By Debbie Gregory.

The VA Disability Compensation Rates will increase 2.8 percent in 2019. This is the largest increase since 2012. These increases are tied to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures a broad sampling of the cost of consumer goods and expenses. The CPI is compared to the previous year’s numbers. If there is an increase, a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is made. If there is no increase, there is no COLA. The COLA affects about one of every five Americans, including Social Security recipients, disabled veterans, federal retirees and retired military members. In 2018, the COLA was 2.0 percent; in 2017, retirees saw a 0.3 percent increase. There was no increase at all in 2016; the last time COLA increased by more than 2.8 percent was 2012, when compensation rates got a 3.6 percent hike.

The VA has strange computation rules that make working out the exact rates impossible. Therefore, the final amounts are not yet available but we can approximate the 2019 benefits based on the cost of living increase. These benefits are paid the first of each month for the prior month. Below is an unofficial approximation of the increases for various levels of VA Disability just for the Veteran and not including spouses or dependents:

10 percent – $140.05
20 percent – $276.84
30 percent – $428.83
40 percent – $617.73
50 percent – $879.36
60 percent – $1,113.86
70 percent – $1,403.71
80 percent – $1,631.69
90 percent – $1,833.62
100 percent – $3,057.13

We are grateful to every Veteran who served and sacrificed.

By Debbie Gregory.

It scours the bottom of Navy ships, invades the crevices of Air Force jets and costs the Pentagon more money annually than many of its most expensive weapons systems—up to $21 billion per year, according to a Defense Department-commissioned audit.

Corrosion happens to anything exposed to weather, including the metals that make up modern weapons systems like fighter jets, ships, ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons.

In 2002, the department established the Office of Corrosion Policy and Oversight to ensure big-dollar weapons systems weren’t taken offline by oxidation and to help branches determine how much money ought to be spent on rust prevention.

Technically, the problem is bigger than just rust. Rust is only the most commonly known type of corrosion, and occurs when iron reacts with water or moist air. The broader category includes any type of metal broken down or disintegrated by a chemical reaction. Data being reported by the military branches has been inconsistent and the office has yet to issue guidance on how funding levels should be categorized, according to a related audit released Thursday by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).

“The Army data GAO received did not reconcile with data presented in the Corrosion Office annual reports to Congress for five of eight fiscal years,” auditors wrote. “The Navy data did not reconcile for two of eight fiscal years, and there was no supporting documentation identifying how these figures were calculated. Air Force officials did not provide any figures or supporting documentation for four fiscal years, stating that these figures were not available.”

Army officials told GAO they’re not able to accurately report how much is spent preventing or combating corrosion because many of those duties are performed by personnel who do many other things, as well.

“The corrosion-related costs of conducting the corrosion executive role are not separated from this other function,” they told GAO.

The GAO has made the following recommendations to the Defense Department:

• Issue guidance for identifying and reviewing funding levels for performing corrosion executive duties.
• Ensure that the Corrosion Office develops a process to maintain documentation of its reviews of corrosion planning.
• Ensure that corrosion executives establish guidance on reviewing the adequacy of corrosion planning.

While the military is looking into more coating options – from aluminum- to polyurethane-based waterproofing – there are some alternatives. Cathodic protection is an electro-chemical process that prevents corrosion entirely, and super-finishing is a surface treatment process that prevents damage from friction.

By Debbie Gregory.

Establishing business credit is an important step for any new business. Business credit allows a company to borrow money that can be used to purchase products or services.

Having a business credit history separate from a personal one minimizes the effect negative events on one might have on the other. For example, financial missteps that impact personal credit history and score wouldn’t impact the business credit if there is a clear separation, and vice versa. Setting up a separate legal entity, such as a limited liability company or corporation also provides protection of personal assets.

The first step is to structure your business as a separate legal entity.

Next, obtain a federal tax identification number (EIN). The EIN is basically a social security number for a business.

Open a business checking account in the legal business name. Once open, be sure to pay the financial transactions of the business from that account. Apply for and use a business credit card, and be sure to pay the credit card bill from your business checking account.

Open a business credit file with all three business reporting agencies: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. It’s important to closely monitor your business credit reports and scores on a regular basis to ensure the information reporting is accurate and up to date.

Establish a line of credit with vendors or suppliers. Work with at least five vendors and/or suppliers to create credit for your company to use when purchasing with them. Ask them to report your payment history to the credit reporting agencies.

Most importantly, be sure to pay your bills on time. Just like with your personal credit, late payments will negatively impact your business credit.

By establishing business credit; banks, lenders, suppliers, retailers, insurers and investors will now be able to better access the viability and creditworthiness of your business. Ultimately, your business credit report will impact the amount of credit, payment terms, interest rates and insurance premiums your business will pay.

By Debbie Gregory.

HIRE Vets Medallion Program Demonstration Award shines a light on the employers who hire our nation’s veterans. Many veteran business owners fall into that category.

The program is set to kick off in 2019 and utilizes the requirements and criteria of the Honoring Investments in Recruiting and Employing American Military Veterans Act of 2017 (HIRE Vets Act) to determine the recipients.

The program will recognize large employers (500-plus employees), medium employers (51-499 employees), and small employers (50 or fewer employees). Additionally, there are two award tiers: Gold and Platinum.

The demonstration will use the same criteria as the full HIRE Vets Medallion Program and enable more employers to prepare to successfully complete the medallion award application for the full implementation of the program in 2019.

The criteria for most of the awards are based upon the following measures:
1. Percentage of new hires during the previous year that are veterans;
2. Percentage of veteran employees retained for a period of at least 12 months;
3. Percentage of employees who are veterans;
4. Provision of an employee veteran organization or resource group to assist new veteran employees with integration, including coaching and mentoring;
5. Provision of programs to enhance the leadership skills of veteran employees during their employment;
6. Employment of a dedicated human resources professional or initiatives to support hiring, training, and retention of veteran employees;
7. Provision of compensation, to employees serving on active duty in the United States National Guard or Reserve, that is sufficient, in combination with the employee’s active duty pay, to achieve a combined level of income commensurate with the employee’s salary prior to undertaking active duty;
8. Provision of a tuition assistance program to support veteran employees’ attendance in postsecondary education during the term of their employment; and
9. Employer with an adverse labor law decision, stipulated agreement, contract debarment, or contract termination, as defined in the rule, pursuant to either of the following labor laws will not be eligible to receive an Award: Uniform Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA); or Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA).

“Military service develops leadership skills, technical expertise, and problem-solving capabilities — all in demand by America’s companies,” said U.S. Secretary of Labor Alexander Acosta. “The HIRE Vets Medallion Program provides a tremendous opportunity for employers to recruit talented veterans and demonstrate support for those who have sacrificed so much for their country.”

By Debbie Gregory

Microsoft has strongly defended its work with the U.S. military, in response to a group identifying itself as “Employees of Microsoft” who want the tech giant to forego bids on the Pentagon’s $10 billion cloud procurement.

Microsoft President Brad Smith has responded, saying that Microsoft is proud of its long history of technology contracts with the Department of Defense, and will continue working to make sure the military has “access to the nation’s best technology, including from Microsoft.”

Smith added that Microsoft employees who want to switch teams can apply for other open jobs within the company, according to a blog article he wrote.

“We want the people of this country, and especially the people who serve this country, to know that we at Microsoft have their back,” he wrote. “They will have access to the best technology that we create.”

Microsoft also pledged to “engage as a company in the public dialogue” with the Defense Department and policymakers about ethical issues surrounding artificial intelligence, including autonomous weapons. By working with the military and government, Microsoft can be more directly involved in these ethics conversations, Smith wrote.

The opposition from the Microsoft employee group is just the latest episode in an ongoing ethical crisis within the U.S. technology industry.

Earlier this year, Google’s decision to provide artificial intelligence to Project Maven cost the company dozens of employees, who resigned in mass protest.

Additionally, Microsoft faced internal furor last spring and early summer over their contractual connections to ICE, as the agency was embroiled in the controversial separation and detainment of migrant children at the border.

Amazon has also faced criticism from employees and the American Civil Liberties Union over the marketing of its facial-recognition software, Rekognition, to law enforcement agencies.

The concept of lethal Artificial Intelligence is just one area where hundreds of tech workers are trying to influence corporate behavior and ethics by signing a pledge not to work on lethal autonomous weapons.