RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2010-02322 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: YES ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: Her debt of $5000.00 received in conjunction with her Special Pay Incentive (SPI) bonus be cancelled. ________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: A debt was established because she fell 12 points short of obtaining 50 points to qualify for a Reserve satisfactory year from Mar 06 through Mar 07 as required by her SPI contract. Through no fault of her own, she started drilling with her Reserve unit five months late. She indicates the delay was due to the processing of her paperwork through her previous unit. The Air Force recognized the delay and offered her an additional period of time to complete the remaining 12 points, which she promptly earned the additional 12 points and more. The Air Force now claims that she earned the additional points; however, they cannot be credited because she was “no longer in the bonus program.” She served in the Air Force specialty expressly stated in her contract (46N1) when earning the additional 12 points prior to Mar 09 and she should be credited with the additional 12 points. In support of her appeal, the applicant provides a personal statement; copies of responses to inquires from her Members of Congress, dated 17 Aug 09, 7 Dec 09, and 12 May 10, and other supporting documents. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: Based on information provided by the Air Force Reserve office of primary responsibility (OPR), the applicant was approved for her SPI contract on 26 Jan 06. She completed her oath of office as a Reserve officer on 17 Mar 06 and signed the SPI agreement the same day. The Point Credit Accounting Record System (PCARS) reflects the applicant performed duty on 8 and 9 Apr 06. Her next duty performance was recorded on 12 Aug 06. Additionally, the records reflect during Retention/Retirement (R/R) Year ending 29 Mar 07, she was credited with 38 retirement points, and no active duty points. During R/R Year ending 29 Mar 08, she was credited with 23 retirement points, and no active duty points. During R/R Year ending 29 Mar 09, she was credited with 45 retirement points, and 5 days of active duty. ________________________________________________________________ THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: ARPC/DPAAH recommends denial, stating, in part, since the $5000.00 payment received by the applicant was based on a full year’s participation, which she completed 38 of the required 50 points during that year, she is not entitled to the $5000.00 she received. The applicant did not perform at least 12 days of active duty as required by the SPI contract para 1.2.2. She earned 38 of the 50 points required for a good year of participation, therefore, the money was recouped per Department of Defense Instruction (DODI) 1205.12, Reserve Component Incentive Programs Procedures. The applicant was transferred to the Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) (inactive status), thus she was removed from the SPI program. The complete ARPC/DPAAH evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit C. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: She is requesting that the Reserve points in question and subsequent bonus money awarded to her be reinstated. She worked hard, completing her nursing degree, while remaining a member of her original unit and accepted a commission at the local aeromedical evacuation squadron (AES). She made several attempts to in-process at the unit; however, it was not until she contacted the commander that she was told to report in Aug 06. While the record reflects that she participated during the April unit training assembly (UTA), she was not permitted to drill until Aug 06. The Air Force’s position through the entire process has been simply that she was entitled to the bonus if she obtained the 12 points in the appropriate specialty during her first year which she was not able to do because of the delay. In addition, she was advised that she could keep the bonus if she completed 12 points in her current specialty. The flaw in the Air Force’s position is that they are arbitrarily ignoring the fact the she has already completed the 12 points in the 46N1 position, the specialty expressly stated in the bonus contract and the plain language of the bonus contract which requires her to complete her training in the 46N1 specialty. The applicant’s complete response, with attachments, is at Exhibit E. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of error or injustice. We took notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of primary responsibility and adopt its rationale as the basis for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice. In addition, we note, the SPI contract and the subsequent agreed upon contract required the applicant, in addition to performing her training in a critically short wartime specialty, to complete a minimum of 50 retirement points (satisfactory year), including 12 days of active duty. In reviewing the applicant’s PCARS record of participation, it does not appear that she completed the required 12 days of active duty in accordance with the contract. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application. 4. The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issue(s) involved. Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the application was denied without a personal appearance; and the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2010-02322 in Executive Session on 27 January 2011, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 20 Jun 10, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, ARPC/DPAAH, dated 15 Jul 10, w/atchs. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 30 Jul 10. Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 27 Aug 10, w/atchs.