BAH rates change for Sheppard members, Air Force Published Jan. 19, 2011 By Airman 1st Class Adawn Kelsey 82nd Training Wing Public Affairs SHEPPARD AIR FORCE BASE, Texas -- Basic allowance for housing rates are updated every year and may affect Airmen at Sheppard and across the Air Force, according to the Department of Defense. Rates will not change for those covered under the BAH rate protection. The BAH rate protection, in accordance with Joint Federal Travel Regulation Volume 1, Paragraph U10004, states that a member's BAH will not be decreased unless a change in their pay status has occurred. Although the housing allowance has dropped for 2011, Airman 1st Class Brandon Heal, 82nd Comptroller Squadron customer service journeyman, said the effect of rate protection will benefit many Sheppard BAH recipients. "For members already living in areas where stateside rates are set to drop, their monthly BAH will not change," he said. "The BAH changes will not affect servicemembers unless they change their permanent duty station from their current location, the member is promoted or demoted or if they gain or lose a dependent." Airman Heal said, members most affected by the change are those who PCS after Dec. 31, 2010, to areas where the housing allowance has decreased. "Housing rates are reevaluated every year and those affected by the change will still receive an equitable amount based upon average housing costs for the area they've moved to," he said. For current BAH rates, visit the Department of Defense online travel management office website at http://www.defensetravel.dod.mil/site/bahCalc.cfm.