Last week, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter took the first step in fixing an enormous blunder by ordering that the repayment of enlistment bonuses to almost 10,000 American military veterans — mostly tied to California’s Guard — be halted immediately. However, as of Tuesday, more than 4,000 former and active soldiers are still expected to give the money back.
According to the Pentagon, as well as the California Guard, the aforementioned group can be alleviated of the debt, however, they still need to go through the appeals process and “apply for relief.”
One of the Guard’s leaders, Major General David Baldwin, said one of the reasons the number is so large is because the outfit had trouble reaching out to them.
No matter, if you’re a soldier or veteran and you’ve been delivered a collection letter, here’s how you start the process of making it go away. You can either call the phone number (855) 751-4087 or do it all online.
The Pentagon expects the halt to the collection and its review to be lifted by the end of the year. Then, they expect to have all waivers through by July 1, 2017.