Thanks all for quick reply, sorry I've been very slow to respond. The required process is first to appeal to the Council Advancement Committee, and then (if denied) to appeal to the National level via the Council. @fred8033, as far as I know it's not possible to directly appeal to national; I don't mean not allowed, but literally there is no place to directly send an appeal. @InquisitiveScouter, Council did not copy us, but they have confirmed verbally that it was sent fairly promptly. I can well believe that this delay is normal, but it sure would be nice to have some hint as to how long