paying for records from NPRC?

I've never paid for a simple DD-214 record for relatives before. However, the last few months I have been getting mail back from them saying I need to pay for reconstruction of records. One recent record, I paid $20.00. The latest says I need to pay $60.00, which I don't know if I want to shell the money for. For more specialized records from NARA I have had to pay for records which was fine, but this seems to happen more for usual requests.

Has anyone had any similar issues with this? I know they give the the usual fire excuse where records were destroyed which is understandable but why do I not pay for some records but for others I do?

The only thing I can think of is that I have been recently checking all the boxes on the standard records request for any records instead of the usual Official Military Personnel File.

Thank you for any help.

Aaron

 

A couple years ago I requested a copy of my father-in-law's Letter of Commendation that he received for service in the USMC in Guadalcanal. I knew he had received one but it was lost after his death. I received a letter from NARA stating there was no record of this in his records. I then requested a copy of any record pertaining to awards, promotions, accomodations etc. I paid $60.and received a bunch of papers, most unrelated to what I asked for--but no Letter of Commodation. I did locate a referance to the letter being pasted on page #19. Again I wrote them and asked them to please send me a copy of page 19 of his personnel records.

Behold, they somehow were able to locate page 19 containing the letter I had asked for originally, but it would cost an additional $20. After a rather heated letter to the director of NARA I was given a copy of the letter without charge--bless their hearts for doing me a favor. I agree, there seems to be something going on at the archives. I don't mind paying for information, but I sure hate the runaround and what appears to be a new sense of greed.

 

As you probably know, only veterans and next-of-kin are authorized free copies of their DD214.

A $20.00 fee is not unreasonable in light of the huge budget deficit of the federal govt.

Start Your Military Service Record (DD Form 214) Request

"Military personnel and health record information is usually free for veterans, next-of-kin, and authorized representatives. If your request involves a service fee, you will be notified as soon as possible."

 

Dave, I have often wondered if the information that has beed "archived" makes a difference in price? I believe records go into the archives after 62 years and different rules apply about obtaining them via the Freedom of Information Act. I noticed things started changing about 4 years ago, which would be 62 years since most of the WWII guys got out.

The $20 fee is reasonable for a selected copy of the records and I have never hesitated to pay it. In the case of the Letter of Commodation, it cost me $60 to tell them where to look--guess everybody makes mistakes but when I make them, I don't try to charge extra to fix them. In general I've been pretty happy with the staff at St. Louis over the years.

 

I know what you mean, I have paid for records also that yielded little to no information as well. It does take some poking and prodding in the RIGHT place to get what you need with NARA. Generally I come across no issues, but this most recent time that I wrote about has been more of a normal occurrence. I don't mind paying for information either but I would like for a reasonable price being that I don't have a lot of money to spend.

 

I have no issue whatsoever with the $20.00 fee. It is when they are getting up there in prices. For example, a few months ago I mailed away for my great Uncle's ship logs and they asked for close to $500 for an entire reel, etc. That was way over my head but understand why they wanted that much for the reel(s), paperwork and shipping.

I guess I was taking advantage and getting used to getting free records of my grandfather. In turn I would hope it would stay free for other relatives which does not seem to be the case.

 

Funny that this conversation comes up. I put in for records of my buddy Larry Mahan and they sent me back a letter, right off the bat, asking for 60 clams. Now, what in the world am I going to get for my 60?

The thinking has been there might be a photo of Larry in there. I have heard tell that the photos they used for our ID cards in boot camp is sometimes in the these records; so that's the only reason I'm giving it a shot. But damned if I'm going to pay 60 bucks for a few sheets of paper.

They left a number if I had an questions. Think I should call? Anybody had any experience with this? And why 60, as opposed to 20? Does the 60 dollar ticket get you a better fare?

Sterling G. Mace

 

Mr. Mace,

I have always been hoping a photo would come up with records I have requested but have yet to find one. I actually was going to call NARA today but didn't get a chance, so I will try tomorrow and leave an update on here afterwords. Again, I was asked for 60 bucks and that is why I am calling.

Aaron

 

Sterling, When I received the information for my father-in-law, during my effort to get a copy of the Letter of Commodation, I did receive a picture of him. He is in his uniform but without his hat--a rather nice picture and I think it was for his ID card. You might ask the archives to include the picture if one is available.

 

I just got off the phone with NARA and they summed up my conversation in terms of how far they need to research as well as what they have available. For example, If they only have a DD-214 it would generally be free but if they have to go through that is called, "Order for Archival Reproduction Services, it will take more time. Also, it typically depends on how much information they have available. For example, I requested records for a cousin that served in the Navy during World War II. They sent back the Archival reproduction service form for $60.00. My assumption it is for everything they have that is buried in the archives and not the simple DD-214. Lastly, the cost could be for reconstructing the records because of the fire back in the 1970's.

This did clear things up with me even though I am not fond of the charges.

 

With a military haircut?

 

Yup, looks like we all did in basic.

 

I have a big problem with charges from a federal operation. The people there are paid a wage and benefits. I call these "fees" a double dip !

It reminds me of a soldier or a marine that was in an active battle during WW 2. He got a letter from the IRS telling him he owed some money. He replied saying come here and get it.

 

M Mace,

I live in St Louis send me a PM if I can be of any help for getting the records for your buddy.

Best Regards

 

Evening all. I'm a somewhat senior employee at NPRC and it looks like a lot of frustration here is due to not understanding how the archival program works. First off, any record closed out 62 years or older is now archival. This means that any request for the record is answered by offering to purchase a copy of the entire file. A golden rule is NO REFERENCE SERVICE. That means that if you ask for a specific document or specific information, the standard answer will be to offer a copy of the record and let you figure it out yourself. There are unfortunate cases of people at NPRC performing reference services out of archival records which is part of the reason people get mad about this. As far as the fees, this is because non-archival records are paid for servicing by the military branch which owns them - once the record goes archival it becomes public and the military no longer pays for requests leaving the public requester who wants to see it to pay the bill. The fee schedule and procedures are established by federal law and cannot be changed. Do yourself a favor and DONT write the Congressman or NPRC demanding the fee be waived. It simply wont happen. I'd be happy to answer any questions anyone has. I've been there over a decade, hold an advanced degree in history, and am generally regarded as one of the better people to get when you write for records (if I don't say so myself). We do, sadly, have some pretty lazy people there- some even incompetent. I'd be happy to help clearing up any messes people have had.

 

Thank you for this useful information, I'm sur esome will understand better now. From my own experience with U.S. records I have received several documents and NARA for instanc eusually charges 50cents a page, whether it's relevant, empty or not. To this should be added the shipping fees and cd (if requested) . Concerning the NPRC the 20 fee is the minimum fee including all these right?

 

$20 dollars is for six pages or less. $60 is for seven pages or more. The "or more" encompasses records up into the hundreds of pages. So its a good deal as you purchase 300 pages but pay the same price you would pay for ten. The person who pays $60 for seven pages does get a very raw deal - a lot of the people at NPRC will be very lenient and not bump up to the $60 dollar mark unless the case starts pushing above ten to twenty pages. There is also a special category called "Persons of Exceptional Prominence" (PEP) like Patton, MacArthur, Nimitz, etc. They are charged page for page 60 cents and a full record copy can run above one thousand dollars. and, yes, we have had people who had purchased entire famous records at those prices. Most of the time though, people visit the Cetner to look at them and only copy the pages you want. I got my personal copy of pertinent documents from MacArthuir's record for about $120. Vandegrfit for $85

 

I would like to request the records for two of my uncles who served in the army
during the war.

Is there anything I can do to ensure you receive my requests, or is work there
assigned randomly to the staff?


Dave

 

There is an Assignment Manager Computer System which gives work to various people in the agency. There is also a special office called the Reconstruction Branch which handles most World War II Army work due to the 1973 Fire Damage. Its actually a fairly big deal and very much frowned upon practice for individuals at NPRC to offer to help people and do cases for them - in a sense becoming their own personal archives technician. Long story behind why that it is; I’d love to put my number up on this site and help everyone, but would get in very serious trouble if I did.

 

First off, thank you very much for coming on the website and answering questions personally.

I also have a question about records. The very first time I mailed away for records, I asked for my grandfather's DD-214 from the Army. Several weeks later, I got his exact paper. Didn't ALL the Army papers burn in the 1973 fire? If so, how did my grandfather's paper show up? Every other relative that served in the Army that I have requested papers for I get the fire burned it all response. Thanks again.

Aaron