{"id":78992,"date":"2023-05-18T21:16:10","date_gmt":"2023-05-18T21:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/uncategorized\/2023\/05\/18\/lawmaker-hold-commanders-accountable-for-timely-transition-assistance\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T15:34:32","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T15:34:32","slug":"lawmaker-hold-commanders-accountable-for-timely-transition-assistance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/armytimes\/education-transition\/2023\/05\/18\/lawmaker-hold-commanders-accountable-for-timely-transition-assistance\/","title":{"rendered":"Lawmaker: Hold commanders accountable for timely transition assistance"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

With the vast majority of troops not starting the Transition Assistance Program<\/a> early enough to ensure a smooth exit from the military, some lawmakers are seeking more accountability from unit commanders and the Defense Department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Timely TAP completion should be incorporated into unit commanders\u2019 performance metrics, to ensure service members have time to start the process at least one year before their separation date, as is required by law, said Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wisconsin, chairman of the House Veterans\u2019 Affairs economic opportunity subcommittee, during a hearing Wednesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI strongly recommend you do that,\u201d Van Orden told the DoD official who oversees TAP. \u201cThese service members and the Department of Defense will not take this program seriously until commanders are held accountable, which means they\u2019re not getting promoted,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The full-year requirement was implemented<\/a> with the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act; before that it had been 90 days. But in December 2022, the Government Accountability Office reported that between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, 70% of service members had not started the transition assistance process a year before separating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The result of that failure is lost opportunities<\/a>, which can make a difference to service members\u2019 future success, said Dawn G. Locke, GAO\u2019s director of strategic issues, in testimony before the subcommittee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, troops who start the process late may not be able to participate in DoD\u2019s SkillBridge program, which provides on-the-job training with civilian employers during the last six months of military service. They may also miss the chance to apply for a disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs and possibly get a decision about their disability benefits before leaving active duty, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

GAO auditors were given a variety of reasons for the delays, including deployments, lack of commander support and medical discharges, Locke said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The idea to include TAP compliance in commanders\u2019 performance metrics came from the field, Locke said. GAO didn\u2019t look at data on whether commanders were being held accountable, but at the five installations they visited and across the services, auditors were told they were not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another suggestion auditors heard was to incorporate TAP into DoD\u2019s mission. \u201cIf TAP were part of that mission, it might be given a higher priority,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Transition Assistance Program is administered by the Defense Department, but a number of federal agencies work together to deliver and assess the program. Both DoD and the VA deliver part of the core curriculum. The TAP interagency governance structure includes senior officials from DoD and VA, the departments of Education, Homeland Security and Labor, the Office of Personnel Management and the Small Business Administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\t