2009 Patriot Program Brochure

Patriot Program

www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov

About the Patriot Program Ohioans who are called to active duty as members of the reserves or National Guard are eligible for assistance from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office. Patriot is a free program that provides legal services to military personnel and their families. The program helps servicemembers and their families exercise their rights under the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act and Ohio law. The Attorney General’s Patriot program works in conjunction with both the Judge Advocate General offices of the military branches and the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) to provide these services. This program helps meet the special legal needs of the women and men who protect our country. It is one way we thank them for the sacrifices they make. For more information visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov or call Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray’s Help Center at (800) 282-0515. For TTY users, please call Relay Ohio at (800) 325-2223.

Patriot Services Advance Directives • Preparing a living will. • Delegating powers of attorney for health care decisions. • Determining last wills and testaments.

Ohio Law • Enrolling or transferring a child from school. • Securing leaves of absence, reinstatements or refunds for college students. • Terminating a car lease or cell phone contract. • Preventing gas or electricity disconnection.

Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) • Staying administrative or court proceedings, including foreclosures and evictions. • Limiting interest rates on pre-service loans to 6 percent. • Terminating leases for homes, offices or automobiles.

Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) • Compensation, including paid military leave for permanent public employees.



• Evaluation and referral of employment issues such as seniority, pension benefits and reinstatement rights. • Assistance with returning to civilian employment or with health coverage, insurance or taxes.

National Referrals Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) Ombudsmen www.esgr.org

Red Cross www.redcross.org

VETS www.dol.gov/vets/welcome.html

TRICARE www.tricare.osd.mil 1-888-363-2273

Deployment Information http://www.military.com/deployment

State Referrals Ohio Attorney General’s Help Center (800) 282-0515

Department of Administrative Services www.das.ohio.gov/hrd/militaryleave

Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (800) 253-4060

Employment and Reemployment Resources Governor’s Department of Veterans’ Services (614) 644-0898

United Services Organization of Central Ohio (614) 692-3929

Veterans Referrals American Legion, Department of Ohio (740) 362-7478

AMVETS (614) 431-6990

Disabled American Veterans (614) 221-3582

Vietnam Veterans of America (614) 228-0188

Veterans of Foreign Wars (614) 224-1838

Family Support Center Ohio National Guard Family Readiness Office (800) 589-9914

Legal Referrals Joint Staff Judge Advocate, Ohio National Guard (614) 336-7022

9th Legal Support Organization, U.S. Army Reserve (614) 693-9500 9th U.S. Coast Guard District, Cleveland (216) 522-3902

Legal Assistance Office, Wright Patterson Air Force Base (937) 257-6141

Naval Legal Service Office Great Lakes (847) 688-4753

General Counsel, Defense Finance and Accounting Services, Cleveland (garnishments) (216) 522-5301

The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act The Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003 (SCRA) is a federal law that gives all military members important rights as they enter active duty. It can help service members get relief from mortgages, terminate a lease and avoid eviction.

Uniformed Service Employment and Reemployment Rights Act The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA) prohibits discrimination against people who serve in the Armed Forces Reserve, the National Guard or other uniformed services. USERRA prohibits an employer from denying any benefit of employment on the basis of a person’s membership, application for membership, performance of service, application for service or obligation for service in the uniformed services. USERRA also protects the rights of veterans, reservists, National Guard members and certain other members of the uniformed services to reclaim their civilian employment after being absent because of military service or training.

Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray Patriot Program 30 East Broad Street, 17th Floor Columbus, Ohio 43215 For more information visit www.OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov or call Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray’s Help Center at (800) 282-0515. For TTY users, please call Relay Ohio at (800) 325-2223.