In this issue:
VA Reaches Out to New Veterans
DoD Announces BAH Rates for 2020 
DOL-VETS Boss Approved


VA to Reach Out to New Veterans
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is launching a new program called the Solid Start Program. It will inform new veterans about benefits and support services at the VA in an effort to ease transition issues.  The VA believes this will help with suicide prevention. These veterans will get three phone calls from the VA. The first call, expected within 90 days of separation from the military, will include an in-depth conversation with veterans about their goals and challenges, to better target what VA services may be of use to them. This program is expected to reach out to more than 200,000 veterans. Subsequent phone calls will check on the veteran’s transition progress and answer any questions they may have about available VA benefits and services. Among the programs the callers will discuss, are the free VA mental health resources available for all separating service members during their first year of post-military life—regardless of discharge status or service history.
 


DoD Announces BAH Rates for 2020 
The Department of Defense has released the 2020 Rates for Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH), Basic Allowance for Subsistence and Basic Pay.  These rates took effect Jan. 1, 2020.  BAH rates will increase an average of 2.8 percent. An estimated $22 billion in BAH payments will be provided to approximately one million service members.  The fiscal 2016 National Defense Authorization Act decreased payment to cover only 95 percent in 2019. The FRA opposed these cuts to BAH payments and is working to restore BAH to 100 percent of housing costs. The FRA also wants to reform enlisted housing standards by allowing E-7s and above to reside in separate homes, track BAH to ensure it is commensurate with actual housing costs, ensure adequate housing inventory and that housing privatization programs are beneficial to service members and their families. BAH rates vary by grade and dependency status.

Housing cost data are collected annually for more than 300 military housing areas in the United States, including Alaska and Hawaii.  Basic Allowance for Housing rates are then calculated for each pay grade, both with and without dependents. For more information on Basic Allowance for Housing, including the 2020 Basic Allowance for Housing rates and 2020 Basic Allowance for Housing rate component breakdown, online .  

Service members can calculate their BAH payment by using the Basic Allowance for Housing calculator online.


DOL-VETS Boss Approved
John Lowry III was recently confirmed by the Senate to be Assistant Secretary of the Department of Labor’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service (DOL-VETS). Lowry’s nomination was approved unanimously by the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee. His nomination also was ratified by the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee. DOL-VETS provide resources and expertise to assist and prepare veterans to obtain meaningful careers, maximize their employment opportunities, and protect their employment rights.

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