BAH With or not......

[E3Dulaney]

Upon entering the Marine Corps in Jan 07 i was always told i would get money for my 4 year old son..all through boot camp, MCT i did not receive any extra money for my son. However, when i had an audit done at my MOS school i was told that i rated BAH w/ dep at a rate of .... for the home of record for my son who was not authorized to live with me. The admin Cpl. backdated the BAH w/ clear to the day i entered. That remained in effect until i entered my new duty station some 14 months after entering the Corps. After an audit here, i was told that i did NOT rate BAH w/ dep and i was then handed "no pay due" and a debt of about 11 grand. I have been fighting this battle for 5 months now cause the amount they are checking me for is rediculous. Does one with a dependent rate BAH w/ if their dependent cannor reside with them. Another thing thats on my mind is i love how this was not my fault in any way yet im the one getting screwed. Must be nice to be that Cpl that screwed my crap up as he is not going through the hell he has put me through. thanks ahead for any input.

[CrustySMSgt]

I believe the rules are the same for all services... but I could be wrong...

You are entitled to the w/dependant rate if you are paying court ordered child support.

Not knowing the full details of your situation, I can't tell you what you are entitled to... is the child a registered dependent in DEERS? Are you paying support?

Here is what the JFTR says:

\ JFTR VOL I (UNIFORMED SERVICE MEMBERS) \ 2008 \ JUL 2008 JFTR \ Chapter 10 - Housing Allowances \ PART B: DEPENDENCY
JFTR LINK (http://dodtravelregs.hqda.pentagon.mil/propub/template.htm?view=main)

U10102 DEPENDENTS

A. Lawful Spouse and Legitimate, Unmarried, Minor Children. A member’s lawful spouse and legitimate, unmarried, minor children are always dependents for housing allowance purposes except under the situations in par. U10102-B below and in pars. U10106 and U10202.

B. No Authorization on Behalf of Dependents. A member is not authorized a housing allowance for:

1. A minor child who is entitled to basic pay as a member on active duty in a Uniformed Service. This includes a minor child attending one of the Military Service academies at which quarters are furnished by the United States.

3. A dependent for whom the member has been absolved of the requirement to provide support; for example, desertion without cause.

4. A dependent whose whereabouts is unknown and whose absence or whereabouts remains unexplained.

6. A dependent who occupies Government quarters as a permanent residence without payment of a rental charge. See par. U10126 for exception.

U10106 DEPENDENT SUPPORT

A. Proof of Support. The statutory purpose of a housing allowance on behalf of a dependent is to at least partially reimburse a member for the expense of providing private quarters for the dependents when Government quarters are not furnished, and not to pay a housing allowance for a dependent as a bonus merely for the technical status of being married or a parent. Proof of support of a lawful spouse or unmarried, minor, legitimate child of a member is generally not required. However, when evidence (e.g., special investigation reports; record reviews; fraud, waste and abuse complaints; sworn testimony of individuals; statement by member) or complaints from dependents of nonsupport or inadequate support are received, proof of adequate support as stated in par. U10106-E is required.

E. Adequate Support. If the support requirements are not established by court order or legal separation agreement, a member must provide a support amount that is not less than the BAH-DIFF rate applicable to the member’s grade. The support amount required to retain or receive a housing allowance for a dependent does not necessarily mean that such amount is adequate to meet the Service concerned policy as to what constitutes adequate support in the absence of a legal separation agreement or court order. See the PDTATAC website (https://secureapp2.hqda.pentagon.mil/perdiem/) for BAH-DIFF rates.


Hopefully you can get someone in your chain of command to demand answers... and if you did get bad info, seek a waiver from having to pay it back...

Good luck, hope that at least steers you in the right direction.

[hawk71049]

.
Upon entering the Marine Corps in Jan 07 i was always told i would get money for my 4 year old son..all through boot camp, MCT i did not receive any extra money for my son. However, when i had an audit done at my MOS school i was told that i rated BAH w/ dep at a rate of .... for the home of record for my son who was not authorized to live with me. The admin Cpl. backdated the BAH w/ clear to the day i entered. That remained in effect until i entered my new duty station some 14 months after entering the Corps. After an audit here, i was told that i did NOT rate BAH w/ dep and i was then handed "no pay due" and a debt of about 11 grand. I have been fighting this battle for 5 months now cause the amount they are checking me for is rediculous. Does one with a dependent rate BAH w/ if their dependent cannor reside with them. Another thing thats on my mind is i love how this was not my fault in any way yet im the one getting screwed. Must be nice to be that Cpl that screwed my crap up as he is not going through the hell he has put me through. thanks ahead for any input.

first you will need to set down with your unit administration and have them explain entitlements or lack thereof to BAH… you should also acquire proof of dependency, the reference Crusty provided will help you understand all that, have those documents with you, when you visit admin… also while at your admin office, ask for the references of explanation, to entitlement or not entitlement w/e rule they are referring to that states you are… or are not entitled…. as a last resort consult your disbursing office.

you should also be aware disbursing cannot deduct this entire amount from your pay leaving you with zero amount due on pay periods. You will need to once again go through your administration office and set up a letter of indebtedness, if you are not cleared of this debt..

rules and regulations may have changed since I was in, regardless, all that I have suggested can be confirmed upon your visit to your admin office…. Good luck, n… SEMPER FI .....hawk

.

[E3Dulaney]

thanks for all the info....Me and my OIC are going to IPAC today to " crack some skulls" so to speak and get to the bottom of this. Just to throw this out there, i have submitted a waiver of indebtedness and it got all the way up to my squadron CO which signed off that i should be relieved of this debt entirely, but instead of going to HQMC it is still sitting in IPAC some 5 months later. Again, i will use the reference that u gave me to use in my case. thanks again for the help. Semper Fi.

[CrustySMSgt]

thanks for all the info....Me and my OIC are going to IPAC today to " crack some skulls" so to speak and get to the bottom of this. Just to throw this out there, i have submitted a waiver of indebtedness and it got all the way up to my squadron CO which signed off that i should be relieved of this debt entirely, but instead of going to HQMC it is still sitting in IPAC some 5 months later. Again, i will use the reference that u gave me to use in my case. thanks again for the help. Semper Fi.

Hope it helps Marine... you don't have to tell anyone an AF guy helped out! :D