MOAA issued a press release, which reads, in part:

The Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) has expressed strong disagreement with the Pentagon’s July 20 decision to severely limit military spouses’ eligibility for the wildly popular My Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) program

When the program was first announced last year, spouses were extraordinarily enthusiastic and grateful that the Defense Department was finally acknowledging it had some obligation to help them ease their own personal sacrifices,” Strobridge said. “That’s why they were so angry when the program was suspended in February, because they saw Defense leaders as backtracking on the only funded career program they ever had.”

*****

“The reopening of the program in March offered a renewed ray of hope, but now this new restriction yanks the rug out from under career spouses yet again,” Strobridge said.

“MOAA believes longer-serving spouses deserve fairer treatment, and we’ll be asking Congress to help them get it.”

Full release can be read here.

Military One Source’s MyCAA page can be found here.

militaryspousescholarships.com/blog/2010/02/what-is-going-on-with-mycaa.html”>Click here to see a comprehensive post which details the issues and timeline surrounding the abrupt closing of the program earlier this year.

Lots of chatter on twitter re MyCAA. And by the way, we recently joined the twitterverse and are looking each day to reach and interact with milspouses on twitter. If you have a twitter account, let us know by leaving it in the comment section or

An education- tuition assistance program for military spouses that proved too popular for its own good will resume in a scaled-back form this fall.

MyCAA

The Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts program, or MyCAA, provided tuition of up to $6,000 for any military spouse to train for a portable career, one capable of enduring frequent military moves. The program was abruptly “paused” on Feb. 16 after a surge of applications threatened to drain its budget.

When it returns on Oct. 25, benefits will top out at $4,000, only spouses of junior service members – E1-E5, W1-W2 and O1-O2 – will be eligible, and they will be restricted to pursuing associate’s degrees, certificates and licenses. Of the 136,000 spouses participating in the program, 74,000 will no longer be eligible. A career counselor with Military OneSource, which runs the program, must approve each request.

The Military Officers Association of America strongly opposed the new restrictions.

“Limiting it mostly to spouses of first-term personnel – many of whom won’t stay for military careers – seems to miss the whole point,” said retired Air Force Col. Steve Strobridge, MOAA government relations director. “Allowing coverage for courses leading to associate’s degrees but not bachelor’s or master’s degrees that are essential for nursing, teaching and other portable careers seems equally incongruous.”

When MyCAA was shut down, about 44,000 of the 137,000 spouses enrolled were using the funds to pay for a bachelor’s degree or higher, said Air Force Lt. Col. April Cunningham, a Pentagon spokeswoman.

The program, which began in March 2009, was accepting about 10,000 new applicants a month and had reached a total of about 100,000. Then, in January alone, 70,000 were added, and 25,000 more during the first half of February. The plug was pulled.

An earlier iteration of the program was run by the state’s WorkSource agency and was also aimed at spouses of junior service members. Only those seeking certificate programs were eligible. When the Department of Defense took it over, it broadened eligibility.

When the program was paused, the DOD failed to promptly notify participants, angering many and leaving plans in limbo. Spouses set up a Facebook page titled “Take Action Against MyCAA Shutdown” that attracted more than 2,800 members. The program was reinstated in March to those who were already enrolled, but nobody else was allowed in.

Miles guessed that OC will have fewer MyCAA participants simply because a smaller number of spouses are eligible and there’ll be less money available.

A few important criteria to choose top military spouse friendly schools are whether they offer MyCAA, and online programs and college degree where spouses can study their education at a comfort home.

• Allied American University
• Everest College
• Westwood College
• UOP
• Walden University
• Fremont College
• Grantham University

In the days following the announcement of a temporary pause of the Career Advancement Account – MyCAA – we have heard your feedback, suggestions and concerns. We are pleased to announce that the MyCAA program will resume operations on March 13, 2010, at 12 p.m., noon (EST) for military spouses who currently have existing MyCAA accounts. Those who have an existing account will have access to the entire Web site, including the ability to create and have financial documents approved.

We are currently developing options for the long-term management of the program and expect to be able to announce the details soon. Until then, no new accounts can be created. During this time, Military OneSource Spouse Education and Career Consultants will continue to be available to provide education and training, career exploration, assessment, employment readiness and career search assistance.

Tommy T. Thomas
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense
Military Community and Family Policy

Source: Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts by Education4Military.com

II111TH CONGRESS1ST SESSION S. 475To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to guarantee the equity ofspouses of military personnel with regard to matters of residency, andfor other purposes.IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATESFEBRUARY 25, 2009Mr. BURR (for himself and Mrs. FEINSTEIN) introduced the following bill;which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans’ AffairsA BILLTo amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to guaranteethe equity of spouses of military personnel with regardto matters of residency, and for other purposes.1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Spouses Resi5dency Relief Act’’.VerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS2•S 475 IS1 SEC. 2. GUARANTEE OF RESIDENCY FOR SPOUSES OF MILI2TARY PERSONNEL FOR VOTING PURPOSES.3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 705 of the4 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 595) is5 amended—6 (1) by striking ‘‘For’’ and inserting the fol7lowing:8 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For’’;9 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub10section:11 ‘‘(b) SPOUSES.—For the purposes of voting for any12 Federal office (as defined in section 301 of the Federal13 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431)) or a State14 or local office, a person who is absent from a State be15cause the person is accompanying the person’s spouse who16 is absent from that same State in compliance with military17 or naval orders shall not, solely by reason of that ab18sence—19 ‘‘(1) be deemed to have lost a residence or20 domicile in that State, without regard to whether or21 not the person intends to return to that State;22 ‘‘(2) be deemed to have acquired a residence or23 domicile in any other State; or24 ‘‘(3) be deemed to have become a resident in or25 a resident of any other State.’’; andVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS3•S 475 IS1 (3) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND2 SPOUSES OF MILITARY PERSONNEL’’ before the3 period at the end.4 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents5 in section 1(b) of such Act (50 U.S.C. App. 501) is6 amended by striking the item relating to section 705 and7 inserting the following new item:‘‘Sec. 705. Guarantee of residency for military personnel and spouses of militarypersonnel.’’.8 (c) APPLICATION.—Subsection (b) of section 705 of9 such Act (50 U.S.C. App. 595), as added by subsection10 (a) of this section, shall apply with respect to absences11 from States described in such subsection (b) on or after12 the date of the enactment of this Act, regardless of the13 date of the military or naval order concerned.14 SEC. 3. DETERMINATION FOR TAX PURPOSES OF RESI15DENCE OF SPOUSES OF MILITARY PER16SONNEL.17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 511 of the18 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 571) is19 amended—20 (1) in subsection (a)—21 (A) by striking ‘‘A servicemember’’ and in22serting the following:23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A servicemember’’; and24 (B) by adding at the end the following:VerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS4•S 475 IS1 ‘‘(2) SPOUSES.—A spouse of a servicemember2 shall neither lose nor acquire a residence or domicile3 for purposes of taxation with respect to the person,4 personal property, or income of the spouse by reason5 of being absent or present in any tax jurisdiction of6 the United States solely to be with the servicemem7ber in compliance with the servicemember’s military8 orders if the residence or domicile, as the case may9 be, is the same for the servicemember and the10 spouse.’’;11 (2) by redesignating subsections (c), (d), (e),12 and (f) as subsections (d), (e), (f), and (g), respec13tively;14 (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol15lowing new subsection:16 ‘‘(c) INCOME OF A MILITARY SPOUSE.—Income for17 services performed by the spouse of a servicemember shall18 not be deemed to be income for services performed or from19 sources within a tax jurisdiction of the United States if20 the spouse is not a resident or domiciliary of the jurisdic21tion in which the income is earned because the spouse is22 in the jurisdiction solely to be with the servicemember23 serving in compliance with military orders.’’; and24 (4) in subsection (d), as redesignated by para25graph (2)—VerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS5•S 475 IS1 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or the2 spouse of a servicemember’’ after ‘‘The personal3 property of a servicemember’’; and4 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or the5 spouse’s’’ after ‘‘servicemember’s’’.6 (b) APPLICATION.—Subsections (a)(2) and (c) of sec7tion 511 of such Act (50 U.S.C. App. 571), as added by8 subsection (a) of this section, and the amendments made9 to such section 511 by subsection (a)(4) of this section,10 shall apply with respect to any return of State or local11 income tax filed for any taxable year beginning with the12 taxable year that includes the date of the enactment of13 this Act.14 SEC. 4. SUSPENSION OF LAND RIGHTS RESIDENCY RE15QUIREMENT FOR SPOUSES OF MILITARY16 PERSONNEL.17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 508 of the18 Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (50 U.S.C. App. 568) is19 amended in subsection (b) by inserting ‘‘or the spouse of20 such servicemember’’ after ‘‘a servicemember in military21 service’’.22 (b) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by sub23section (a) shall apply with respect to servicemembers in24 military service (as defined in section 101 of such Act (50VerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS6•S 475 IS1 U.S.C. App. 511)) on or after the date of the enactment2 of this Act.ÆVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:21 Feb 26, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S475.IS S475 jbell on PROD1PC69 with BILLS

‘‘I’ve been a Key Spouse for three years and I love what I do in trying to make a difference in my fellow spouses’ lives,” said Ms. Stewart.

The 1 AS has a high operations tempo, in which the Active Duty spouse is often away from home fulfilling missions in support of the Top 5, including the first lady, vice president, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, secretary of state and secretary of defense.

Ms. Stewart said the training received at the A&FRC proved to be very beneficial.

‘‘I had an opportunity to meet and network with spouses whose partners are deployed fairly regularly,” she said. ‘‘Though our Active Duty spouses in the 1 AS are not deployed with the frequency of other organizations, they are gone quite a bit when they are fulfilling the mission worldwide. So, we were able to share stories and experiences.”

During the training, spouses learned about deployments and missions of Team Andrews organizations, including the security forces and medical squadrons. They also learned about scholarships and employment opportunities available to them.

Ms. Stewart said one of the benefits of being a squadron’s Key Spouse is the opportunity to meet other spouses in your squadron and the closeness that evolves as a result – something which can be difficult in the National Capital Region since we can live anywhere in Maryland, D.C. or Virginia.

‘‘When you marry into the military, you marry into the military family, but when you are a Key Spouse and active in your squadron, you take it to a whole different level. You become family to so many spouses in your squadron and are all tight-knit, especially when our families are far away,” she said.

Ms. Stewart said the best thing about being a Key Spouse is making a difference. ‘‘As a Key Spouse you help open lines of communication between the commander, the squadron and the spouses – it just helps things run more smoothly and gets people together,” she said.

The Active Duty military members are appreciative of the Key Spouse efforts. ‘‘We’ve heard feedback from the Active Duty spouses how we, as Key Spouses, make their transition to Andrews more friendly and welcoming. That’s what we’re here for.”

The Key Spouse program is a formal commander and first sergeant program in the squadrons to provide informational support, said Master Sgt. Erika Perrin, 316th Force Support Squadron A&FRC NCO.

‘‘The Key Spouse program provides a viable means of sharing information – whether at the base level or at the squadron level – with their fellow spouses,” said Sergeant Perrin. ‘‘The Key Spouse program is important because it helps ensure family readiness – something that’s essential to mission readiness. Our Active Duty military members getting ready for a temporary duty or deployment can’t focus on the mission and be mission-ready if their minds and attentions are focused elsewhere.”

For more information on the Key Spouse Program, call 301-981-7087.

Source: http://www.capflyer.com/stories/112509/news_28221.shtml

Spouses of troops may get to change their state residency to that of their military counterpart as President Obama is expected to sign the Military Spouse Residency Relief Act within the next few days.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved the Military Spouse Residency Relief Act as part of the House Suspension Calendar by a unanimous voice vote on Monday, according to a news release from the office of Rep. John Carter, R-Round Rock.

“This is fantastic news for our service families worldwide,” Carter said in the news release. “We should have done this long ago, but at least we are now on track to have a new law in 2009.”

It was approved by the U.S. Senate July 23, according to previous Killeen Daily Herald article.

The legislation was put on a fast track for passage into law this year at the request of Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C.

The bill, if signed by President Obama, will allow a military spouse to maintain the same residency as their service member regardless of where they are stationed, Carter’s communication director John Stone said.

The bill will affect where the spouses can vote and obtain their vehicle registration, as well as other residency-based functions.

Service members have had that option for decades, while spouses have not.

For more detail, visit online https://aiportal.acc.af.mil/mycaa

The bill was introduced by Congressman John Carter (R-TX), who represents Fort Hood, the largest military installation in the country. “This is fantastic news for our service families worldwide,” says Carter, who has been pushing the legislation for the last three years.

Senators Richard Burr (R-NC) and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) introduced the companion bill into the Senate, which passed unanimously in August. The legislation will amend the Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act (SCRA) of 1940 allowing military spouses to share a home state with their spouse, the service member.

Currently, military spouses experience impediments in voting and property ownership as well as deterrents in employment and education. The bill offers fair treatment of the military spouse and improves the quality of life for military families by allowing the stability of a single state of domicile to call home.

Over 8,000 military spouses, friends and family members united to support the Military Spouses Residency Relief Act on Facebook. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Military-Spouses-Residency-Relief-Act/51457362877 They shared their individual stories as they contacted Congressional representatives to ask for support. Initially, Army Spouse, Rebecca Poynter and Navy Spouse, Joanna Williamson, approached Congressman Carter with their request to petition. “It has been a grass roots effort by thousands of spouses across the country, who have campaigned to get this passed, by telling their stories,” explains Poynter.

“The support from Military Officers Association of America (MOAA) and the Veterans Service Organizations who testified in our support is greatly appreciated,” said Williamson, “and together we claim this victory for all military families.”

This is exciting news for military spouses and will undoubtedly save us all time and possibly even money.

Executive Order 13473, which went into effect Sept. 11, 2009, identified three groups of qualifying spouses now eligible to apply for temporary, term and permanent employment in all pay grades:

The groups are:
– The spouse of an Airman who has been issued orders for a permanent change of station that requires relocating.
– The spouse of an Airman who retired with a disability rating at the time of retirement of 100 percent; or retired or separated from the Air Force and has a disability rating of 100 percent from the Department of Veterans Affairs.
– The un-remarried widow or widower of an Airman killed while in active-duty status.

“Military spouses that fit into one of the three groups will find more job announcements open to them. While not a promise for employment, the new policy does increase their eligibility for referral and consideration for federal jobs, providing they meet the qualifications required for the job,” said Deborah Keating, the program manager of the noncompetitive appointment of certain military spouses at the Air Force Personnel Center.

Department of the Air Force positions being advertised on USAJOBS using this authority will list the authority on the “Qualifications and Evaluations” tab. With the specific job announcement open, select the “Qualifications and Evaluations” tab, and under the “Qualifications Required” heading, look for “Appointment of Certain Military Spouses.” This indicates that the position is open to spouses meeting the qualifications listed above.

The timing of the executive order coincides with the Year of the Air Force Family.

“This executive order is clearly another positive step that takes care of the military family. Military spouses face many life-changing events during a military career that can significantly impact the household income,” said Brenda Liston, chief of Airman, Family, Wounded Warrior and Community Operations at AFPC. “By giving military spouses expanded job opportunities, the President is providing an opportunity that can help restabilize the family budget and start military spouses in a portable career.”

Once a spouse becomes eligible, they have a two-year window to use this benefit.

For spouses who relocate through a PCS, the eligibility period starts the date the orders are issued.

“If an Airman received their PCS orders with an issue date in March 2008, and the spouse meets all the qualifications, including moving with the Airman and being married to the Airman on or before the date of the orders, they are eligible until March 2010 to apply for federal jobs using the military spouse appointment authority,” Ms. Keating explained.

The eligibility phase for spouses of Airmen with a service-connected disability of 100 percent is based on the date of the documentation verifying the 100 percent disability.

Un-remarried widows or widowers have two years from the date of the documentation verifying the member was killed while in active-duty status. Ms. Keating emphasized the date of documentation starts the clock, not the date of death.

Similar to other status candidates, such as veterans, non-Department of Defense transfers or prior federal employee reinstatements, the hiring official within each office has the discretion to use this hiring authority. To ensure the new spouse benefit is included with positions announced for “status candidates,” applicants should review the job announcement carefully.

With contractor-to-civilian conversions, new organizations standing up and overall increases in positions, the Air Force is hiring more than 9,000 new positions in fiscal year 2010. The Air Force is projecting an even larger hiring surge in fiscal year 2011 with an estimated 25,000 new positions by fiscal year 2013. Positions are already appearing on USAJOBS.

“This is the perfect time for spouses to visit their local Airman and Family Readiness Center to get professional assistance with creating resumes for vacancies listed on USAJOBS,” Ms. Liston said. “If our professionals find that the spouse is missing critical skill sets in the desired career field, we can help the spouse build those skills by guiding them to the proper education or volunteer channels.”

For specific details on the noncompetitive appointment of certain military spouses, go to http://www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/ and Quick Search “RIN 3206-AL73″.

For more information on the noncompetitive appointment of certain military spouses, call the Total Force Service Center at 800-525-0102.

Source: http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?id=123177091

Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts

What is Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts?
The Department of Defense (DoD) Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts (MyCAA) program provides up to $6,000 of Financial Assistance for military spouses who are pursuing degree programs, licenses or credentials leading to employment in Portable Career Fields.

Who Is Eligible For Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts?
Spouses of DoD Active Duty members and activated members of the National Guard and Reserve Components are eligible. The period of eligibility for spouses of Guard and Reserve members is from the date of the Alert or Warning Order for Military Recall or Mobilization, through activation and deployment until 180 days following De-Mobilization.

Military spouses who are legally separated by state law or court order are ineligible. Spouses who are Active Duty or activated Guard or Reserve members themselves are ineligible because they have their own education benefit programs. Unfortunately, Public Law 110-417 Sec 582 does not allow MyCAA to provide education benefits to Coast Guard spouses.

What Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Pays For?
Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Financial Assistance (FA) pays for education and training programs, tuition, and licensing/ credentialing fees. This includes degree programs (e.g. associates, bachelors, masters, doctoral and post doctoral), continuing education classes (including those offered through professional associations), Bar, CPA and other similar exams, and state certifications for teachers, medical professionals and other licensed occupations. If the cost of a course includes books, supplies or equipment necessary for the performance of the spouse’s chosen occupation (e.g. cosmetology or masonry tools, electrician operations manual, etc.), Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts will pay these costs if not billed separately. Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts also pays for High School Completion courses, GED tests and English As A Second Language (ESL) classes.

What Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Does Not Pay For?
Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts does not pay for education and training programs that include computers (CPUs or laptops); application, graduation or membership fees; student activity cards; child care; parking; transportation; or medical services. If a spouse enrolls in a course without an approved Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Financial Assistance (FA) document, the spouse will be responsible for paying course costs. Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts does not provide reimbursements of any kind.

How to Get Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Started?
Eligible spouses can establish a Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Account by visiting the MyCAA website ~ https://aiportal.acc.af.mil/mycaa. Once spouse profile information is provided, Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts will verify spouse DEERS eligibility. Eligible spouses will be allowed to create their Career and Training Plan and request Financial Assistance (FA) when they are within 90 days of course start dates. Additionally, spouses are responsible for applying to their selected school or program and enrolling in each course included in their approved Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Career and Training Plan(s).