Several months ago, I interviewed Mike McMunn, the Director for the Lycoming County Veterans Affairs Department, in reference to the Veterans Court program. He sold me on becoming a Veteran Mentor for the program, and I was all ready to get started. The only thing I needed to enroll was my DD-214, the official discharge papers which verify a veteran’s time of service in one of the military branches of the United States.

Unfortunately, many of my personal records, including my original DD-214, were destroyed in a flood. I still had a Certificate of Eligibility issued by the Veterans Administration, but to enroll in the Veteran Mentor, I needed a DD-214. And thus, I joined a half-million of my fellow veterans who are on a waiting list to receive this important government document.

The National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St Louis, Missouri, is the National Archives and Records Administration agency, created in 1966. The NPRC is the central repository of personnel-related records for both the military and civil service employees of the United States Government. For former military personnel, these are documents needed to obtain VA benefits, adjudicate disability claims, and request a commendation, awards, or deserved ribbons. Or, in my case, to qualify for volunteer work with veterans.

But, COVID brought the NPRC to a screeching halt, and even now, it is only 25 percent staffed. They are currently able to process approximately 5,000 requests daily, which might sound like a lot, but the backlog is over 500,000 veterans awaiting their documents.

Mike Munn has noted that since COVID shutdowns began in March 2020, his office has processed no fewer than fifty requests for military records from the National Personnel Records Center and dispensed information to other veterans who wish to make personal applications for records. In most cases, veterans and families are still awaiting responses, some for over a year now.

In cases where the federal government is concerned, citizens turn to their local US congressman for intervention. Our representative, US Congressman Fred Keller, should receive a commendation himself for his efforts as a freshman in Congress. He is not just complaining to the NRPC; he is doing something much more concrete. In June, he introduced the “REopening to address every COmplete Record request for Devoted Servicemembers Act of 2021,” or the RECORDS Act of 2021 for short. It directs the Archivist of the United States to acquire the staff to address the critical backlog in service members’ records. Since Keller has introduced it, the bill has attracted 44 co-sponsors.

Congressman Keller was keeping the heat up on this issue on July 14 by holding a roundtable discussion with Veterans Affairs officials from seven of the fifteen counties that encompass Pennsylvania’s 12th Congressional District as well as officials from the Wilkes-Barre Veterans Administration office. The purpose was to highlight Keller’s legislative efforts and identify avenues for continued cooperation to improve the quality and accessibility of services for local veterans.

Following the event, Keller said, “The brave men and women who have served our country in uniform deserve a government that is responsive to their needs and that works diligently on their behalf. Our discussion today reaffirmed that the Records Act is needed and works toward establishing long-term solutions to address the delays at the NPRC. I’m grateful for the partnership our office has with local officials as we continue to put pressure on the NPRC to make good on the promise that America makes to our service members, who have sacrificed so much in the protection of our freedoms and way of life.”
If you agree, tell the Congressman that he has your support. Contact him online with https://keller.house.gov/contact or call the Williamsport office at 570-322-3961.