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Oh I see what they did there. Very sneaky. I’ll definitely point this out to Kevin
Comment by Katie — February 10, 2010 @ 6:51 pm
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911GIBill Break Pay
February 10th, 2010
Help get this word out!
As you may be aware, I am attending college full time using my Post 9/11 GI-Bill. Recently, I had a couple of questions for the Veterans Administration (VA) – first question concerned two payments I received that I didn’t expect (nor did I know what they were for); one payment just before Christmas and the other at the beginning of January, and my second question had to do with why my current Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) payment didn’t equal the 2010 amount for the schools zip code.
First, the latter BAH question. The issue is that the VA is having to update all the records by hand, as the automated system hasn’t been finished; as a matter of fact, that is the reason the GI-Bill call center is only open for calls Monday-Wednesday. Thursday and Friday is spent updating records. Short answer: The BAH will be increased to the 2010 amount (if your school’s zip code realized an increase). The “when” is depending on how long it takes to hand input the changes, but you will receive back pay to catch-up, so no worries 
Payment of BAH during the winter break, the period of time between the fall and spring semesters. I was informed that I lost a month of benefit! Well, I am miss-stating that; I didn’t lose a month of benefit as I was paid BAH, but I did lose a month of future tuition payment. I now get 35 months of tuition vice the original, non-break pay, 36 months of benefit… [See how I am wording all this?! That's why I need more schooling! ] Getting the BAH over the break may be the right thing for you, but know that you will be losing a month of future tuition payments if you do.
Summer break, the time off between the spring and fall semester. You will not get break pay during the summer unless you decide to take summer classes. Each month you receive BAH it will count fully against your overall benefit even if you do not realize the tuition.
Anyway, to ensure I do not experience the same thing in the future, I must ensure that I tell my VA representative at my school to write in the notes of your continuing attendance document, “Do Not Pay Break Pay.” If you don’t need the BAH over the break and you want to keep the maximum amount of tuition payment months, I suggest you do the same.
To contact the call center: 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551)
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