and Training
Service is to provide veterans and transitioning servicemembers
with the resources and services to succeed in the 21st century
work force. One of the most important ways we do that is to
provide employment workshops to separating servicemembers. The
role of Labor is to provide employment workshops during the TAP
session. Our mission is to provide those employment workshops
at every location requested by the military. We are proud of
our partnership with the Departments of Veterans Affairs and
Homeland Security in this important mission.
Since 1991, when Labor began providing employment
workshops, over 1 million separating and retiring
servicemembers and their spouses have attended the classes.
This past fiscal year, over 146,000 servicemembers and spouses
attended over 4,700 employment workshops at 215 military
installations in the United States and overseas.
Let me address the National Guard and Reserve component.
What we have found, as has been mentioned by several of the
witnesses earlier, is that the demobilization process is rapid,
leaving little time for the full 2\1/2\ day employment
workshop. Our State directors work directly with Guard and
Reserve commanders to make special arrangements, following
demobilization, to present a modified TAP employment workshop.
We developed this modified workshop in 2007. It is not a
separate program, but it is modular so that the Guards and
Reserve commanders can pick, which modules they think are
important.
Since 2001, we have provided transition services to over
146,000 National Guard and Reservists. These services range in
size from just mobilization/demobilization briefings to the
full-scale TAP employment workshop. They have been provided to
43 States and the District of Columbia. Here in Indiana, we are
proud to have participated in the Hoosier Veterans Seamless
Transition Program.
In the past 14 months, DoL has attended over 58
mobilization events in Indiana, servicing over 5,300
servicemembers. A Local Veterans' Employment Representative is
stationed full time at Camp Atterbury to participate in
demobilization briefings and to provide employment workshops.
In closing, I thank you for allowing me to address you
today on this important issue. Ms. Higgins and I will be
pleased to address any questions you may have.
[The prepared statement of Mr. McWilliam appears on p. 69.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you very much.
Ms. Burke, you are welcome to the Subcommittee. You are now
recognized.
STATEMENT OF JANE BURKE
Ms. Burke. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman and distinguished
Members of the Subcommittee.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Can you pull that just a little bit
closer to you.
Ms. Burke. It's been very helpful for us today to hear the
testimonies earlier, and we'll certainly take those back with
us. I can't think of a single thing that was addressed that we
don't have many Committees and commissions working with the
Department of Labor and the Veterans Administration. We're
really working hard to try to solve some of these problems, so
I want to assure you that we are on board and we are listening.
We're pleased--I'd like to mention, too, that Gerry Carlon,
the Director of our newly established Joint Family Assistance
Center in Washington, and the Joint Family Assistance Center is
augmenting staff at the Indiana National Guard, trying to focus
on the development of family support. We're also working with
the governors of Arkansas and the Governors of Indiana, and we
are moving forward to try and pull all 50 States into this
consortium of additional resources.
In this project, we are combining State and DoD resources
in an effort to increase outreach to the Guard and Reserve
families. The first panel was exactly right; the outreach is
really a huge problem. Shortly, South Dakota is going to be
joining other States in the new outreach efforts. The purpose
of the new Joint Family Assistance is to bring more awareness
to the benefits, and to be able to serve people on an
individual basis as much as we can. We currently have the Joint
Family Assistance in 15 States and, as I said, Indiana and
Arkansas were one of the first of the 15 States. These programs
facilitate partnerships among Federal, State and local
organizations, they build benefits and transition assistance
and outreach for the deploying units. Resources are developed
for State-by-State database for reliable around-the-clock
family assistance. So I believe that, at the end of the period,
when we get all 50 States on board, we will see some
improvement on how we connect with our troops and our families.
I want to reiterate the Department of Defense's commitment
to facilitating successful transition from military to civilian
life, along with my colleagues who are here today. One of our
paradigm--and we've heard it today. One of our new paradigms
shifts has been the recognition of financial readiness,
military and veterans' benefits, and transition assistance as
closely linked to one another. They must be addressed as a
whole. Therefore, we set up a new directorate in the last
couple of months called the Office of Personal Finance and
Transitioning, and we hope to establish a network of national
financial and transitional professionals.
This new approach will ensure that there's 24/7 global
access to educational resources and individualized financial
and transition planning resources through multiple delivery
methodologies. Building on the traditional transition program,
we launched TurboTAP last year. This is a dynamic automated
Web-base system for delivery of transition assistance
information. It allows each National Guard and Reserve member
to obtain a lifelong account and a tailored Individual
Transition Plan based on their transition needs. TurboTAP
connects them to information on the military and Veterans'
benefits. It's like the ``Google'' of all of the benefits, and
we're hoping that will give them a place to go, no matter where
they are in their lifecycle, in the military or after the
military. This is a 21st century approach to delivering
individualized information and benefits to servicemembers and
families with a just-in-time focus.
Madam Chairwoman, as we continue to expand the capabilities
of this platform, we will solicit your approval and legislative
support. In the fall of 2007, DoD TurboTAP Mobile Training
Teams began training the National Guard and Reserves upon
request. By the end of 2009, our goal is to have the TurboTAP
Global Training Teams fully integrated into deployment support,
transition assistance, and financial awareness programs in all
50 States.
I would like to mention one other very important tool, and
we're working to customize this tool on the ground with the
National Guard. It's called the Military OneSource. Today I've
heard many of the ladies here mention there was really nobody
to talk to, and no outreach. Military OneSource has been hugely
successful in our active-duty side of the house, and it's
beginning to spread into the National Guard. It's a 24/7
capability, where you can call and get a qualified, Master's-
Degree-level person who will help you problem-solve, who will
get you to the right resource. It's been very, very successful
so far, and I'm hoping that once we begin with our new outreach
to 50 States, we will have one person hired to put a Military
OneSource database together for each State.
This new State database will be customized by State; it
won't be just what's available to the Nation but what's
available in your State. And then we'll have people in this 24/
7, customer-friendly call center able to get you to those right
resources. We have high hopes that this is going to break a
little bit of the Code. Of course, it won't fix everything, but
it should be some place for families of deployed servicemembers
to reach out for assistance.
The Military OneSource will be especially beneficial to
those who are geographically separated, and we are trying to
take the best of what we do for the active duty and see how we
can accommodate that to the National Guard and Reserves.
Madam Chairwoman, on behalf of the men and women in the
military today, I thank you and the Members of the Subcommittee
for your steadfast support during these demanding times. Thank
you.
[The prepared statement of Ms. Burke appears on p. 71.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Ms. Burke.
Mr. Whitson, nice for you to be here today. We look forward
to your testimony. You are recognized.
STATEMENT OF JAMES A. WHITSON
Mr. Whitson. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman,
Members of the Subcommittee. I appreciate the opportunity to
appear before you today to discuss the VA Transition Assistance
Program and other outreach efforts to support separating
servicemembers and their families during their transition from
military to civilian life. I am accompanied today by Mr. Dennis
Kuewa, who is the Director of our Regional Office in
Indianapolis. And also with him today is John Myers, Counseling
Psychologist, our Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment
Officer, and Dave Dezern, who is the Assistant Service Center
Manager at the Indianapolis Regional Office. So they're here
with us today, as well. And we've all been listening very
carefully to the testimony, and we are all learning today,
Madam Chairwoman, as we move through this process.
My testimony today will cover the comprehensive
transitional assistance VA provides to all servicemembers,
including members of the National Guard and Reserves, as well
as our current efforts here in Indiana to perform outreach. VA
currently conducts, in conjunction with DoD and the Department
of Labor, outreach initiatives to disseminate information to
servicemembers of our benefits and services at various stages
through the enlistment process and following up in both the
pre- and post-deployment.
Our TAP and DTAP program briefings are conducted nationwide
and overseas to prepare both retiring and separating
servicemembers for return to civilian life. These briefings are
presented to both regular active-duty servicemembers and, as I
mentioned, at both pre- and post-deployment for Reserve and
Guard members. They are generally followed by the opportunity
for a personal interview and assistance with the submission of
claim for benefits.
Last year, the VA conducted over 8,000 briefings to almost
300,000 attendees at these TAP and DTAP briefings. During the
TAP briefings, we introduce attendees to VA vocational
rehabilitation and employment programs. We also use this
opportunity to present the ``Five Tracks to Employment''
process and our online employment services Web site, which is
www.Vetsuccess.gov.
Using our Veterans Assistance at Discharge, program, VA
also sends welcome-home packages to all separated
servicemembers. The packages include a letter from the
Secretary, along with comprehensive VA benefits information. VA
and DoD jointly sponsor the Benefits Delivery at Discharge,
BDD, program. At 153 military installations, we accept
disability claims prior to discharge. We attempt to get these
claims 60 to 100 days--180 days prior to release from active
duty. There, we collect the Service treatment records, conduct
a single cooperative examination, and complete a disability
rating decision. In many cases, this is completed prior to
separation so that disability benefits can commence immediately
upon separation.
VA and DoD are also piloting a single disability evaluation
system, the DES system. This is a process where a rating
decision forms the basis for both the military Medical
Evaluation Board's process, as well as the VA disability rating
process.
With the onset of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and
Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), VA has expended our outreach
efforts to ensure that our military veterans are honored for
their service and receive VA services and benefits they have
earned. In 2003, VA began to assign permanent, full-time
representatives at all key military treatment facilities.
We have also begun hiring recovery care coordinators. These
VA employees monitor patient progress and coordinate submission
of claims for our most seriously injured OIF and OEF veterans.
Also, at our regional offices, case managers ensure that the
claims of the most seriously injured are expedited and case-
managed throughout the process. Here in Indiana, Mr. Kuewa and
his staff conduct comprehensive outreach briefings and case-
manage disability claims for seriously injured OEF/OIF
veterans. Last year, the regional office conducted over 40
briefings with over 6,000 attendees from both active Guard and
Reserve Armed Forces.
Madam Chairwoman, we are--Chairwoman, we are proud of the
VA for our continuing role in the transition of servicemembers
to civilian life. Like this Subcommittee, we look for ways to
continually improve the process, and look forward to working
with the Subcommittee and Members of Congress to do that.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today,
and I would welcome responding questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Whitson appears on p. 76.]
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Whitson.
Mr. Donnelly, you are recognized for questions.
Mr. Donnelly. Thank you, Madam Chairwoman. I know we're a
little tight on time. I just want to ask Mr. McWilliam, with
the TAP program, is it something that you think can be made
mandatory, and, if so, should it be made mandatory?
Mr. McWilliam. Mr. Donnelly, that's, of course, a decision
by the Department of Defense on whether it would be made
mandatory. Let me say, though, as a result of the Global War on
Terror Task Force, which worked about a year ago on this, the
Secretary of Defense has established a goal of 85 percent of
attendance at the employment workshops, which is, I would say,
almost everyone that needs to attend. There's a certain
percentage that are going to school or already have jobs that
probably don't need to attend. So, they set a very high mark,
they're working toward it, and I think that's almost full
attendance, sir.
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. And then, Ms. Burke, with the Military
OneSource, when will that be up and running.
Ms. Burke. It has been up and running for several years
now, but it's beginning to take off. Marketing is the issue.
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. That's what I mean. When will it be in
a position where--that the families we've seen here today will
be aware of it----
Ms. Burke. These families----
Mr. Donnelly [continuing]. And be able to do that.
Ms. Burke. I'm sorry. It's the awareness issue. It's there.
It's there for them. It's there for every National Guard and
Reserve member. It's there for every active-duty member, so
it's a matter of awareness. We have been putting commercials on
the Oprah show, advertising, because that's where spouses are
listening. Also, on the Today Show.
We are trying to get better effort advertisement there. We
also need unit help, and the unit help is coming now with the
new Joint Family Assistance Outreach.
Mr. Donnelly. Do you ever send correspondence to the
families, telling them? You know, if you have lists, send an
actual hard copy, saying, here's what we can do.
Ms. Burke. We do that on the active-duty side, but we have
not done that yet with the National Guard and Reserves.
Mr. Donnelly. Okay. That might be something to think about.
And, Mr. Whitson and Mr. Kuewa, thanks for--thank you for
your efforts for the veterans in this area. Obviously, we have
listened to you, as well as many other parts of the country,
but I think we have a very strong case for the things that have
been discussed today.
Mr. Whitson. And I will take many of the questions and
observations back to the Secretary for his review.
Mr. Donnelly. Tell him I'd love to have lunch with him.
Thank you.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Boozman. Thank you. Again, I agree with Mr. Donnelly. I
think what we all need, the TAP program is so important, and
we've had the opportunity in the years past, with the
Subcommittee, to visit, and I know that you all are working
hard to do that. We appreciate your hard work helping us in
Arkansas in a number of different ways. But it is so important,
because it really affects all this other stuff. You know, all
the testimony that we've heard, the problems that we're seeing,
many of them, came from really not knowing.
So, the more that we can shore that up, I think, the
better. And, again, I think you're working hard to do that, and
we really do appreciate your efforts. I know that it's improved
dramatically, in the last 7 years since I've been around on the
Committee. But, again, we've got to continue to do that. So I
think that, there probably should be either a mandatory or that
we should stick to the 85 percent. And I agree that 85 percent
probably doesn't take care of the people that need to be there.
But, again, if these people don't do it, they're causing
hardship for a lot of other people because they don't know. And
I know that our troops' strength is important stuff. I mean
this is very, very important that the commander is looking at
the troops' strength. You know, sometimes it's not as
important. But, again, that's better than this.
Mr. McWilliam, the lady that testified about losing her
position at Notre Dame, can you comment on that, and kind of
tell us, kind of, what you're--if you have any thoughts about
that or--it's okay. You're among friends.
Mr. McWilliam. That's right, Mr. Boozman. We were talking
about that. I gave her my contact information. She said her
husband would contact me as soon as he gets home. We need to
look into it. You cannot waive your USERRA rights for re-
employment, so we need to understand exactly what his
employment situation was before he left, and look into it. We
have very skilled investigators, and we'll get right to the
bottom of it.
Mr. Boozman. Well, I know you will. But, it does seem
like--again, I don't understand the situation, so----
Mr. McWilliam. No, sir.
Mr. Boozman [continuing]. On the surface it does seem like,
regardless of who we're dealing with here. And, perhaps, that
is something we could look into.
Mr. McWilliam. Yes, sir.
Mr. Boozman. Mr. Kuewa? Is that how you pronounce it?
Mr. Kuewa. Kuewa, sir.
Mr. Boozman. Well, that's close. I'm Boozman, so I have the
same problem.
Mr. Saenz, you know, with his deal with--could you guys,
kind of look at that and give him some advice and----
Mr. Whitson. We do have plans on linking up with him
afterward and see if we can----
Mr. Boozman. Good.
Mr. Whitson [continuing]. Be of some assistance.
Mr. Boozman. Good. I would appreciate that.
The other thing, very quickly, we've got the TAP program,
and, again, I can see a lot of improvement, but how should we
measure that improvement? Do you all have suggestions? How do
we know? I mean, what are our accountability measures that we
know that can be--that it's doing what we want it to do? What
are our measurement factors?
Ms. Burke. Well, we currently have a form, a government
form that must be signed before a servicemember leaves Service.
This form lists all of the benefits that are available, in
general terms. But that doesn't mean that they're necessarily
interested at that point. I think that's one of the problems,
is how do we get just-in-time information to them, not how do
we get them in five solid days of classes. We're working on
that with our TurboTAP program. If we can train them in a day
or two about the possibilities, then they know to go back to
this resource, they have this account for life. This is the
TurboTAP strategy.
We're thinking that that's a solid possibility for solving
some of the problems if all three of us work together to update
that information and referral.
Mr. McWilliam. I've spoken with the various directors of
the education and employment workshops. We recently had an off-
site meeting with our partners from Defense and some of our
Advisory Committee people to look at the future of TAP, and one
of the clear points that we made there was, we need to do
follow-up with people who attend TAP. Right now, we do an
immediate survey, right while they're there, on how effective
the program was. We need to do that once they've left the
Service and they're in deployment.
So we are building that into the future of TAP. We're going
to restructure the entire program and include a survey, a
followup survey, so that we can look at what was important to
the person, and what they wished we had also covered.
Mr. Boozman. Very quickly, because I don't want the
Chairwoman to be banging me with her gavel, the one thing that
I think would really help out--I enjoy, when we look at the TAP
programs, we have to visit with Family Service Support, I
think, but, also, we have to visit with, kind of, a break-out
session. What I'd really like to know is, they were very up
front about the careers that they wanted to pursue. Many of
them wanted to go into franchises and things like that.
Could you, in your questionnaire, could you--if it's not
there now--if it is there, give us the information. I mean,
that's what we're trying to do, is to facilitate through the GI
Bill this other stuff, putting veterans to work. Can you make
that part of your questionnaire as to what they want to get
into?
I know Mr. Michaud had an amendment we did the other day
with trying--with truck driving and trying to upfront this and
that. I mean, we talked about those things before, but I do
think that would be very helpful, and I think, really, it would
be good if we could match up what we're trying to do with
what--what they actually want to do.
Mr. McWilliam. Sure. And I'll talk with staff about that.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Thank you, Mr. Boozman.
I want to make sure we have enough time for any other
additional questions that Mr. Donnelly and Mr. Boozman may
have. I appreciate the hard work and I appreciate the
improvement, but there are clearly some problems here, and we
need to do a better job. Our responsibility in the Subcommittee
is to make sure you have the resources to do so. It should not
take a field hearing in South Bend, Indiana, for us to
understand that there's a particular problem with these smaller
detachments of Reservists, but there clearly is.
I'd like some perspective on what you are doing,
specifically, for folks in Mrs. Masapollo and her husband's
situation, whether they're Reserve or National Guard, with a
smaller detachments. How is it that we are not even
corresponding with them, Ms. Burke? I mean, is it just active
duty that's getting the correspondence through our Military
OneSource?
Ms. Burke. Well, the Military OneSource is given out by the
commanders; yes. And we can do that with these Reservists and
we can do it with the National Guard, and I think we're going
to step up to that.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Okay. I appreciate that, because
that's something that I think has evolved over the last couple
of years and will continue to be the case, and we have to step
up quickly.
Now, let me ask you a question on the Military OneSource
and TurboTAP. Is all of this, Ms. Burke, dependent on the base
budget?
Ms. Burke. Military OneSource is in the base budget and the
TurboTAP is in the base budget; however, we are working with
you, the Congress, to turn the broader program for 50 States
from emergency supplemental into the base budget.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Okay.
Ms. Burke. We have high hopes that that's going to happen.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Well, I think that Mr. Boozman--I
don't want to speak for the other Members of the Subcommittee,
but I think it's important for this Subcommittee to take it
upon ourselves, following this Field Hearing, to work with our
colleagues on the Armed Services Committee and Appropriations
Committee to make sure that these important programs,
especially given where we see other needs, that this moves to
the base budget, because these are the ongoing needs,
regardless of redeployment and withdrawal over the next few
years.
I think we share General Umbarger's concerns, as he
mentioned, in terms of all of the other resources that are
coming to help him in his efforts here in Indiana.
Mr. Whitson, in your written testimony, you had highlighted
that the VA and DoD's national memorandum agreement shall
establish a single cooperative examination.
Mr. Whitson. Yes, ma'am. That's the--under both the DES
program, the Disability Evaluation System, where we're using
that for the PEB/MEB process----
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Uh-huh.
Mr. Whitson [continuing]. The unit is not there, as well.
And, also under our BDD Program, Benefits Delivery at
Discharge. Now, neither of those programs apply to Guards and
Reserves.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. So, a single cooperative exam has been
established since 2004 for active duty?
Mr. Whitson. Yes, it has.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Do they exist for the National Guard
and Reserves?
Mr. Whitson. We do not, because of the mobilization
process. It has been described by so many witnesses, it happens
so quickly when they come back to stateside and go through
whether it's Atterbury or--one of the witnesses discussed
what's happening at Camp Shelby, where we have a very
comprehensive demobilization TAP briefing process. But stopping
that process and affording a single VA DoD exam has--we've not
come to a resolution on how we would do that and still allow
members to quickly get back to their families.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Has there been ongoing discussions
about what to do after demobilization?
Mr. Whitson. Well, at that demobilization TAP and DTAP
briefing, we attempt to take the application, collect all the
Service treatment records so that we have everything there, and
then, once they get back to the State, Indiana, for example,
here, the exam is scheduled immediately. But it's not a single
exam; it's a VA exam.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. But you must be concerned about some
of the testimony----
Mr. Whitson. I am.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin [continuing]. Of Mr. Saenz about the
issue of almost an intimidating discussion about being put on
medical hold if they don't bring forth the issues now versus
having an opportunity to bring those issues forward later.
Mr. Whitson. I am, Madam Chairwoman, and I--that's not the
first time I've heard it, and it is something that we're aware
of and we're looking into, cooperatively.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. This is not the first time we've heard
it, either, and, we would appreciate you keeping us apprised of
those ongoing discussions about how to best address that.
Let me ask one more question, and there may be some
questions we submit to you in writing.
For those of you joining us, sometimes it is the final
panel that gets the most questions, so we like responses, in
writing, either because we've run out of time or there's so
much we want to cover.
You heard Mrs. Williams, Mrs. McCool, and Mrs. Masapollo
when I asked them had they ever been contacted, at any time, by
VA, DoL or DoD, and they all said no. Why do you think this is?
I know that we have put forth resources, and you talked, Ms.
Burke, about what's there and there's a lot of hard work being
done. Why do you feel that these families feel there's been no
outreach? Again, is this an issue of coordination, again, with
the National Guard and Reserves, that we're making headway on,
but we still haven't fully integrated to the State, and we're
still working with the Reserve units in a way that we just
haven't gotten a handle around this problem yet?
Ms. Burke. That is a problem in the active duty, as well.
We don't always have a way to reach them. I mean, we have ways
to identify them if there's an emergency. It's an issue of
privacy and how do we get their addresses, into some sort of
system where it would not cause harm.
So we're working on it, and we think that Military
OneSource, if they can come to us, then we can say, Sign up,
and we'll send you information. If they come to us first, it
really will be a lot better way of knowing whether they want to
be contacted. Some people don't want to be contacted.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. I hear what you are saying, but I
think there is so much going on with these families that, for
them to expect that they are going to come to you first versus
this outreach and this followup that you were just describing,
too, Mr. McWilliam follow-up after someone has participated in
the Transition Assistance Program. I understand there may be
privacy concerns, but, at the same time, we need to create a
form when they're separating from Service or de-activating,
where they sign an authorization to be contacted or something.
I mean, recognizing privacy concerns, but, at the same time, I
think it is our responsibility, Federal agencies, as those of
us in Washington, to be aggressive in communicating the
benefits rather than sitting back and waiting for someone to
come to us when there's so much going on during the transition
to civilian life.
One last question, Ms. Burke. You mentioned in your
testimony that, at the request of the National Guard and
Reserve Units, the Department dispatches consultants with
financial readiness specialities. How many requests have you
received from the Guard and Reserves?
Ms. Burke. I can't give you an exact number, but almost all
of the States have requested those.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Okay. Well, that's good to know. So,
you have sent--the consultants have----
Ms. Burke. We're in the process of hiring those people. We
have 15 States hired. Is that your question?
The goal is that we're adding three people, generally, in
most States, unless they're a very small population of the
National Guard. Is that your question?
For each of these States, this new Joint Family Assistance
Program, as you've heard it in the first panel, has a childcare
person and counseling with a Military OneSource person to help
them develop their networks out there. So we have been trying
to do that in every single State.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. You have hired at least three new----
Ms. Burke. Right.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin [continuing]. Counselors for each
State.
Ms. Burke. Right. And, by the fall, we'll have the
remainder of the State accomplished. It is very aggressive,
actually.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Okay. Mr. Donnelly.
Mr. Donnelly. I have no further questions. I would just
like to thank Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin and Ranking Member
Boozman for taking their time to come to our town to hear,
which, to me, was invaluable testimony, from everybody, to
provide us with a lot more information about how to do this
better. And, so, to your staff and to you, we're really
grateful for you taking this time. Thank you very much.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Mr. Boozman.
Mr. Boozman. No. I just thank you for the hospitality. It's
a good hearing, and I appreciate it.
Ms. Herseth Sandlin. Before I wrap up, I wanted to make
one--follow up on this point, because it is bothering me, I'm
sure you can probably tell.
If we are able to work through, with the Department of
Defense, the privacy concerns, and you are able to find these
men and women and mobilize them, you should be able to find
them to inform them of their benefits.
I want to thank all of you for your statements this
afternoon. Ms. Burke, we want to work with you to make this
happen and address the issues that were raised this afternoon.
We value the insight and the expertise and the dedication of
all of those who work with our Federal agency, who work so
closely with our Committee, with Members of our Committee
staff, our Counsel, who are here, the VA, the DoD, and the
Department of Labor. It's been very good to work with them on
this Committee. We thank you for your time and your travel.
I want to thank the staff of the Subcommittee for traveling
here today, the great work that they do, working with all of us
as Members of the Committee and with our agencies and our
veterans service organizations. It is great to be here in
Indiana's 2nd District, well represented by our colleague, Mr.
Donnelly.
We thank you all for coming, and we thank all of those who
have worn the country's uniform in protection of our freedoms.
Thank you very much.
The hearing now stands adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 3:48 p.m., the Subcommittee was adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
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Prepared Statement of the Honorable Stephanie Herseth Sandlin
Chairwoman, Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
I would like to thank Ranking Member John Boozman of Arkansas for
joining us here today and Representative Joe Donnelly of Indiana's
second Congressional district for his hospitality in inviting us to
South Bend, Indiana. I look forward to building upon our strong bi-
partisan relationship so that we may provide our Nation's
servicemembers, veterans and their families the best available services
they need and deserve.
Much progress has been made in education benefits, vocational
rehabilitation services, employment programs and VA home loans
programs. However, I think everyone would agree that we must remain
vigilant to guard against any decline in benefits or customer service.
Like many of my colleagues in the Subcommittee, the state of South
Dakota has had servicemembers that have been activated in support of
operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Some of these brave men and women
have returned injured and are currently in need of healthcare and
employment services. They, like all disabled veterans from around the
country, deserve our best efforts to provide a seamless and effective
transition from military service to civilian life and the work force.
Earlier last year, this Subcommittee held its first hearing that
included the Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training
programs that are created to assist veterans with employment assistance
and protect a servicemember's employment rights. While these programs
have been proven to be very successful in other areas across the
country, today we will receive testimony from servicemembers that could
benefit from these programs but might not be aware they exist.
Like many of my colleagues here today, I had the opportunity to
meet with local government officials and veterans back in my home state
of South Dakota. During one of my meetings, I had the opportunity to
speak with the leadership staff of South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds
and the South Dakota Adjutant General (Major General Steven Doohen)
about ways to improve existing veterans programs.
I am glad that we did succeed in making progress for our Nation's
Reserve Forces. Included in the final version of the National Defense
Authorization Act of 2008, we were able to gain bipartisan support for
language that would allow mobilized members of the Reserve Forces to
use their REAP education for 10 years after they separated from the
Guard or Reserve. While this is progress in the right direction, we
must remain committed to expanding all benefits to help meet the needs
of our servicemembers.
Furthermore, our Subcommittee has been working with our Committee
Chairman Bob Filner of California to address the immediate needs of
possible foreclosure of a servicemember's home. As we will hear from a
recent Subcommittee hearing, data specific to veterans does not exist,
or is limited in scope, leaving us with an incomplete puzzle that makes
it harder for us to get a good idea of how current mortgages are
affecting our veterans. Fortunately, many of us have heard from our
returning servicemembers and veterans back home about the problems they
have encountered.
Today, thousands of veterans throughout our country deserve better,
and we must do better to ensure they are afforded the protections they
need as they adjust to life after their military service.
I am particularly interested in hearing about the issues of concern
from servicemembers, veterans and their dependents, and the actions the
administration is taking to resolve the concerns of employment,
rehabilitation, housing and education.
I look forward to working with Ranking Member Boozman,
Representative Joe Donnelly and other Members of this Subcommittee to
ensure that our most critically wounded servicemembers are provided
both proper training to complete their mission and the proper benefits
to help them succeed in life after the military.
Prepared Statement of Hon. John Boozman, Ranking Republican Member,
Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity
Good afternoon Madame Chairwoman, Members of the Subcommittee and
all of our witnesses and guests.
It's great to be here in the Hoosier State. I looked up the word
``Hoosier'' and found several possible origins in early state history
ranging from answering a knock on the door with, ``Who's here?'' to
finding a severed ear following a barroom brawl and asking, ``Who's ear
is this?''
Regardless of the origin of the term Hoosier, the citizens of
Indiana have always been well-represented in the defense of America
from the Indiana territorial militia formed in 1801 to the 196,000
Hoosiers who served in the Civil War to those now serving in the 76th
Brigade Combat Team.
It is no secret that today's National Guard and Reserves are now an
operational force and no longer a strategic reserve. That is one reason
H.R. 5684, as amended, introduced by Ms. Herseth Sandlin and me
contains a significant upgrade to education benefits for the Guard and
Reserve.
While Guardsmen and Reservists share many of the challenges of
military life with their active duty counterparts, they also face some
unique difficulties and we should endeavor to minimize those negative
incentives to service. One such challenge is that members of the Guard
and Reserves face multiple transitions in their deployment cycles. It
is not easy to leave a job that supports your family. Health insurance,
retirement benefits, seniority and other factors are important to all
of us and when a servicemember returns home, we should do everything in
our power to ease that transition.
Madame Chairwoman, you and I have visited several states where they
have solid programs to smooth the transition from combat to civilian
life and I am eager to hear how Indiana meets that responsibility. I am
especially pleased that you have invited several wives to testify
because without their strong support, we would probably have to rethink
how we structure our armed forces. Finally, I want to thank each of
those here who wear or have worn the uniform for their service and I
believe we owe a special recognition to the spouses who pay the bills,
raise the children, fix the appliances and the cars, and take care of
the myriad things that keep a family intact while the servicemember is
deployed.
Prepared Statement of Major General R. Martin Umbarger
Adjutant General of Indiana, Joint Forces Headquarters
Indiana National Guard
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to speak to the issues regarding the care, treatment and
benefits of our soldiers, airmen and families. Soldiers and Airmen of
the Indiana National Guard continue to answer the call on behalf of our
Nation and State of Indiana. As you know, the National Guard is a dual
missioned organization. We have a State mission in support of local
first responders in their time of need responding to man-made and
natural disasters of our state. Our other mission is the Federal
mission of reinforcing the Army and Air Force and their missions all
over the world. Since 911, you must agree, our great soldiers and
airmen have done this important mission in spades. We currently have
over 14,500 soldiers and airmen assigned and makes and we are proud to
boast of being the fourth largest Army National Guard in the Nation. We
are presently at 106 percent of authorized strength and over the past 3
years Indiana ranked in the top five states in the Nation in recruiting
and retention successes. Each of the past 3 years the Nation's top
recruiter has come from our ranks. Over 14,000 soldiers and airmen have
been deployed to fight against the global war on terror. Presently,
4,133 Indiana Guardsmen, both Army and Air are deployed to multiple
sites worldwide doing a variety of missions, no state has more deployed
than Indiana at this time. The accomplishments of our brave soldiers
and airmen are many, but the stresses of multiple deployments have
taken the toll on our force and caused many adjustments to be made by
my Joint Forces Headquarters-Indiana staff to support them during pre-
deployment, deployment and post-deployment phases. Prior to 911, what
used to be a normal baseline of events, insufficient staffs of maybe
one deep assisted with providing benefits to Soldiers, Airmen and
Families. Today, in order to properly ``care of the Soldier/Airmen/
Family'', sweeping changes, administrative procedures, changes to staff
authorization has been made.
Prior to 911, the staffing of the Indiana Guard was either 1-2
people deep or non-existent concerning Veteran's Services to
servicemembers and Families. Since 911 and the multiple deployments of
our Hoosier Guardsmen we have created a new Directorate on my Joint
Force Headquarters-Indiana staff. The Directorate is called J9 (Civil
Military Affairs Directorate). We are only one of very few states which
have created the J9 Directorate to support Servicemembers, Families and
Employers during pre-deployment, deployment and post deployment
periods.
The 9 key components of the J9 (Civil Military Affairs Directorate)
are:
* Reference attached Information Briefing
1. Family Programs--being briefed by Major Cathy Van Bree.
2. Veteran's Transition Assistance--being briefed by COL (Ret)
Roger Peterman.
3. Selective Service
4. Ceremonial Unit
5. Chaplain
6. 38th Division Band
7. Funeral Honors
8. Command Historian
9. Employer Support Guard/Reserve
The creation of the J9 Directorate was designed to assist
Servicemembers, Families and Employers during the entire period of
service being performed by the Servicemember. This innovative approach
to a combined effort lessened the administrative burdens on the
traditional administrative personnel sections, and provides a unified
focus for benefits and services for the Servicemember and family.
Several other changes in the staffing and priority were also made
to assist the Servicemember through innovative techniques and hard
decisions. The Indiana National Guard Relief Fund was established to
assist families that incur economic difficulties during deployment.
This 501c3 fund was established as a result of many Hoosiers and
organizations wanting to contribute financial assistance in any way
possible to help our soldiers and their families. This fund assists
families during times of economic difficulties as a result of their
deployment. Stay behind Title 10 Officers and Non-Commissioned Officers
were authorized at each Armory/Headquarters. These professional
soldiers are very important to the continuity of support to the
Servicemember during the pre-deployment, deployment and post-deployment
phases. An example would be a total of 17 Title 10 soldiers combined
with Military Technicians man 28 armories vacated by the 76th Infantry
Brigade deployed to Iraq.
Our number one asset in the Indiana National Guard always has been
and will continue to be our people; our Soldiers and Airmen. All the
weapons systems, vehicles and military equipment are absolutely
essential to our mission, but nothing is more important than our
servicemembers and family. During these demanding times to provide
professional military units for Federal missions in support of our
Nation, and provide support for Homeland Security missions, we have
instituted many initiatives to provide support to the Servicemember. In
many cases we have re-assigned personnel in order to provide the proper
support, if you will, taking it out of hide. However, recently, I am
very pleased to say we have received additional funding and
authorizations which enables me to provide this much needed support to
the soldiers and airmen. One program, the Community Based Health Care
Program (CBHCO), is a great program assisting our Wounded Warriors. In
the past, once our soldiers returned they were quickly demobilized off
Title 10 which was bad for soldiers. The Army CBHCO program allows our
Wounded Warriors to remain on Title 10, close to or at home, and work
at a military facility while their medical issues are being resolved.
The sustainment of this program, and others to assist the Servicemember
is a must. With the exception of the Veteran's Transition Assistance
Advisor Office, which requires at least one more advisor, we are now
staffed at a ``sufficient'' level to provide the proper support, but I
am concerned that these resources may some day be pulled from us. This
would be a mistake, as we have learned the hard way as a Nation that
caring for our wounded and our veterans must continue long after the
conflicts end.
I thank you, key Members of Congress, for providing the funding for
programs such as the Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program. Programs such
as these that care for our soldiers and families prior to deployment,
during deployments and long after their return from deployment is
critical to their proper reintegration back into their civilian
careers. As a Nation we have come a long way in taking care of those
that are serving our country. I thank all of you for the support you
have given to our Heroes that have volunteered to serve their State and
Country. I thank you for the privilege and opportunity to be with you
today. I am very proud to wear the uniform and serve in the ranks of
these great young men and women.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. Are there any questions?
Prepared Statement of Major Cathy Van Bree
Director of Family Programs, Joint Forces
Headquarters, Indiana National Guard
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you for the
opportunity to speak to the issues surrounding our servicemembers and
their families.
Due to the large numbers of servicemembers deploying recently, the
Department of Defense, the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the
State of Indiana have all taken notice that the families of our
servicemembers need support and assistance. To that end, resources have
been delivered resulting in increased staff and resources in child care
& youth programming, family assistance, family readiness, mental
health, and resource and referral (via Military OneSource).
Indiana National Guard Soldiers and Airmen are now experiencing the
largest deployment since WWII (slide #3). Over 4,000 servicemembers
within Indiana are currently and/or soon to be deployed in 2008. In the
last 8 months the Indiana National Guard Family Programs staff has
grown from a staff of 6 to now 32 full time personnel in order to
better respond to the needs of these personnel and their families
(slide #4 and #5). This staff serves all servicemembers and their
families within Indiana, to include National Guard, Reserves, Active
Duty and retirees from all services.
The resources we provide during pre-mobilization, mobilization and
post-mobilization are invaluable to our customers. These services
include, but are not limited to, Tri-Care training and assistance,
Family Readiness Group planning and program implementation, youth
programming, marriage enrichment seminars (Strongbonds), free mental
health counseling, homecoming support, financial classes, unit rear
detachment training, National Guard Relief Fund financial grant
requests, as well as a myriad of other services (slide 6). Financial
issues are the number 1 topic we assist families with when they are
facing / returning from deployment. We also assist servicemembers with
all of our services not currently in a deployment cycle on an as needed
basis.
It is critical that we continue to fund these programs in the
future years. Our families now trust these services and rely heavily on
them. Unfortunately, most of our new programs are only funded for 12-36
months. We serve as a combat multiplier on the battlefield, as we are
able to focus on the families, while Combatant Commanders focus on
their wartime mission. Further, we are a retention tool that far
outweighs the cost currently expended on these new programs.
The transition process is not over when the servicemember returns
from mobilization. Some servicemembers take 12 months or longer to
fully re-integrate into their family, civilian employment and/or
community. We take Indiana citizens out of our state away from their
loved ones, away from their careers, and send them into a hostile
environment. We cannot expect them to return mentally, emotionally or
physically as they departed Indiana. Assisting these servicemembers in
the transition process is essential. Some servicemembers are now
volunteering for their 3rd and 4th deployments. The revolving door of
deployments is a strain to them and their spouses, parents, children
and careers, which can effectively be addressed via Family Programs,
Transition Assistance and Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve.
Tri-Care is part of that transition. While the financial benefit of
TriCare is sufficient, there are many issues that need attention.
Little to no provider coverage is available in some areas in Indiana,
as many families travel over 45 minutes to their primary care
physician. Referrals are cumbersome and take many weeks to months in
some instances. Mental health outpatient services are not covered, past
the 6 free sessions initially available each calendar year. Claims
processing is slow to providers and re-imbursement to families is slow,
taking many months in some cases. Lack of providers and lack of updated
provider lists are also a key complaint from our families.
Tri-Care is a wonderful option, but has many logistical
constraints. Families transition from their current insurance to Tri-
Care and back to civilian insurance up to 3-4 times during their career
and have little time to trip over the logistical stumbling blocks Tri-
Care places in our way. Tri-Care needs to be more user-friendly in
order to reduce the amount of stress our families already endure.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. What are your questions?
Prepared Statement of Roger D. Peterman
Transition Assistance Advisor, Indiana National Guard
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate this
opportunity to testify before you today in reference to Transition
Assistance Advisor (TAA) and Employer Support of Guard and Reserves as
it applies to Pre-mobilization, Mobilization and Post Mobilization of
our Indiana Soldiers.
The TAA program is primarily designed to serve the members of the
National Guard and their families. Additionally, we gladly provide
service to members in all of the Reserve components, any Veteran and
their families.
As the Transition Assistance Advisor, I work to provide a statewide
point of contact in assisting members with access to Veterans Affairs
benefits and medical services. Services are provided at all phases of
soldier deployment which includes Pre-mobilization, Mobilization and
Post Mobilization operations in conjunction with other Indiana National
Guard Directors. TAA also provides assistance in obtaining entitlements
through the TRICARE Military Health System and access to community
resources.
The Transition Assistance Advisor works to build community
partnerships through the National Guard, Reserves, DoD services,
Department of Veterans Affairs, Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs,
Veteran Service Organizations and the local communities. The TAA
provides communication and coordination between these partners. We
provide education and support to all eligible servicemembers and their
families. A very important factor in this process is raising the
awareness and understanding of available state and Federal VA benefits,
as well as various community agencies that can assist the soldiers.
Help is provided to the individual servicemember ensuring they are
aware of entitlement programs, access to medical care and benefits of
TRICARE. There are many important deadlines that require action such as
post dental care. Servicemembers and their families needing counseling
are advised where and how to get the help they need. Information is
provided on insurance such as SGLI and TSGLI. The TAA supports the VA
and local communities in developing Job Fairs designed for
servicemembers, veterans and their families. Assistance is also
provided to servicemembers locating lost DD 214's.
Transition assistance is provided during pre-mobilization,
mobilization, and demobilization. During homecoming events information
is made available to the servicemember and their families in the form
of brochures on VA benefits, educational opportunities, reemployment
rights and other relevant resources. At this point the reintegration
process has started. At 90 to 120 days the Seamless Transition is
conducted at the unit or local community center. Many organizations are
brought together to ensure our soldiers receive the information and
resource needed to return to civilian life. Representatives at this
event include Finance, Legal, VA benefits, VA Medical Center,
Department of Labor, County Service Offices, TRICARE, Chaplain, Small
Business Administration, Secretary of State, Employer Support of Guard
and Reserve, Family Programs, American Legion, DAV, VFW and AMVETS.
The TAA program is successful because we care about soldiers,
veterans and their families. Over 90 percent of TAA's are veterans or
spouses of military members. Many TAA's have worked through the
disability process. They have experienced the process and can help
guide the servicemember through it. We have built strong partnerships
and coalitions with the VA, Directors of VA, Veterans Service
Organizations, Family Programs, DoL, and Employer Support of Guard and
Reserve (ESGR). Major Van Bree, Director of Family Programs, and I work
closely on a daily operational level because our work overlaps. We
serve as members of the Adjutant General's staff.
I want to tell you about a volunteer organization in which I serve
as the State Chairman. Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve also
known as ESGR is a Department of Defense volunteer organization.
The mission of ESGR is to gain and maintain active support from all
public and private employers for the men and women of the National
Guard and Reserves. Additionally this volunteer organization provides
education, consultation, and if necessary, informal mediation between
employers and employees who are Guardsmen or Reservists.
ESGR is required to inform employers and their National Guard and
Reserve employees of their rights and responsibilities under the
Uniformed Service Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) Title
38, USC, Chapter 43. Indiana has 16 trained Ombudsman volunteers who
serve to mediate these issues between employers and employees serving
in the military. Currently, Indiana ESGR has 105 volunteers serving
around the state.
In summary, ESGR's goal is to support America's employers who share
their employees with the Department of Defense to ensure our National
Security. ESGR helps employers to understand the vital role they play
in the National Defense of the United States. We must develop and
promote a culture in which American employers support and value the
Military service of their employees.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my testimony. Thanks for this
opportunity to speak on behalf of the Transition Assistance Program and
Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves. I would be pleased to
answer any questions from the Subcommittee.
Prepared Statement of Elizabeth L. Williams
Indianapolis, IN (Indiana National Guard Member and
Spouse of Deployed Indiana National Guard Member)
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate the
opportunity to be here today to testify on my views and experiences in
regards to the Transitional Assistance Program and the ability of my
family to cope with readjustment needs and the deployments of my
spouse, CPT Christopher M. Williams.
My husband is scheduled to return this month from his second year-
long deployment. In 2003, he deployed for approximately 15 months.
Then, he deployed for the second time in June of 2007 and is expected
to return any day.
There has been significant progress in the efforts to provide
transitional assistance to the soldiermembers and their families since
my spouse's first deployment experience. During his 2003 deployment, I
can recall very little assistance available to support the families of
the deployed soldiermembers, outside of the Family Readiness Group and
Military One Source.
It appears as though the Family Readiness Group is often used as
the primary source of communication and information dissemination, as
it pertains to families and their available resources. Without the unit
or servicemembers having a functioning Family Readiness Group, the
soldiermembers and especially the spouses can often be left in the
dark. I acknowledge that perhaps my testimony is also based on the fact
that I am also a servicemember, as well as a spouse. Therefore, I have
the advantage of understanding the military and how it functions, as
opposed to a spouse that has no military background.
My husband deployed with a small detachment, which does not have a
functioning Family Readiness Group. The little detachments can easily
fall through the cracks, even with the wonderful system we have
recently established. It appears as though our system may be designed
for at least company sized units. When small units deploy, similar to
my husband's unit, they can be easily forgettable. Perhaps, those units
could be assigned to a Family Readiness Group which has already been
established or there could be a secondary means of communication, other
than the Family Readiness Group, used to distribute information to the
spouses and family members of deployed military members.
I have recently learned we now have many new tools and resources in
place, such as the Family Assistance Centers and the Family Readiness
Support Assistants. We could never have too many of these. We already
have 15 Family Assistance Centers; however, we could really use more
Family Readiness Support Assistants to ensure the Family Readiness
Groups are functioning properly and the Transitional Assistance Program
benefits and resources are communicated effectively.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my prepared testimony. I would be
pleased to answer any questions you or Members of the Subcommittee
might have.
Prepared Statement of Roy Saenz, South Bend, IN
(Former Member of the Marine Corps Reserves)
Thank you Chairwoman Herseth-Sandlin and Congressman Donnelly for
this opportunity to speak with you about my transition experience. My
name is Sergeant Roy Saenz. I served in the Marine Corps Reserves for 8
years from August 1997 to August of 2005. While in the reserves I was
activated and deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. I
can only attest to my experiences transitioning back to civilian life
as a reservist.
In January of 2003 I was placed on active duty with Eng. Company
B., 6th ESB, 4th FSSG, South Bend, IN. Prior to leaving the theater of
operations, we went through a series of debriefings in Kuwait. The
debriefing I remember best is the medical brief. We were given a
questionnaire asking about any issues we may have. Two things stood
out: one, ``If we had issues we would be placed on medical hold in Camp
Pendleton until they were resolved'' and two, ``We are not telling you
to not put any issues on the questionnaire, just that you will be a
medical hold.'' This meant that we would not be able to return home
with our unit. Meanwhile, we were already aware of the plans being made
for the reunion back home in South Bend. Friends and family had been
glued to the papers following our every move because we had an embedded
reporter with us. So at both ends of the phone lines everyone wanted to
be reunited, not stuck in California away from home.
When we arrived at Camp Pendleton, many units were returning so
there was a very tight and quick schedule to get us through our briefs.
We again went through a medical brief. This time however, we waited in
line and met with a doctor for a quick and very basic evaluation. If we
brought anything up, they told us, ``You can stay and we will do a full
evaluation but you will have to wait until next week.'' This meant we
would not return home with the unit. My mom and younger brother had
already flown in from Arizona to meet the unit in South Bend. So the
incentive to report anything even minor was trumped by the desire to
reunite with family and friends.
When we arrived in South Bend we received a 3 day leave. Upon
returning we had a variety of classes. Representatives from the Marine
Corps League, VFW and American Legion came mostly with the intent of
increasing membership. Although in the presentations I heard, ``Make
sure you make a copy of your SRB and medical records, and take your dd-
214 to the county recorder's office.'' I stayed on for a few more
months and went to Camp Lejeune, North Carolina to assist with off
loading equipment. When I returned to South Bend in September, I was
demobilized and returned to work.
In January 2004 I volunteered to go back to Iraq with Bridge
Company B, 6th ESB, 4th FSSG, Folsom, Pennsylvania. Again the exit
process was about the same. We took a survey in Iraq, then at Camp
Lejeune, the same medical process occurred: a quick interview. This
time they said we would be fixed once we arrived at our home unit. I
had shoulder surgery that was done locally in January 2005. I was
released June 23, 2005, less than a month from my end of contract date.
I have five general issues that I would like to present to this
Committee:
1. Pay Issues
a. Both times I was mobilized I was shorted on my first pay.
When I asked the unit administration they said to wait until I
got on the base and they will be able to help. Unfortunately,
there was not an opportunity to ask on my first deployment and
by the end of the deployment I did not mind because I was just
happy to be done. But it again happened on my second
deployment. Since I found out while I was at Camp Lejeune I
went to administration there and they said they could not do
anything about it because it was a reserve issue. The reserve
administration people could not access what the dock of pay was
for but again after finishing up in Iraq I did not care because
I was happy to be home and done. However due to my medical hold
my pay was again incorrect. I did not receive notice of this
until after I was off of active duty and off of contract.
Therefore, my former unit could not answer the questions. I was
unable to get through to DFAS--Kansas City because the
automated system could not get me to where I needed to go.
Finally I received a letter in the mail from different DAFS
location and it did not have a phone number so I wrote them and
they finally wrote me back but still did not answer all of my
questions. So here I am almost 3 years later and I have not
resolved my pay issues.
2. Education
a. When I signed up in 1997 I understood that I would be
eligible for the Reserve GI Bill. However it was not until I
was finishing up in June of 2005 that I found out that I could
have been taking college classes while in Iraq on my second
deployment and for the 8 months I was on medical hold.
b. My second education issue is that while I was finishing up
my second mobilization there was information coming out about
the REAP program and the 2 year consecutive/cumulative buy-in
option for reserves to look into. Many troops willing to do the
2 years to be eligible for the buy-in were blocked because they
had to come off of one set of orders and go onto a new set of
orders. Everyone was talking about the REAP program but once
the dust settled on that program, we found out that you have to
be still in the reserves. So many like me who did a cumulative
of over 2 years on active duty met that basic requirement for
the time eligibility but were already off of contract. Thus we
missed out on the REAP and were prohibited from buying into the
active duty GI Bill. This left two to three years worth of
deployed troops from the beginning of the war that will not be
eligible for additional educational benefits.
3. Filling a claim with the VA
a. While I was taking my dd-214 to the county recorder, I saw
the sign for the VA service representative. I walked into his
office and introduced myself. There was not much he could do at
this time because I was still on contract. But he started a
file on me. He recommended I keep a copy of my medical records
and SRB when I got off of contract and revisit him. When I fell
off of contract I filed an initial claim with the help of the
VA Service Representative but it took about 8 months for the
decision, coming in May 2006. Between September and December
2006, I had six visits for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD). I was not aware that I should file those visits with
the VA. Around February 2007, I went to the Work One office and
saw a sign that said ``Are you a Veteran? Have you talked to
the VA representative?'' He was available so I talked to him.
He recommended, because of my rating, that I talk to Jim
Garwood with the Vocation-Rehabilitation in Fort Wayne,
Indiana. So I met with him and he was very thorough and
informative. I then sent a letter for a re-evaluation and
adding PTSD to the VA April 24, 2007 then on May 7, 2007, the
pinched nerve in my back landed me in the hospital. As of May
2008, the VA has declined to pay this bill, so I am appealing
this decision. I had a C & P exam in June 2007 with pending
back issues which resulted in surgery in August 2007. It was at
this point that I realized that the VA benefits, C&P, and VA
Medical Side have very limited communication with each other.
The decision was in July 2007 and my back was rated the same so
I immediately appealed and was reevaluated in October 2007. I
received the decision finally on April 18, 2008 because it was
an appeal it had to go through the Notice of Disagreement
process. I found out in December 2007 that the standard
procedure for post-back surgery was 100 percent temporary
disability. I filed the claim along with my appeal and it was
denied. I requested physical therapy for my continued back and
neck issues and at first the VA wanted to send me on a 2 hour
one-way drive from South Bend to Fort Wayne for physical
therapy. After an evaluation in Fort Wayne, nothing happened
until after my annual follow up in March 2008. I had to have
another evaluation but this time it was with a local physical
therapist. I was finally authorized for physical therapy and
had my first appointment in late April 2008.
4. Filing process
a. I initially began my process by filing a claim in South
Bend. I picked the VFW to represent me as my advocate. When I
went back to file my next claim, I had to wait 2 weeks before I
could get in for an appointment due to the previous county
service representative. While the new representative was as
helpful as possible, I had more knowledge from experience and
Internet research. I was under the impression that the
organizational service representatives did more but as I found
out they are most effective if matters go beyond the Notice of
Disagreement process. Otherwise I could file everything on my
own directly to the VA. Over the last year I began sending
copies of my paperwork to both the VA directly and the VFW. I
did this in the hope that it would speed up the process as I
grew more and more frustrated with the amount of time the
process took.
5. PTSD and Lance Corporal Larry Bowling Jr. of Muncie, Indiana.
a. LCPL Bowling was with me on my second deployment to Iraq
with Bridge Company Bravo. On June 29th 2004, he was on a
convoy that was hit with an IED. He was in the response vehicle
and helped load up our three dead Marines: Sgt Alan Sherman,
CPL John Todd, and LCPL Patrick Adle. When we returned to the
South Bend Unit, LCPL Bowling was released on terminal leave. I
stayed on and 2 weeks later he called me late one night having
suicidal thoughts. I called the Corpsman and he contacted the
Commanding Officer. The decision was made to wait until the
next day and go down to take him to the VA Hospital in Marion.
After evaluation he was given medication and released to myself
and Sgt. Eugene Plonski. We were directed to return him to his
family. LCPL Bowling was then instructed to come to drill
weekends instead of being excused for 90 days from drill
weekends. Other than 1 weekend a month he was on his own with
no support system from the unit. When I asked the Commanding
Officer what we could do for him he said, ``He's Folsom's
problem, not ours.'' Within a few months he was given an Other
Than Honorable Discharge.
b. This Marine, who served honorably, reached out to the unit
and we failed him. This is due to a system that was not
prepared for handling the PTSD of Reserve Marines and by
commands that were not willing or prepared for handling mixed
unit issues.
Based on my experience it is my recommendations to this Committee
are as follows:
1. Evaluate reserve troops returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for
PTSD related issues at the 45, 90 day and 1 year mark. These
evaluations should be done whether the servicemember is still on active
duty, active reserves, individual ready reserves, or off of contract.
2. The VA Medical and VA Benefits departments need develop a more
efficient communication system to allow for the fast and smoother
processing of claims by veterans.
3. Currently there are no efficient programs post-service that
inform veterans of programs and assistance resources in their regions.
Many veterans get frustrated and give up on the system.
4. Better inform reserve servicemembers, while still under
contract, of programs while on active duty and better inform them of
programs available post-service using available VA service
representatives and other local veterans' representatives including but
not limited to unemployment agencies.
5. Establish a way for troops to deal with administration problems
that occur after they separate from service such as unresolved pay
issues.
6. Reevaluate what services can be offered at the local level.
Many veterans do not have the flexibility of schedule or means to
travel long distances to receive assistance.
Thank you again for this opportunity. I now invite you to ask any
questions you may have.
Sgt Roy Saenz, USMC
1997-2005
Prepared Statement of Dawn McCool, North Liberty, IN
(Spouse of an Indiana National Guard Member)
Thank you Subcommittee Chairwoman Herseth-Sandlin, Congressman
Donnelly, and all other Members of the Committee. I appreciate the
opportunity to share my experiences as a spouse of a National Guard
member in regard to the transition experience for myself and my family.
My name is Dawn McCool and my husband Jim was with F Company, 151st
Infantry (Light Anti-Tank) in Afghanistan. This deployment resulted in
Jim being gone from May 2003 to July 2005. We have three children, now
ages 18, 16, and 12. At the time of Jim's deployment, they were 14, 12,
and 8.
The main source of assistance for the family of deployed members of
the guard is the family readiness group, commonly called a FRG. I first
became involved in the family readiness group on May 4, 2004, the day
my husband left from South Bend for Camp Atterbury. The wives were
standing in a group when Laura Williams, who was in charge of the FRG,
told us about the meetings on the third Monday of each month. I went to
the first meeting and she asked if I would be the secretary and
treasurer and whatever else needed. The community created from the FRG
resulted in me meeting one of my best friends. We still talk and get
together today, more than 4 years later. Unfortunately with our FRG
getting started in 2004 things did not go smoothly. The level of
involvement with a lot of the other moms, wives, girlfriends and
extended families was low. We tried to involve the spouses and families
but it was difficult because of the intense emotions involved after a
loved one first deploys.
The core of the family readiness group was comprised of only three
people. The money was not there; however we tried to make up for it
with effort. We were in touch with Col. Warrick and held a pretty
successful family day at Culver Military Academy with soldiers that had
previously deployed, spouses, girlfriends, and families. This event was
probably the primary success of the FRG during the deployment.
Overall, though, my experience with the FRG did not result in the
level of support I had hoped for during what was a very tough
experience when Jim was gone. We were supposed to be each others'
support system but it frequently did not happen that way. There were
two ladies that I could talk to, and they were great. But we felt
walked on because no matter what we did or tried to do, we could not
count on participation. One example is a large outing we organized at
the zoo. We got a call list of all the soldiers' spouses or families
and contacted all of them for a large outing to the zoo. We received a
lot of ``yes'' responses but the turnout was terrible. After pouring in
a lot of work and spending the money to put on the program, the
involvement was not there.
In general, that symbolized the difficulty of involvement with the
other spouses and families. We let them know that if they needed
anything, they could call my number or Laura's number. My phone was
constantly ringing. Everyone seemed like they wanted to be involved,
but no one would put forth the effort to actually do anything. By the
time the soldiers returned, the FRG had pretty much fallen apart. There
was not enough organization to get the word out to the spouses and
families. When F Company deployed again last year, I was asked to lead
the FRG, but I still had negative feelings from all the difficulties
that arose during the first deployment and turned it down.
One resource that was provided on a broader scale to promote the
success of the FRGs was a conference at Stout Field in Indianapolis
that I attended. There was a binder with information on making the
family readiness groups stronger from the conference. It was clear that
most of the successes came from increased involvement, but given that
there were only three of us and we were struggling with involvement in
the first place, it was not clear how to drive that. The conference
also did not mention at all the transition back home for the soldiers,
which would have been helpful.
Jim returned to the U.S. in July of 2005 and came home for good in
August 2005. Once we knew they were coming home, there were new
emotions. You want them home but you are used to doing everything by
yourself. One story about the transition afterward is when I was mowing
the yard soon after his return. Something was wrong with the mower
blade. My husband was standing there while I went inside, got the
hammer, and fixed it myself. Initially, he felt like he was not needed
around the house. I worked hard to change those feelings. With our
three children, I put on a strong front for them while he was gone and
I continued that strong front when he returned.
Jim had around 5 months off for the time he spent overseas, so he
did not have to go back to his civilian job right away. He was able to
do a lot of work around the house and get to know the kids and me
again. I think this time was essential for his transition. A year and a
half does not seem like a long time, but people change a lot in that
time. When he came back, it was almost like we were strangers again and
it was a major adjustment to re-integrate him into the family. But it
was mostly great to have him home.
Before he was deployed, he worked for Shindler elevator, doing
construction and repairs on elevators and escalators. He returned to
that job after 5 months of vacation. His unit was eventually sent to
Iraq after the return from Afghanistan; however he stayed back as the
Rear Detachment Commander. He spends time every day at the armory in
South Bend. If any of the soldiers had problems they could call. He
also tried to help the wives and families as much as he could because
he knew about my experiences. His unit returned to the U.S. from
deployment to Iraq 2 weeks ago.
I would also like to offer special thanks to my employee. I work at
AM General, where we build military Humvees. I take a lot of pride in
my work. It makes a difference when you know someone who is over there.
I become upset when someone says, ``Oh, someone else will do it,'' at
work because it affects the men and women overseas. My husband's
service is one of the reasons that I went into Humvee repair. I know
what they need, so I worked a lot of overtime when he was gone.
AM General was great when Jim was in Afghanistan, especially if I
needed time off when my kids were sick. The human resources department
was very flexible and understanding. AM General offers an employee
assistance program that I used. I suffered from depression during the
experience and I was able to go to counseling and take my children so
we could all talk about it.
I wish there was some way to help families make the transition
easier. One way would be more involvement in the FRGs. I am not sure
how to do it, but the families need to know that there is someone to
turn to, that there is help available. The soldiers see a lot of things
overseas. There are still many things that Jim does not talk about,
that he cannot talk about with me yet. They need to know that it is
okay for them to go to counseling. This is healthy either with or
without their spouse, although many are embarrassed to admit that they
need that counseling.
I believe it is very important that these families know that there
is help, that there are resources. If the National Guard or another FRG
could make a book or pamphlet details about what the soldiers are
entitled to upon return and what the spouses are entitled to, it would
be a wonderful resource. Help is there, the spouses simply need to be
aware of it. We all could take better advantage of the help that is
available, Jim included. It seems that people are afraid to ask for
help even when the resources are there.
Looking back, though, what I think that I wish I would have had
more than anything else is being able to communicate with the soldiers
to a greater extent, although it seems that it might not be possible.
The men that stayed behind at the local unit helped us a great deal. If
we needed anything, they were there in a heartbeat to help us. A
deployment is something I wish never had to happen. I wish the guys
never had to go, but I know they are serving their country.
The best way to summarize my experience is in a poem that I
received from someone when Jim was in Afghanistan titled, ``The Silent
Ranks.'' I believe that every military spouse needs to read it because
it talks about the fact that your spouse wears the uniform so they
stand out, while you are in the background. No one sees that the wives
or children go through. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to
share my experience.
Prepared Statement of Lori Masapollo, Niles, MI
(Spouse of Army Reservist)
My name is Lori Masapollo, and as the wife of a career Army
reservist, I have been asked to describe my experiences with transition
services offered by the military over the course of my husband's
multiple deployments. My husband, Lt Colonel Gary Masapollo, has served
as a commissioned officer for 22 years. As we speak, he is at Fort
Benning, Georgia, out-processing from the fourth full-term deployment
in which he has engaged since 9/11. Additionally, within that same time
period, he has made numerous shorter duration treks to Germany to
assist with operations and training there. He has been away from home
41 of the last 79 months. Unfortunately if I only address the
transition services our family has been offered--my comments will be
incredibly brief. Therefore, please indulge me as I attempt to address
our thoughts on what services we would have appreciated over the course
of my husband's service.
As Gary comes off deployment and prepares to return to us, finding
a job is the primary goal on his mind. When he left last year, he
forfeited his contracted position as Professor of Military Science at
Notre Dame so the Army ROTC Battalion there could fill the slot. Now he
is without a job. As with many veterans who have devoted much of their
working years to military service, he is struggling with how to find an
employer who won't be intimidated by his ``previous experience'' or
wrongfully view him as too regimented or military focused to be of use
in the civilian workforce. We have been collaborating with other
transitioned veterans and searching online to find resume templates and
suggestions for how to best equate the work he has done in foreign
countries to civilian job skills. If the military offers any kind of
resume crafting assistance, job placement assistance or help in
matching returning veterans with companies that would appreciate
certain skill sets, we have yet to discover those programs. Assistance
of this type has never been offered.
If he is unable to locate work, education assistance that would
allow him to refresh his skills would be beneficial. While he has been
off defending his country, the civilian world has continued to upgrade
technology, attend training seminars and create new corporate ``buzz
words'' that may not have existed 15 months ago. He may no longer be in
step with corporate America and the business skills that those who
remained home on the job have continued to hone. Returning veterans
face a declining economy and lay-offs. The job skills that they
possessed pre-deployment may not be of use to them now. We personally
have no idea what education assistance or training may be available to
assist him; however, classes that focus on brushing up veterans'
business skills, or help them re-direct their lives to more employable
options would truly be an asset to all reservists. Once again, this
type of assistance has yet to be offered.
When Gary comes off active duty, and until he finds viable
employment, health care coverage will be a concern for us. Gary and I
are the parents of five children, and although one recently deployed
with the Air Force, the remaining four depend on us for health care. It
also crosses my mind that my husband's transition out of military life
is going to take its toll psychologically. No matter how much we all
have missed his daily presence in our lives; the first few weeks are
never easy as we adjust to living together again and this time he will
bear the added pressure of unemployment. What if he has physical or
mental health issues when he returns? Where will we turn? What about
other returning reservists? Health care issues are briefly addressed
during out-processing, but returning vets are simply directed to their
closest VA facility. Our closest VA Hospital is hours away in Battle
Creek, Michigan. No one has ever checked in on our family either during
or post-deployment to confirm that all is well, or that we have the
resources we need to cope.
I strongly believe that it takes a person of incredible character
and patriotism to serve in the military reserves as it exists today. As
the regular armies have downsized, reservists are called upon much more
frequently to augment troops. As my own husband's story illustrates,
with five full deployments since 1999 as well as being gone for weeks
at a time assisting with training and driving 90 miles to drill on
weekends, he has spent an inordinate amount of time away from home.
These frequent absences have not helped his civilian career options and
have only served to place him further behind in terms of rusty skill
sets, lost promotions, and a smaller 401K nest egg. Sometimes
reservists are even expected to support and maintain two households. My
husband served his latest tour at CentCom headquarters at MacDill AFB
in Tampa, Florida. Because much of the base housing had been condemned,
he was placed in a furnished apartment in the private sector--to the
tune of $3800 per month. In addition to paying our home mortgage and
maintenance fees, he needed to pay for that apartment, renter's
insurance, and food and wait for the Army to reimburse him. How many
young reservists are financially prepared to take on that level of
commitment all for the honor of serving their country?
If our family lived on a military base, or within close proximity
to one, perhaps we would have more resources and options available to
us to deal with transition issues. Certainly base life offers more
support to the families left behind, as those families are surrounded
by other military-minded friends who are all in the same situation and
help is a few steps away. Reservists' families are not so blessed. It
has been my experience that if it were not for the reservists ``looking
after their own'', most would never know where to go for the services
they need. Luckily over the years our family has developed a network of
reservist families that offer support, share knowledge of third-party
resources and bolster attitudes as we await the arrival of our family's
leader and prepare him for civilian employment. I often wonder what
support exists for younger reservist families that have not had the
years to establish those types of networks and contacts. It is sad to
think that they are being left behind while their loved ones are away
giving so much.
LTC Gary Masapollo, IAM 38A (Civil Affairs)
Jan-August 2000: Kosovo (411th Civil Affairs Battalion: attached to
1st Infantry Division)
July-December 2002: Kosovo (415th Cvil Affairs Battalion: attached
to 1st Infantry Division)
February 2003-April 2004: Iraq (308th Civil Affairs Brigade:
attached to U.S. V Corps)
Jan 2006-July 2006: GTMO, Cuba (Secretary of Defense/Office of the
Administrative Review for the Detention of Enemy Combatants)
June 2007-June 2008: CENTCOM (Individual Member Augmentee) Central
Command HQ Tampa.
Prepared Statement of Staff Sergeant Donald A. Blosser
Granger, IN (Indiana National Guard Member)
Thank you Chairwoman Herseth-Sandlin, Congressman Boozman, and
Congressman Donnelly for this opportunity to speak with you about my
transition experience. My name is Staff Sergeant Donald A. Blosser,
Indiana Army National Guard.
I served for 12 years, from 1980-1992, on active duty with the
Army. I was stationed out of Ft. Lewis in Washington when I was sent to
Arizona to fill a National Guard unit for deployment to what, at the
time, was Operation Desert Shield. We were motor transfer operators. We
deployed from Arizona to Saudi Arabia in January 1991. We returned on
August 7, 1991. The call up went fine, although One Stop was not around
at that time. We did not see the Veterans Affairs representatives at
the time. We had general medical exams as a preliminary exercise. On
the return, we did not stay in Arizona very long, perhaps 1 day, and
then flew back to Ft. Lewis, Washington. The Army gave us leave after
they shuffled units around. We did not meet representatives from
supporting agencies because we were remained on active duty. I spent
from September 2005 to the present with the National Guard. I went back
to my civilian job driving trucks from 1992-2005. One large lure to
joining the National Guard was to receive my benefits that I was not
receiving due to a youthful oversight. I was put on active duty status
in July 2006 and deployed to the region on October 7, 2006. I deployed
with a National Guard unit out of Camp Shelby, Mississippi. There were
55 soldiers from all over the State of Indiana who joined the unit in
Mississippi in order to bring it to 299 strong. There were soldiers
from Kentucky, Tennessee, and Michigan as well in order to reach this
number. This was difficult at times because it brought together
different mentalities from different parts of the country.
When I returned on September 25, 2007 from Iraq, I demobilized at
Camp Shelby, Mississippi. I spent 3 days out-processing. They broke the
days into four main areas: two areas were medical, one was personal,
and one was for meeting representatives and getting information on Army
One Stop, Veterans Administration benefits, and TRICARE. They gave us
stations to visit and the whole unit had to pass through. We were
issued a check-sheet that had to be initialed by each representative to
assure that we covered each station. The medical area had nine
substations. The benefits station had five organizations represented.
Once you went to the final booth, you were cleared. The State of
Indiana had representatives present and they took care of all of our
reservations for travel and made sure we were taken care of. This
professionalism and presence by the Indiana National Guard was
consistent from the advance before deployment, when a lieutenant from
joint forces and I were the advance party. We met with the commander,
made arrangements, and were joined by three to four other Indiana
representatives who helped transfer the weapons and equipment to
Mississippi. Upon the return, there were Indiana representatives there
to take care of the weapons transfer again, which meant that we did not
have to worry about it. All Indiana representatives were really sharp
and smooth during the process. The Kentucky representatives were sharp
as well, and they had 72 people to serve. Michigan and Tennessee did
not have representatives present because there were only about a dozen
soldiers between the two states.
There was a true, individual concern for each soldier passing
through. We were told that we would be going through this again in
about 90 days at the state level. Around the middle of January, we did
this at the 38th Infantry Division Headquarters Armory in Indianapolis.
I completed medical questionnaires, saw a doctor, and met with
representatives from the Veterans Administration, One Stop, VFW,
American Legion, and other support groups. That event went very well. I
am comparing this from when I came back from Desert Storm. The area
that needs some improvement is TRICARE. I had a medical situation and
wanted to consult my family doctor but he was not a TRICARE PPO. I have
seen him for 9 years, hypertension. I went on the TRICARE website to
find a PPO. One doctor was in Rochester, Indiana, approximately a 1
hour drive south. Another doctor was in Michigan City, Indiana,
approximately a 1 hour drive west. If needed, I could go to a hospital
in South Bend, St. Joseph Regional Medical Center, which was a
preferred medical facility. So I went to my doctor and paid for it
myself. My story is not the only one. A lot of soldiers called me about
medical issues because I was a squad leader. I had to let them know
that this is the way it is and that there are not other options.
The other improvement needed is TRICARE dental. The U.S. Military
demands that you have good oral health before deploying anywhere in the
world. Once we return from hard areas such as Iraq, I should be
entitled to have my oral health checked and brought back up to the
standards they were in when I deployed. TRICARE discontinued dental
coverage within 5 days of my return. The Army wants to maintain a
standard going in, so they should maintain that standard going out.
Unfortunately, the Army passed the burden back on my civilian
employment health care. I have been employed by Dayton Freight line for
9 years. I put them in for an award from the state because when I told
them I was leaving to serve, they wished me well, told me to be safe,
and took care of my family and I while I was overseas. They did not ask
any questions. I let them know that my unit was deploying, and all they
asked for was something in writing. While I was gone, they sent me
things, checked on my wife, and continued to provide her my profit-
sharing checks. When I came back, they gave me a profit sharing check
pro-rated and my medical insurance was reinstated immediately. When I
had an issue arise, I called corporate and they took care of it. They
even threw a party for me when I came back. I have heard horror stories
about other companies but Dayton Freight is great.
To end on a positive note, overall I must say that the soldier is
better informed and taken care of than after the Gulf War.
Donald A. Blosser
SSG, INARNG
Prepared Statement of Stephen W. Short
Department Adjutant, American Legion, Department of Indiana
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Subcommittee:
With the ending of the Cold War, the Department of Defense (DoD)
dramatically downsized its personnel strength. In 1990 Congress, in an
attempt to assist separating service members in making a successful
transition back into the civilian workforce enacted P.L. 101-510 which
authorized the creation of the Transition Assistance Program (TAP).
This law was intended to assist servicemembers who possessed certain
critical military specialties that could not be easily transferred to a
civilian work environment and to assist others with educational and
career choices.
DoD's TAP and Disabled Transition Assistance Program (DTAP) are
designed, in conjunction with Department of Labor (DoL) and the
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), to help prepare not only
separating servicemembers but also their families for a seamless
transition to civilian life. Last year in FY 2007, more than 386,200
servicemembers were discharged from active duty status and over 500,534
servicemembers demobilized from active duty service. Public Law (P.L.)
101-510 (Chapter 58, section 1142) mandates pre-separation counseling
for transitioning servicemembers. These programs consist of specific
components: pre-separation counseling; employment assistance;
relocation assistance; education, training, health and life insurance
counseling; finance counseling; reserve affiliation; and disabled
transition assistance seminars. DTAP is designed to educate and
facilitate disabled veterans to overcome potential barriers to
meaningful employment. Currently, VA, DoL, and DoD operate 215
transition offices around the world.
While the TAP program assists transitioning servicemembers leaving
the military under their own accord, the DTAP program focuses on the
specialized needs of the servicemembers who are separating for medical
reasons. The DTAP workshop is a half-day seminar sponsored jointly by
DoL, DoD and VA. The workshop provides specialized information on VA's
many disability benefits:
Medical Care
CHAMPVA
Disability Compensation
Vocational Rehabilitation
Disabled Veterans Insurance
In this current era of a significantly smaller all-volunteer
military, the reliance on the National Guard and Reserve to fight the
present Global War on Terror is unprecedented. The Reserve forces have
become an essential part of all current DoD operations. Reservists in
Iraq and Afghanistan reflect a significant portion of the total
deployed force in any given month, and DoD reports that continued
reliance on the 1.8 million Reserve and National Guard troops will
continue well into the foreseeable future. Attracting and retaining
well qualified individuals to execute the fundamental functions of a
strong and viable national defense is paramount. Without providing
proper incentives for servicemembers to enlist and reenlist, the
military will continue to be hard pressed to effectively accomplish
their Global War on Terror mission.
Reservists Return to Find No Jobs
National Guard and Reserve troops are returning from the wars in
Iraq and Afghanistan only to encounter difficulties with their Federal
and civilian employers at home. Many of these returning servicemembers
have lost jobs, or lost promotions or benefits, and in a few cases they
have encountered job demotions.
According to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment
Rights Act, employers must by law protect the old jobs of deployed
servicemembers, or provide them with equivalent positions. Benefits,
raises, and promotions must be protected, as if the servicemember had
never left. In many cases this law has not been able to protect many
returning servicemembers across the country from the negative effects
of long deployments. Servicemembers would greatly benefit by having
access to the resources and knowledge that TAP can provide, but the
program should have stronger employment, mental health, and small
business components.
The Effects of Reserve Call-ups on Civilian Employers and Veteran Owned
Businesses
The impact of deployment on self-employed Reservists is tragic with
a reported 40 percent of all veteran owned businesses suffering
financial losses and in some cases bankruptcies. Many veteran owned
small businesses are unable to operate and suffer some form of
financial loss when key employees are activated. The Congressional
Budget Office in a report titled ``The Effects of Reserve Call-Ups on
Civilian Employers'' stated that it ``expects that as many as 30,000
small businesses and 55,000 self-employed individuals may be more
severely affected if their reservist employee or owner is activated.''
Currently, the Small Business Administration (SBA) offers Military
Reservist Economic Injury Disaster Loans. This program offers loans to
businesses that meet certain eligibility criteria to help offset the
economic consequences of the loss of their Reservist personnel. To
qualify, a company must be able to show that the activated Reservist is
critical to the success of the company. The American Legion recommends
that the SBA should be part of any Reservist and National Guard TAP
briefing, and act in an advisory capacity to veteran business owners,
to assist them with resources and information to help lessen the impact
of activation on their bottom line.
Education and the GI Bill
Historically, The American Legion has encouraged the development of
essential benefits to help attract and retain servicemembers into the
Armed Services, as well as to assist them in making the best possible
transition back to the civilian community. On June 22, 1944, then-
President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Servicemen's Readjustment
Act of 1944, which later became known as the GI Bill of Rights. This
historic piece of legislation, authored by the leadership of The
American Legion, enabled veterans to purchase their first homes, attend
college, and start private businesses. The emergence of the American
middle class, the suburbs, civil rights, and finally a worldwide
economic boom can be attributed to this important legislation.
The majority of individuals who join the National Guard or Reserves
enter the Armed Forces straight out of high school, and many are full
and part time students. With the number of activations since September
11, these same Reservists are discovering that their graduation will
take longer than once anticipated. Currently the Montgomery GI Bill
pays the average Reservist $317 a month compared to his active duty
counterpart who is paid $1,101 a month.
With the rising cost of tuition many Reservists must resort to
commercial loans and other loans or grants to supplement the Montgomery
GI Bill. When a servicemember is forced to withdraw from school due to
military obligation, the commercial loan must still be paid regardless
of whether the student finishes the course, adding to the accumulated
debt of that servicemember.
The American Legion recommends that TAP briefings include an
education representative to provide National Guard and Reservist
members this kind of information so they can avoid undue financial
hardship.
The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
On December 19, 2003, the President signed into law a complete
update of the Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act (SCRA) 1940. This
helps ease the economic and legal burdens on military personnel called
to active duty status in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom.
Relief under SCRA extends to actions terminating leases, evictions,
foreclosures and repossessions, default judgments, lower interest rates
on credit cards and loans and protects against lapses or termination of
insurance policies.
With the military's increased reliance on National Guard and
Reserve units, creditors residing in remote areas of the country
outside of the traditional military towns are not aware of this act,
including members of the reserve component. Therefore, servicemembers
are experiencing serious financial difficulties while on active duty--
their cars are repossessed, homes foreclosed and credit histories
ruined because this piece of legislation is unknown.
The American Legion has produced a brochure on active duty legal
rights, copies of which will be distributed across the country. If TAP
was mandatory, servicemembers and local community businesses would also
know of this program, and a lot of frustration, time and
misunderstandings could be avoided. To their credit, Navy TAP
representatives discuss personal financial planning during workshops
and seminars. However, the Reserve components need to have this issue
addressed during TAP as well.
Make TAP/DTAP a Mandatory Program
DoL estimates that 60 percent to 65 percent of all separating
active duty servicemembers attend the employment TAP seminars and 30
percent of all separating National Guard and Reservists attend a
portion of TAP. The American Legion believes this low attendance number
is a disservice to all transitioning servicemembers. Many
servicemembers and most National Guard and Reservists are unaware of
the assistance and resources offered by TAP. Without this program,
servicemembers who have served their country bravely return to the
civilian workforce less equipped than their counterparts who took
advantage of the information provided by TAP. According to written
testimony from John M. McWilliam, Deputy Assistant Secretary of
Veterans' Employment and Training, Department of Labor, May 12, 2005,
``We have been working with the National Guard and Reserve on providing
TAP services to these returning servicemembers in many states on an
informal and as needed basis. In this regard, three Reserve Component
TAP demonstration programs are underway in Oregon, Michigan and
Minnesota.''
DoD and DoL report that in Oregon 40 percent of those part time
servicemembers who attended the TAP session were looking for
employment. The American Legion recognizes the value of this program
and recommends that it become a mandatory requirement for all
transitioning servicemembers.
Access to TAP
The GAO report, Enhanced Services Could Improve Transition
Assistance for Reserves and National Guard, May 2005, reports TAP is
not made available to the National Guard and Reserves. ``TAP managers
with DoD and the military services explained that the chief problem is
lack of time during demobilization, which is often completed in 5
days.'' The American Legion recommends that TAP be instituted in the
following ways:
Incorporate TAP into the unit's training schedule months
before activation
Have a TAP briefing during a unit's organization day that
includes spouses
Activate a unit for a weekend either before or after a
deployment
Most units spend three to eight weeks at an installation
site preparing to move into theater; TAP briefings should be available
Spend extra day or two at a demobilization site to
include TAP
The GAO report also states that many servicemembers are not
interested in the employment segment because they believe they have
jobs waiting for them once they return home. That might have been true
with the first rotations into theater; however, that is not the case
now for many veterans, especially with back to back deployments. A
number of complaints have surfaced from servicemembers around the
country that some businesses are reluctant to hire veterans still in
the military and businesses have allegedly started putting pressure on
veterans who have deployed once not to deploy a second time.
Transitional Assistance Program for National Guard and Reserves
Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland
The TAP program located at Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, has
been called a unique program and still highly regarded as model for all
the Army. It is currently the only program that offers transition
assistance to guard and reserves with an 8-hour presentation of
services and benefits. Briefings are given covering Finance, Education,
USERRA, VA compensation and disability claims, Employment Assistance,
Mental Health Counseling Services, and Tri-Care. The program also has a
number of unique partnerships with many Federal, State and local
agencies. Some of those partnerships include: the Maryland Division of
Workforce Development, Perry Point VA Hospital, Department of Labor,
Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the Ft. Monmouth, N.J., Transition
Office. The program has a pro-active philosophy. Some examples include:
Servicemembers needing employment are given immediate
assistance. In some cases this has led to immediate hires, and those
servicemembers returned home with a job while avoiding unemployment. If
the veteran lives outside the state a point of contact is given for
that individual to ensure there is a Veteran Representative waiting
with job service resources.
The Perry Point VA Hospital offers immediate shelter to
servicemembers who may be homeless, which lessens the numbers of
homeless veterans on our Nation's streets. VA reports that more than
175,000 veterans are currently homeless and another 250,000 are
homeless over a period of time. VA has also reported that the number of
homeless veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan is
increasing, especially among women with children. The American Legion
believes the first line of defense in preventing additional homeless
cases is to have a strong and pro-active transitional assistance
program.
Servicemembers who need assistance with filling out
compensation and disability claims are offered immediate assistance by
visiting VA representatives. The program has received positive feedback
by servicemembers and commanders.
Assessing Services Rendered
The American Legion recommends that Congress require Federal
agencies that deliver TAP/DTAP services to develop a management-
monitoring program to better assess how well services are being
delivered to transitioning servicemembers. Currently, the effectiveness
of services provided by TAP agencies is unknown because adequate
performance goals and benchmarking measures have never been instituted.
Consequently, there is a lack of any verifiable outcome data.
Performance measures should be instituted to hold all Federal agencies
involved in TAP/DTAP accountable for services rendered.
Summary
America asks its young people to serve in the armed forces to guard
and defend this great Nation and its way of life. Their selfless
service provides millions of Americans with the opportunity to pursue
their vocational endeavors. The successful transition of that
servicemember back into the civilian workforce must be a shared
responsibility, especially if that servicemember has suffered service-
connected disabilities. There is much talk about ``seamless
transition'' between DoD and VA, but it goes beyond that. It should be
a ``seamless transition'' between all Federal agencies involved in a
transition assistance program. That means:
Ensuring servicemembers know their active duty legal
rights and that those Federal agencies involved should monitor and
assist in the compliance with those rights
Prompt adjudication of disability claims
Prompt adjudication of educational claims
Timely access to Tri-Care and VA quality health care
Housing of the homeless
Employment assistance
Small business assistance
Any other Federal assistance as needed
The American Legion reaffirms its strong support of TAP but also
encourages DoD to require that all separating, active-duty
servicemembers, including those from the Reserves and the National
Guard, be given an opportunity to participate in TAP training not more
than 180 days prior to their separation or retirement from the armed
forces, and followup counseling not later than 180 days after
separation from active duty. The American Legion supports efforts to
mandate that all servicemembers be given the opportunity to participate
in TAP/DTAP.
Prepared Statement of Gary M. Whitehead
Elkhart County Veterans Service Officer, Elkhart, IN
Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is a tremendous honor to be here today. I have been a County
Veterans Service Officer for twenty-two years after I retired from the
Navy in July 1986.
When our Guardsmen and Reservists return home, they are required to
complete three days of classes covering everything from seeing a
Chaplain to having a briefing from individuals from Work Force One
concerning their re-employment rights.
Even today when I interview a WWII, Korean or Vietnam veteran, I
ask them if their disabilities were documented in their service medical
records and they advise me that they were not because they would have
had to stay on active duty for several more days and they wanted to get
home to see their loved ones. This is still happening today but at
least they are given the knowledge that there are people out in their
communities that will provide assistance for them. Like the old saying
``You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink.''
Sometimes veterans are just like that or they think getting medical
care or compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs is
WELFARE.
I have spoken with Paul Curtice, the VFW State Service Officer, and
he advised me about all of the information that he and the DAV Service
Officer puts out during their presentations to our returning veterans.
Here in Indiana, several months after the Guardsmen and Reservists have
settled back to being at home, the Indiana Dept of Veterans Affairs
along with the Dept of Veterans Affairs (both compensation and health
care) conducts follow up training with units to continue keeping them
informed about their benefits.
Personally, I feel the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Indiana
Department of Veterans Affairs and the Military Department of Indiana
misdoing everything they can to make sure our troops are informed of
their benefits and rights as veterans. It's the veteran's
responsibility to follow up with their claims for compensation and
health care. The only thing that bothers my fellow County Veterans
Service Officer's and myself is that when training sessions are
scheduled in OUR communities, we are not invited to participate since
we are not really a part of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Overall, the Transition Assistance Program provided to our troops
is very good and all of us working together can make our veterans get
readjusted back with their families and the community. Thank you for
your time in listening to me.
God Bless America.
Very Respectfully,
Gary M. Whitehead
Prepared Statement of John M. McWilliam
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Veterans' Employment and
Training, U.S. Department of Labor
Madam Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin, Ranking Member Boozman, and
Members of the Subcommittee:
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before this Subcommittee to
discuss the role of the U.S. Department of Labor (DoL) Veterans'
Employment and Training Service (VETS) in providing transition
assistance to our returning servicemembers.
The mission of VETS is to provide veterans and transitioning
servicemembers with the resources and services to succeed in the 21st
century work force. One of the most important ways that we meet that
mission is by providing employment workshops to separating active,
Guard, and Reserve servicemembers as part of their transition to
civilian life. Our services are provided through the Transition
Assistance Program (TAP).
TAP is a Department of Defense (DoD) program that partners with
DoL, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Department of
Homeland Security. TAP has four components:
1. Pre-separation counseling--this is mandatory for all
transitioning servicemembers and is provided by the military services;
2. TAP employment workshops--these are voluntary on the part of
the transitioning servicemember and are administered through DoL and
its state partners;
3. VA benefits briefing--these briefings are also voluntary and
administered by the VA; and
4. Disabled Transition Assistance Program (DTAP)--also voluntary
and administered by the VA.
Historically, 60 percent to 65 percent of active duty transitioning
servicemembers have attended the TAP employment workshops. This has
risen from a 50 percent participation rate in 2001. As a result of the
Global War on Terror Task Force, the DoD has established a goal of 85
percent attendance.
Since 1991, when DoL began providing employment workshops pursuant
to section 502 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 1991 (P.L. 101-510), over one million separating and retiring
military members and their spouses have been provided employment and
job training assistance and other transitional services. DoL was
further directed to provide these services at overseas locations by
section 309 of the Veterans Benefits Act of 2003 (P.L. 108-183). Before
this law took effect, VETS began facilitating TAP workshops at overseas
military installations where, by previous interagency agreement, the
DoD had provided TAP workshops since the program's inception. VETS
continued to expand additional overseas sites and we are extending
efforts to provide workshops whenever requested to those Guard and
Reserve units returning from the Global War on Terror. We are currently
conducting TAP employment workshops at 55 sites overseas including
Germany, Japan, Italy, Korea, Guam and the United Kingdom. Our mission
is to provide TAP at every location requested by the Armed Services or
National Guard and Reserve Component.
Employment Workshop Overview
DoL is authorized by Chapter 58 of title 10, U.S. Code, to assist
the DoD and VA in providing transition assistance services to
separating servicemembers and their spouses. The role of VETS in this
effort is to conduct employment workshops based on projections made by
each of the Armed Services and the Department of Homeland Security for
the U.S. Coast Guard. In the United States, Disabled Veteran Outreach
Program (DVOP) specialists and Local Veterans Employment
Representatives (LVER) lead most employment workshops. In some cases,
due to the distances from some State Employment Offices to the military
installations, and to assist with the rapid growth of the program,
contract facilitators were added in early Fiscal Year 1992 and Federal
staff in Fiscal Year 1996. In overseas locations, contract staff leads
most workshops.
To maintain a quality of service delivery and ensure uniformity
between locations, all workshops use a common workbook and program of
instruction. In addition, all facilitators, whether DVOP/LVER, Federal
staff, or contract, are trained and certified by the National Veterans'
Training Institute.
In Fiscal Year 2007, over 146,000 separating military personnel and
spouses were trained in 4,716 employment workshops at military
installations across the Nation and worldwide. In Fiscal Year 2008,
VETS plans to provide employment workshops to over 150,000
servicemembers and spouses at military installations in the United
States and overseas.
The VETS employment workshop is a comprehensive 2\1/2\ day session
where participants learn about job searches, career decisionmaking,
current occupational and labor market conditions, resume and cover
letter preparation, and interviewing techniques. Participants are also
provided an evaluation of their employability relative to the job
market and receive information on the most current veterans' benefits.
Components of an employment workshop include: career self-assessment;
resume development; job search and interview techniques; U.S. labor
market information; civilian workplace requirements; and documentation
of military skills.
Reserve Component (RC) and National Guard (NG) Employment Workshop
Global military commitments have necessitated a mobilization of
Guard and Reserve members that is unprecedented in modern times. The
longer mobilization periods result in these servicemembers now being
eligible for veterans' benefits, including TAP. The employment workshop
is available for most servicemembers at one of the 215 transition
offices located on military installations in the United States as well
as overseas locations.
However, Reserve and Guard members usually transition at fewer
locations, referred to as demobilization sites. Typically the
demobilization process is rapid, taking a matter of days once the
servicemembers arrive back in the United States from overseas. For
example, the Army standard is to demobilize units in 5 days, and it is
not uncommon for military installations to get two or fewer days
advance notice before returning troops arrive. During demobilization,
servicemembers may be expected to participate in as many as 18 separate
briefings or activities such as physical examinations at various
locations. This leaves little or no time for a full 2\1/2\ day
employment workshop. Nevertheless, we have found that many Guard and
Reserve servicemembers would benefit from such transition assistance.
Our State Directors are working directly with the reserve and guard
commanders to make special arrangements following demobilization in
order to present a modified TAP employment workshop to Guard and
Reserve servicemembers.
Based on requests from Reserve Component Commanders or Adjutant
Generals and through coordination with our VETS' state directors, TAP
employment workshops in some form have been conducted in most states.
DoL State Directors have contacted each state Adjutant General to
offer outreach and assistance to returning members of the Guard and
Reserves during the demobilization process. We offered to tailor the
workshops to the identified needs of the transitioning Reserve and
Guard members.
Since 2001 VETS has provided transition services to over 146,000
National Guard and Reservists. These transition services range in size
and content from mobilization/demobilization briefing to the full scale
TAP employment workshop. They are provided in 43 states and the
District of Columbia. In some states National Guardsmen and Reservists
have been allowed to attend the regular TAP for Active Component
servicemembers. The services provided to the Guard and Reserve are
tailored to the needs and requests by the DoD.
Minnesota has been in the forefront of providing the needed
transitional services to Guard and Reservists and has developed a
program that is currently being reviewed for replication in other
states. In early 2005, the state of Minnesota implemented the
Transition Assistance Program to not only assist the contingent of
active duty servicemembers within the state, but also, the National
Guard and Reserves. Realizing the Guard and Reserve components need the
same quality of transition assistance that their active component peers
receive, emphasis was placed on coordination through the state's
Adjutant General (AG) down through individual units for implementation
of the program as a part of the overall ``Beyond the Yellow Ribbon''
Reintegration efforts. The mini-TAP workshops or MN/TAP is a program
designed primarily for the Reserve and Guard servicemembers who are
limited in time to attend a full TAP. MN/TAP focuses on job search,
resume and applications, interviewing, and follow-up.
To meet the transition needs of the National Guard and Reserves, in
FY 2007, DoL directed the National Veterans' Training Institute (NVTI)
to develop a modular version of the TAP employment workshop. The
traditional TAP employment workshop was turned into a 15-module menu
that Reserve/National Guard commanders may choose from in providing
these services to their unit members. This training includes a
mandatory module that covers local labor market information, USERRA,
the One-Stop Career Center system, small business opportunities, and
the risks of homelessness. The other 14 modules consist of the current
TAP employment workshop curriculum broken down into logical and
connected blocks of instruction. This is not a new or separate
curriculum for the RC/NG; rather it has been packaged to better serve
the Reserve/National Guard community.
Indiana Programs
I have provided an overview of what is being done to assist those
servicemembers transitioning from the military to civilian life. I
would now like to focus on what we are doing in the state of Indiana.
Recognizing the need to focus on and deal with the problems and issues
military members often face several months or years following military
service, many agencies came together to create the ``Hoosier Veteran
Seamless Transition Program''. A formal Memorandum of Understanding was
signed in 2006 by the Governor, Joint Forces Headquarters, Indiana
Department of Veterans Affairs, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs,
Indiana Department of Workforce Development, U.S. Department of Labor's
Veterans' Employment and Training Service, National Guard Family
Assistance, Employer Support of the Guard and Reserves, Hoosier
Veterans Assistance Foundation, TRICARE, American Legion, American
Veterans, Disabled American Veterans, and Veterans of Foreign Wars. The
purpose of the collaboration is to ensure that Indiana National Guard
members, after deployment, are provided all necessary services and to
help these returnees with the multitude of applications and benefits.
Camp Atterbury is one of two major demobilization locations in the
Chicago Region. The Indiana Department of Workforce Development has
stationed a Local Veterans Employment Representative full-time at Camp
Atterbury to participate in all demobilization briefings, to provide
mini-TAP workshops, and to provide individualized employment services
to those Guard members and Reservists that are demobilizing. Since
January 1, 2008, the LVER has provided briefings to almost 900
demobilizing servicemembers and provided mini-TAP classes to over 300
servicemembers. Services provided by the LVER include:
Information on the One-Stop Career Centers, DVOPs, LVERs,
Unemployment Compensation, and the services available through the One-
Stop; and
Completion of a referral form for all demobilizing troops
indicating a desire to receive employment assistance. These forms are
forwarded to the appropriate VETS' State Director (DVET) for action.
An official TAP site is in the process of being established at Camp
Atterbury for active duty soldiers. These servicemembers currently
travel to Ft. Knox to attend TAP. It is projected that the Atterbury
TAP site will be operational in July 2008.
In closing, I again thank you for allowing me to address you today
on this very important issue and program. I am happy to answer any
questions you may have.
Prepared Statement of Jane Burke
Principal Director, Military Community and
Family Policy, U.S. Department of Defense
Chairwoman Herseth Sandlin and distinguished Members of the
Committee: thank you for the opportunity to discuss what the Department
of Defense (DoD) is doing to provide servicemembers and their families
with the information and resources necessary to facilitate a successful
transition from military to civilian life.
We require a great deal from our servicemembers and their families,
whether they be Active, National Guard, or Reserve, and I want to
affirm the Department's steadfast commitment to them.
Returning to private life after serving in the military is a very
complex undertaking. To assist them in doing so, we must empower our
servicemembers with the tools and information they need to develop
individual solutions to the challenges they may face as they return to
civilian life. Service members' and their families most immediate goals
are finding a job, changing careers, enrolling in higher education, and
ultimately improving their economic quality of life.
Federal Collaboration
I am impressed by the dedication and willingness of all our Federal
partners to provide an assortment of highly desirable transition
services. You can be truly proud of the manner in which the DoD,
Department of Labor (DoL), and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have
continued to enthusiastically support our men and women in uniform. The
sustained interest and support of this Committee is also vital to our
efforts.
The three Federal departments have been working together in earnest
for well over a decade. The many professionals within these departments
are bringing DoD, DoL, and the VA even closer together for a common
goal of preparing servicemembers and their families for military life
and transition into the civilian community at a pace greater than at
any time before. Examples of our increasingly focused efforts include
the Transition Assistance Program Steering Committee and the Secretary
of Labor's Advisory Committee on Veterans Employment, Training, and
Employer Outreach (ACVETEO). DoD and VA also continue to partner
extensively through the VA/DoD Joint Executive Council (JEC), the
Benefits Executive Council (BEC), and the Health Executive Council
(HEC).
The rest of my statement today will touch on the many programs,
actions, and activities under way that reflect the shared commitment to
delivering transition assistance, employment assistance, and benefits
information to our servicemembers and their families.
Office of Personal Finance and Transition (PF&T)
The DoD has undergone a paradigm shift and adopted a new philosophy
with respect to assisting our transitioning servicemembers and their
families. Recognizing that financial readiness, military and veterans
benefits, and transition assistance are closely linked to one another
and must be addressed as a whole, the Office of the Deputy Under
Secretary of Defense for Military Community and Family Policy (ODUSD
(MC&FP)) established its newest directorate, the Office of Personal
Finance and Transition (PF&T), this past March.
Combining oversight for both the Financial Readiness Program and
the Transition Assistance Program (TAP), previously operating
independently within separate Office of the Secretary of Defense
directorates, the office is responsible for a broad range of policies,
educational programs, and resource services that address both the
financial readiness and transition assistance needs of military members
and their families.
Through education, counseling, and an inventory of high-tech and
interactive resources and programs, PF&T is responsible for ensuring
all military members and their families have access to the tools
necessary to attain economic security throughout their military careers
and beyond and to make educated decisions regarding their next military
career milestones and ultimate transitions to the civilian workforce.
Ensuring military members and their families have an accurate and
complete understanding of both military and veterans' benefits, and how
application of those benefits affects their individual transition and
economic security plans, can have significant retention implications,
which, in turn, can contribute to mission and force readiness. Part of
the office's philosophy is that military life is a series of key
transitions, and that ``transition assistance'' is a lifelong process,
required for these transitions within the military just as much as it
is for the transition out of the military.
With a mission inclusive of all Services and components (Active
Duty, National Guard, and Reserve) and their families, PF&T is
establishing a national network of financial and transition
professionals and resources through a ``train-the-trainer'' approach to
ensure the DoD is responsive to the financial readiness and transition
needs of state Adjutant Generals and Governors, military regions and
installations, and individual units. Additionally, this new approach
will ensure 24/7 global access of educational resources and
individualized financial and transition plans using the latest
technology and multiple delivery methodologies throughout the
servicemembers' and their families' life cycle.
However, while this represents the future vision of the nature of
transition assistance, it is important to discuss the formal TAP as it
exists today to show how it currently assists our troops and families.
Transition Assistance Program
Since its inception in 1990, the goal of TAP has been to provide
servicemembers and their families the skills, tools, knowledge, and
self-confidence necessary for a successful reentry into the Nation's
civilian workforce. The goal is to help prepare them to move into the
job market or an educational institution. We deliver TAP through a
collaborative effort involving DoL, the Military Services, VA, the
Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the Department of Education
(ED), the Small Business Administration (SBA), the National Veterans
Business Development Corp., and other Federal, state, local and non-
profit organizations. The Veterans Service and Military Service
Organizations provide outstanding support to TAP and to our
servicemembers and their families at both the national and local
levels.
There are four key components to TAP, the responsibility for each
shared among DoD, Labor, and the VA.
Preseparation Counseling is the first component of TAP. This
counseling is mandatory for separating and retiring servicemembers and
all eligible demobilizing members of the National Guard and Reserve.
The Military Services are responsible for providing Preseparation
Counseling. Servicemembers are introduced to information about
employment opportunities and how to go about finding a job. Also during
this phase of TAP, Active Component servicemembers, looking for a job
post-military, are encouraged to attend a DoL TAP Employment Workshop.
For the National Guard and Reserve, similar information is provided
geared to their needs. The Guard and Reserve receive a Uniformed
Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) briefing.
USERRA briefings are scheduled at installation demobilization sites in
coordination with the demobilization commander. National Guard and
Reserve personnel are also informed, during the Preseparation
Counseling session, about the services available to them at the DoL
One-Stop Career Centers. Surveys show that the overwhelming majority of
the Guard and Reserve activated have jobs when they are activated;
therefore, they have jobs to which they will return. However, members
looking for jobs or a career change are encouraged to visit and
register with the One-Stop Career Center nearest their residence, once
they return home.
While at the demobilization station, they get information about
their eligibility to receive employment assistance and other transition
services up to 180 days after demobilization from any of the Military
Services Transition Offices and DoL One-Stop Career Centers.
In addition to the DoL Employment Workshops, the Military Services
provide a vast array of additional employment seminars and one-on-one
counseling to servicemembers. This extensive assistance covers resume
and cover letter writing, information about electronic job banks and
Internet access to automated employment tools (resume writer, cover
letter and job assistance tutorials), tools on salary negotiation;
location of job fairs, details about Federal employment workshops and
seminars, opportunities for post military employment networking,
relocation assistance, information about government partnerships for
employment and training, benefits for members who are involuntarily
separated, employer panels, and information about Veterans benefits
(including disability benefits).
The second component of TAP is the DoL TAP Employment Workshop.
Attendance is voluntary for Active Duty servicemembers and their
spouses, with the exception of the Marine Corps, which has made
attending the DoL Employment Workshop mandatory. The curriculum,
facilitators, workshop materials, data collection and analysis related
to the employment workshops are the responsibility of DoL.
Servicemembers receive information on labor market conditions,
assessing individual skills and competencies, how to write effective
resumes and cover letters, proper interviewing techniques, and the best
methods of searching for jobs. They also learn how to use electronic
employment data banks. Finally, they get information addressing the
special employment needs of those separating with a disability.
The third component of TAP is the VA Benefits Briefing. Attendance
at the VA Benefits Briefing is voluntary for Active Component
servicemembers. The briefing addresses education and training, health
care, home loans, life insurance, vocational rehabilitation and
employment (VR&E), disability benefits, burial benefits, and
dependents' and survivors' benefits.
Demobilizing National Guard and Reserve servicemembers receive a VA
briefing which also includes information on Disabled Transition
Assistance Program (DTAP). The materials, information, counselors, and
all data collection and analysis related to the VA Benefits Briefings
are the responsibility of the VA.
The fourth component of TAP is the Disabled Transition Assistance
Program. Attendance at DTAP is voluntary for Active Component
servicemembers and is a separate briefing. DTAP is for servicemembers
and veterans who have, or suspect they have a service-connected
disability or an injury or illness that was aggravated by service.
During the DTAP briefing, VA addresses VR&E, sometimes referred to as
Chapter 31. DTAP addresses the five tracks to employment: re-
employment, rapid access to employment, employment through long term
services, independent living services, and self employment. DTAP also
addresses other services such as medical, dental, optical, mental
health treatment, special adapted housing, vet centers, vocational/
educational counseling and special hiring authorities for Federal
employment. VA provides all materials and information, counselors, data
collection and any analysis related to DTAP.
We also cannot overlook the many options for Federal employment
such as Veterans Recruitment Appointment (VRA), Veterans Employment
Opportunities Act (VEOA), Appointment of 30 percent or More Disabled
Veterans, Federal Career Intern Program (FCIP), SBA, and the National
Veterans Business Development Corp. Programs for those who want to
start their own business or franchise.
Finally, as a result of recommendations from the VA's Returning
Global War on Terror Heroes Task Force, DoD has established a goal for
TAP and DTAP attendance of 85 percent for separating servicemembers and
demobilizing National Guard and Reserve Forces. To meet this goal, we
have tasked the Services to allow servicemembers to attend these
sessions so they have access to the employment resources they need to
help them transition into the workforce or into an educational
institution. In partnership with the DoL and VA, a lifelong learning
approach to transition assistance is being developed, to include the
redesign and modernize of existing TAP curriculum and course objectives
for the four components of TAP. TAP will be designed into a ``purple''
solution for transition assistance using highly interactive features
hosted on the TurboTAP website and multi-media mobile learning
technologies (m-learning) to deliver program modules as stand-alone,
web-based, and hybrid courses with a blend of web-based and traditional
classroom instruction. The TAP will also provide instructors and
facilitators with access to the latest interactive technologies and
teaching methodologies to maximize student participation and increase
effectiveness and value of course curriculum, regardless of delivery
location. This modernization of the TAP programs will provide global
24/7 access and increased quality control of TAP and enable commanders
to meet the 85 percent goal while enhancing the servicemembers' and
their spouses' learning experience.
TurboTAP
There is much concern about how we can better serve the National
Guard and Reserve Components coming from Operation Enduring Freedom
(OEF)/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). As I've stated earlier, we are
leveraging technology in its many forms to change how the National
Guard and Reserve members transition out of the military, in addition
to serving as a valuable tool for the Active Component servicemembers
as well. This leveraging has resulted in what we call ``TurboTAP''.
When TAP was originally developed in 1990, we did not design it
with the needs of the National Guard and Reserves in mind. Their
mission has changed dramatically since 9-11 and the requirements, with
respect to TAP, warrant a fresh look. To better meet the needs of the
Guard and Reserves, DoD, with the cooperation and collaboration of the
Military Services, National Guard Bureau (NGB), DoL, VA, ED, SBA, and
the National Veterans Business Development Corp., has designed a
dynamic, automated web-based system for delivery of transition
assistance and related information. The TurboTAPweb portal, launched in
2007, allows each servicemember, regardless of component, to obtain a
lifelong account and a tailored Individual Transition Plan based on
their transition needs which can also connect them to information on
military and veterans benefits, many of which have significant cash
value. Examples include the Montgomery GI Bill, the Thrift Savings Plan
and the Savings Deposit Program.
This portal architecture is the backbone of the updated DoD TAP
process for National Guard and Reserve servicemembers. Usability,
flexibility, adaptability, and individual customization are the keys to
successful implementation of this new technology-enabled process. The
goal for this system is to increase servicemember participation,
satisfaction, and ultimately, enhance awareness of military benefits
for recruitment, retention, and transition.
We continue to be encouraged by the possibilities for TurboTAP.
Military personnel can access a comprehensive Transition Guide for
Guard and Reserve and a Pre-separation Guide for the Active Component,
obtain employment information, build a resume online, conduct a job
search, contact and locate their local One-Stop Career Center for
employment assistance, locate the nearest VA Regional Office, Vet
Center, and Medical Center, use helpful checklists reminding troops of
key things to do prior to leaving the Service, be connected to
information about VA benefits, services, and programs, and the list
goes on.
TurboTAP better meets the needs of the National Guard, Reserve, and
Active Component servicemembers and their families because the website
gives them the tools to connect and access the information to meet
their needs when they are ready--present or future. This is a 21st
century approach to delivering individualized information and benefits
to servicemembers and families. We plan to make the transition to an
online transaction, much like banking and bill paying have become. The
success and accountability of the transition will be managed online
versus a form being hand carried to a personnel file. As we continue to
expand the capabilities of the website, we will solicit your approval
and legislative support.
The site can be accessed at www.TurboTAP.org.
Outreach, Counseling, and Decision-Making Tools
There are multiple ``high-tech, high-touch'' initiatives, both
online and in person, that exist to better serve our troops and
families with their transition, financial readiness, and benefits
awareness needs.
In the Fall of 2007, DoD TurboTAP Mobile Training Teams began
training the National Guard and Reserves. These highly specialized
outreach teams travel to State level deployment support and
reintegration programs at the request of National Guard and Reserve
Component leaders to connect servicemembers to the benefits they have
earned through military service. The TurboTAP Mobile Training Teams
provide information about transition assistance, service-related
benefits, and related on-demand financial counseling services. By the
end of 2009, DoD's goal is to have the TurboTAP Mobile Training Teams
fully integrated into deployment support, transition assistance, and
financial awareness programs in all 50 states. By coupling financial
assistance with transition assistance, servicemembers will better
understand how their benefits can help them reach their military
career, personal and family goals and provide economic security
throughout their lifetime.
DoD is expanding and enhancing its network of financial
professionals to provide financial counseling and planning services to
meet the needs of all our servicemembers and families, ranging from
budgeting and debt consolidation to advanced financial planning. To
augment our own network of contracted financial professionals, DoD is
building and expanding relationships with United States Department of
Agriculture Cooperative Extension educational institutions, community
colleges, universities, non-profit financial readiness partner
organizations, financial planning associations, and DoD on-installation
banks and credit unions to provide our troops with a variety of
financial planning and counseling resources. A key to the success of
expanding resources and partnerships is the train-the-trainer program
being developed by DoD. The websites and multimedia mobile learning
technologies (m-learning) will deliver train-the-trainer program
modules as stand-alone, web-based, and hybrid courses with a blend of
web-based and traditional classroom instruction. Benefits awareness and
an understanding of how these benefits fit into a larger financial
wellness plan can act as a powerful retention tool, or, should the
member still decide to leave the Service, can assist tremendously with
the decisionmaking process for a second career.
Additionally, at the request of National Guard and Reserve units,
the Department is dispatching consultants with financial readiness
specialties to attend special events such as drill weekends,
reintegration, pre-deployment, and wellness fairs, to meet with Guard
and Reserve members and families and provide education on many aspects
of financial readiness and transition.
One of the newest key outreach and benefits awareness initiatives
is the Joint Family Support and Assistance Program (JFSAP). Originally
started in 15 States and now projected to expand to all 50 (to include
the four territories) by the end of 2009, the JFSAP facilitates
partnerships among Federal, state and local organizations, builds
benefits and transition assistance outreach for deploying units, and
resources a vital state by state database for around the clock family
assistance. Through partnerships with such groups as the Red Cross,
JFSAP will help reach servicemembers and their families within each
State, especially the geographically dispersed families of the National
Guard and Reserve, to ensure they are aware of and can easily be
connected to benefits within their area. In this manner, we can
contribute to the financial well-being of all troops and families, and
in keeping with the new DoD philosophy, leverage this awareness as a
retention tool.
Regarding financial tools, DoD is committed to providing our
servicemembers and families with those that will enable them to truly
enhance their financial wellness and economic security. DoD is building
a catalog of resources through technology, expanding online counseling
and mentoring tools, and researching and providing more decisionmaking
calculators for financial career decisions to help troops address the
question that all servicemembers eventually have to confront: ``Should
I go or should I stay?''
Three of the key online resources sponsored by DoD that contain
transition, financial, and benefits information are Military OneSource
(www.militaryonesource.com), Military Home Front
(www.militaryhomefront.DoD.mil), and TurboTap (www.turbotap.org).
Military OneSource provides support services 24/7 for all troops
and their families, including the Guard and Reserves, regardless of
their mobilization status, and offers free, convenient access to
confidential resource and referral support. When a servicemember or
spouse calls or emails, a master's level consultant provides
assistance. Military OneSource is especially beneficial to those
geographically separated from installation services or those who are
unable to seek assistance during traditional working hours. The ``Money
Matters'' section of Military OneSource contains financial calculators,
DVDs, CDs, and informational pamphlets to assist a family in its
financial plan. Additionally, Military OneSource now features
telephonic financial counseling to augment those programs provided by
the Services.
Military Home Front is DoD's ``Google'' for quality of life
information. As a sister site to Military OneSource, MilitaryHOMEFRONT
is the library of DoD information on quality of life issues--to include
transition and financial readiness--useful to installation staff and
policy makers. In Fiscal Year 2007, there were over 1.7 million visits
to the site.
MilitaryHOMEFRONT, in coordination with the JFSAP, has introduced
the MySTATE database (www.mystate.mhf.DoD.mil), a powerful new tool
providing State and local servicemembers and their families across the
Nation with access to various organizations and businesses that offer
special discounts and services specifically for military personnel and
their families. MySTATE includes State directories, locations of
programs and services, maps, directions and much more. The website also
gives users the opportunity to provide feedback on the organizations or
businesses listed.
Credentialing and Certification
While in the Service, servicemembers receive extensive, high-
quality training in a wide range of military professional fields
(referred to as MOS's and Rates). The training, combined with military
work experience, contributes significantly to a highly skilled
workforce. Making the conversion from military occupations and skill
sets to civilian jobs and certification presents challenges for
transitioning military members. It is critical that DoD assist these
troops in overcoming these challenges since credentials help pave the
way to immediate employment in the civilian world and long term
economic security.
In response, DoD, in partnership with the DoL, formed the
Credentialing Working Group to address the issue of the conversion of
military training and experience into nationally recognized industry
accepted certifications. The Working Group is carrying out its mission
by expanding current information, leveraging assistance resources, and
promoting uniformity and reciprocity across the States with regard to
certification, licensing, and apprenticeship to assist and prepare
individuals to transition into civilian life with credentials for high-
wage high-demand jobs that can provide economic security.
Conclusion
In conclusion, our servicemembers and their families have
sacrificed much in support of the Global War on Terror. Our military is
experiencing a dynamic deployment cycle of unprecedented levels. It is
DoD's duty to provide our troops with the decisionmaking tools they
need to help them with the key financial and transition decision points
in their life to enable them to execute their individual career and
economic security plans. The new DoD Office of PF&T in partnership with
other Federal and private agencies will get us there.
Madame Chairwoman, on behalf of the men and women in the military
today and their families, I thank you and the Members of the Committee
for your steadfast support during these demanding times.
Prepared Statement of James A. Whitson
Director, Eastern Area, Veterans Benefits Administration
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Madame Chairwoman and Members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate the
opportunity to appear before you today to discuss the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and other
outreach efforts to support separating servicemembers and their
families during their transition from military to civilian life. I am
accompanied by Mr. Dennis Kuewa, Director of the Indianapolis Regional
Office. My testimony today will cover the comprehensive transitional
assistance VA provides to all servicemembers, including members of the
National Guard and Reserves, as well as the current outreach efforts by
the Indianapolis Regional Office.
VA Outreach Efforts
VA currently conducts outreach initiatives to servicemembers that
explain VA benefits at various stages of enlistment, as well as
following discharge. Many of these activities are done in conjunction
with the Department of Defense (DoD). VA and DoD are working through
joint initiatives to ensure wide dissemination of information on the
array of benefits and services available to servicemembers; including
health care, educational assistance, home loans, vocational
rehabilitation and employment, disability compensation, pension,
insurance, burial, and memorial services.
Transition Assistance Program (TAP)
Transition Assistance Program (TAP) briefings are conducted
nationwide and in Europe to prepare retiring or separating military
personnel for return to civilian life. At these briefings,
servicemembers are informed of the array of VA benefits and services
available, instructed on how to complete VA application forms, and
advised on what evidence is needed to support their claims. Following
the general instruction segment, personal interviews are conducted with
those servicemembers who would like assistance in preparing and
submitting their applications for compensation and/or vocational
rehabilitation and employment benefits.
Disabled Transition Assistance Program (DTAP)
Disabled Transition Assistance Program (DTAP) is an integral
component of transition assistance for servicemembers who may be
released because of disability. Through VA's DTAP briefings, VBA
advises transitioning servicemembers about the benefits available
through VBA's Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Program (VR&E).
The goal of DTAP is to encourage and assist potentially eligible
servicemembers to make an informed decision about the VR&E program and
expedite delivery of these services to eligible persons.
While TAP and DTAP briefings are central to VA's efforts to inform
servicemembers about VA benefits and services, VA also provides
briefings to servicemembers about military separation and retirement
services programs, military medical facilities, Physical Evaluation
Boards, Casualty Assistance Services, and various other military
liaison activities.
The chart below reflects the number of briefings and personal
interviews conducted by VBA representatives for the past 5 years. This
includes briefings conducted for regular active duty military members,
pre- and post-deployment briefings for Reserve and National Guard
members, and briefings conducted overseas. VA has increased the number
of briefings presented by 39.6 percent since 2003.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year Briefings Attendees Interviews
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2003 5,840 210,015 102,402
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004 7,834 276,574 122,120
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2005 8,184 326,664 124,092
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2006 8,541 393,345 93,431
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2007 8,154 296,855 100,976
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008 3,962 161,749 39,917
(Through March 2008)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Veterans Assistance at Discharge System (VADS)
VA also distributes information on benefits and services through
the Veterans Assistance at Discharge System (VADS), which generates a
``Welcome Home Package'' for all recently separated veterans (including
Reserve and National Guard members). The package contains a letter from
the Secretary, pamphlets describing VA benefits and services, and a
benefits timetable. In addition to the VADS mailings, a separate
personal letter from the Secretary, along with benefits information, is
sent to each returning servicemember.
Vocal Rehabilitation (VR&E) ``Five Tracks to Employment''
Based on the 2004 Secretary's Task Force on Vocational
Rehabilitation and Employment, VA redesigned the delivery of VR&E
benefits into a program that emphasizes veterans' informed choice and
employment at the beginning of the process. This redesign, entitled the
``Five Tracks to Employment'' process, included the development and
implementation of a standardized orientation program, creation of the
new Employment Coordinator position, training for the new Employment
Coordinators, training for all field staff on the Five Tracks to
Employment process, creation of an online employment services website--
www.Vetsuccess.gov, and the establishment of Job Resource Labs in all
regional offices.
The Employment Coordinator (EC) serves as an expert in the VR&E
program to provide services to enhance veterans' job readiness and
assist veterans to become employed within their interests, aptitudes,
and abilities. The EC also serves as an expert about the local labor
market, assisting Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors to develop
rehabilitation plans that match current employer hiring demands. The EC
works collaboratively with the Department of Labor VETS program
Disabled Veterans Outreach Program Specialists (DVOPS) and Local
Veterans Employment Representatives (LVERS) in the provision of direct
job placement services for veterans and also partners with community
employers to develop future career opportunities for veterans served
through the VR&E program. Combined, all of these activities serve to
focus the VR&E program on its most vital outcome goal of assisting
veterans to obtain and maintain suitable employment.
Benefits Delivery at Discharge
The Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program is an initiative
jointly sponsored by VA and DoD. The program provides transition
assistance to separating or retiring servicemembers who have
disabilities related to their military service. VA began accepting
disability compensation claims from servicemembers in the BDD program
at 3 VA regional offices and 3 Army installations in 1995. National
expansion of the program began in 1998. In November 2004, VA and DoD
signed a national memorandum of agreement to establish a single
cooperative examination that meets the requirements of a military
separation examination and a VA disability rating examination.
Current BDD program participants include 40 regional offices and
153 military installations (142 DoD sites and 11 Homeland Security
Coast Guard sites). This number includes 5 locations overseas (3 in
Korea and 2 in Germany). Participation in the BDD program is offered to
servicemembers who are within 60 to 180 days of release from active
duty and who remain in the area in order to complete the medical
examinations.
Disability Evaluation System (DES)
In response to recommendations by the Dole-Shalala Commission,
West/Marsh Independent Review Group, Secretary Nicholson's Global War
on Terrorism Returning Heroes Commission and the Veterans Disability
Benefits Commission, VA and DoD launched a Disability Evaluation System
(DES) pilot on November 27, 2007, scheduled to run for 1 year. The
pilot program differs from the existing DoD DES process in the
following significant ways: 1. VA is brought into the process at the
Medical Evaluation Board (MEB) stage, counseling the servicemember and
taking a claim for disability compensation; 2. one examination is
performed according to VA protocols, normally done by VA, which forms
the basis for the MEB and Physical Evaluation Board (PEB)
decisionmaking as well as the VA disability rating, should the member
be found unfit. If the PEB determines that the member is unfit, VA
assigns the evaluation for the unfit condition(s) as well as any other
claimed conditions. The VA rating for the unfit condition is generally
binding on DoD for purposes of determining the amount of severance pay
or placement on the temporary or permanent disability retired list. In
conjunction with the DES pilot, VA is also initiating enhanced data
sharing between DoD and VA regarding medical information.
Seamless Transition Program
With the onset of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation
Iraqi Freedom (OIF), VA expanded its outreach efforts even further with
the Seamless Transition Program. In 2003, VA began to assign permanent,
full-time representatives at key military treatment facilities where
seriously injured OEF/OIF returnees are hospitalized; including Walter
Reed Army Medical Center, Bethesda Naval Medical Center, Eisenhower
Medical Center, Brooke Medical Center, and Madigan Army Medical Center.
VA representatives at these facilities provide benefits information
and assist in filing claims. They monitor patient progress and
coordinate the submission and smooth transfer of claims to VA regional
offices. Each veteran's claim is then case-managed at the appropriate
regional office of jurisdiction to expedite processing. Additionally,
VA assigns special benefits counselors, social workers, and case-
managers to work with these servicemembers and their families
throughout the transition to VA care and benefits systems to ensure
expedited delivery of all benefits.
VA also began hiring Recovery Care Coordinators, who are charged
with assisting seriously ill, injured, or wounded servicemembers
navigate the various systems and benefits programs to which they may be
entitled.
National Guard and Reserve Members
In peacetime, outreach to Reserve and National Guard members is
generally accomplished on an ``on call'' or ``as requested'' basis.
But, with the onset of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom
(OEF/OIF) and the activation and deployment of large numbers of Reserve
and National Guard members, VBA's outreach to this group has been
greatly expanded. VA has made arrangements with Reserve and Guard
officials to schedule briefings for members being mobilized and
demobilized. These benefits briefings for Guard and Reserve members
increased from 821 briefings for more than 46,000 attendees in FY 2003
to over 1,800 briefings for more than 96,000 attendees in FY 2007.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fiscal Year Briefings Attendees Interviews
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2003 821 46,675 N/A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004 1,399 88,366 N/A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2005 1,984 118,658 N/A
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2006 1,298 93,361 10,515
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2007 1,868 96,355 11,488
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2008 791 56,372 5,377
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VA has also published a brochure, A Summary of VA Benefits for
National Guard and Reserve Personnel, which is widely distributed to
Guard and Reserve units. A special page on VA's main Web site is
dedicated for use by Guard and Reserve members.
Transition Assistance Advisors (TAAs)
A memorandum of agreement was signed in 2005 between the Department
of Veterans Affairs and the National Guard Bureau to institutionalize a
partnership and to support better communication between the two. VA is
encouraging state National Guard Coalitions to improve local
communication and coordination of benefits briefings to assure that
National Guard and Reserve members are fully aware of benefits. As a
part of this partnership, the National Guard Bureau employs 57
Transition Assistance Advisors (TAA) for the 50 states and 4
territories.
The TAA's primary function is to serve as the statewide point of
contact and coordinator. They also provide advice regarding VA benefits
and services to Guard members and their families and assist in
resolving problems with VA healthcare, benefits, and TRICARE. VA and
the National Guard Bureau teamed up at the beginning of the program in
February 2006 to provide training to the TAAs on VA services and
benefits as well, as define their role as VA advocates. VA has
participated in subsequent annual refresher training, as well as
monthly TAA conference calls.
Outreach for Indiana Servicemembers
The Indianapolis Regional Office (RO) conducts several outreach
initiatives for Indiana veterans and servicemembers. In FY 2007, the RO
conducted more than 40 briefings, attended by over 6,000 active-duty
personnel and their families. Through March 2008, the RO conducted 16
briefings for over 1,600 attendees.
As of March 2008, the RO Veterans Service Center and VR&E Division
jointly provided a full-time presence at the Roudebush VA Medical
Center Seamless Transition Integrated Care Clinic (STICC). To provide
better services to veterans in Northern Indiana, the VR&E Division
operates a satellite office at the Northern Indiana Healthcare System
Medical Center in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. The RO is also in the process of
establishing an out-based office at both Camp Atterbury and in
Logansport, Indiana. The Indianapolis VR&E Division has established a
number of working partnerships with Federal, State, and local
government entities. One of the partnerships includes a pilot program
with the Crane Learning and Employment Center for Veterans with
Disabilities. Veterans who complete the program are offered jobs at the
Naval Support Activity at Crane, Indiana.
Madame Chairwoman, we at VA are proud of our continuing role in the
transition of servicemembers from military to civilian life, and seek
to continually improve the quality and breadth of our outreach efforts
to active duty, Reserve, and National Guard members.
Thank you for allowing me to appear before you today. I would be
pleased to respond to any questions from Members of the Subcommittee.
Prepared Statement of Charles T. ``Tom'' Applegate
Director, Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, Indianapolis, IN
Ms. Chairwoman and Members of the Subcommittee:
I'm honored to be here today to speak to you on behalf of the
Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs. My Department supervises
Indiana's ninety-one (91) County Veterans' Service Officers who, in
turn, represent the veterans of Indiana.
I am proud to be able to say that the Indiana Department of
Veterans Affairs was one of the first in the Nation to partner with the
State Adjutant General of the National Guard to bring first-class
transition services to the officers and enlisted members of that
organization. Since our first workshop in Portage, Indiana on 29 April
2006, we have helped to transition 1,078 National Guard men and women
back into civilian society.
The official Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Governor
Mitch Daniels in a public ceremony at the Indiana Statehouse on March
17, 2006. That MOU established the Hoosier Veterans Seamless Transition
Program (HVSTP) to assist Active Reserve Forces, which includes the
Indiana National Guard and Reserves, with the transition to civilian
life upon returning from active-duty overseas.
Governor Daniels remarked, ``Our veterans have performed the most
important public service of all. We are a state of patriots and we
should do everything we can to assist and thank these men and women who
have given so much for our benefit.''
The program ensures that returning veterans are provided with
assistance related to their transition from military active-duty to
civilian life, including necessary medical care, information about
benefits and entitlements, and employment. The HVSTP is a partnership
between the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, Joint Forces
Headquarters, U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs (Benefits), the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (Health),
the National Guard Family Assistance Offices, the Employer Support of
the Guard and Reserves (ESGR), TRICARE, Indiana Workforce Development,
and the Hoosier Veterans Assistance Foundation as well as other state
veterans' service providers.
The Governor was joined by Adjutant General R. Martin Umbarger,
myself from the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs, and
representatives from various veterans service organizations across the
state, including the American Legion, VFW, AMVETS, and the Disabled
American Veterans.
The workshops enable the participants who have not already done so
to enroll in the VA Health Care System, file a claim for service-
connected disabilities they may have sustained while on active duty,
receive readjustment counseling from either the Operation Enduring
Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) counselors from the VA
Medical Centers or from the counselors at a local Vet Center, resolve
any employment difficulties they may be experiencing, find resolution
for any TRICARE problems, enroll in family assistance weekends, and
learn of any state veterans' benefits to which they may be entitled.
This program has been highly successful and the participants
themselves have scored the workshops with high marks.
On 17 March 2006 Governor Daniels also signed Senate Bill 75 which
established the Military Family Relief Fund (MFRF). This fund provides
grants for the families of Hoosier members of the Indiana National
Guard or Armed Forces Reserves who have been called to active duty
since September 11, 2001. A portion of the money for the fund is raised
through the sale of the ``Hoosier Veteran'' license plate and the new
``Support Our Troops'' plate created by the bill. The fund can be used
by the reservist or their family for things such as non-receipt of pay,
loss of funds, medical, dental & hospital expenses, clothing,
utilities, fire or other disasters, essential private owned vehicle,
unexpected repairs/maintenance, dependent funeral expenses, emergency
travel, rent, or food.
To be eligible, the servicemember must have been on active duty
orders for 30 days or more and the cause of the financial difficulty
must be connected to the mobilization or deployment. Eligibility
extends to 6 months after being released from their active duty orders.
To date this fund has provided grants to the families of National
Guard and Reserve members totaling over $100,000.
On May 3, 2007 the Governor signed Senate Enrolled Act 480 which
established the Veterans Affairs Trust Fund. Once a funding source is
established, this fund will provide the same kind of relief for members
of the active duty and their families and for members of the general
veterans' community.
On March 24, 2008 Governor Daniels signed HB 1249 (IC 21-14-10)
which provides a remission of tuition fees at state supported colleges
and universities for recipients of the Purple Heart medal. This will
assist those returnees who suffered injuries resulting in the receipt
of this medal to attend college tuition-free.
State law also provides that National Guard and Reserve members who
are employed by the State of Indiana and who are called to active duty
in the Guard or Reserves, will receive the difference between their
military pay and their state salary.
Senate Bill 480 also provides a tax break to returnees the year
following their return. Any military pay earned during the entire
duration of their active duty orders is exempt from state taxes, not
just the time they served in a combat zone. This will provide a
tremendous relief to this group of taxpayers.
We have recently learned that some of these men and women return to
Indiana and face the possibility of becoming homeless. This is totally
unacceptable and the Indiana Department of Veterans Affairs has lately
become more involved in preventing this condition for those who have
given so much for their state and Nation.
In conclusion, I wish to thank the House Committee on Veteran's
Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity for the opportunity to
present this testimony.