PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           25 July 2000                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2000035795

	I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual.  

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mrs. Nancy Amos		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Ted S. Kanamine		Chairperson	
	Mr. Stanley Kelley		Member	
	Mr. John H. Kern		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
                records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests that his record of qualifying years for retirement be corrected.

3.  The applicant states that he has not been credited for his U. S. Marine Corps Reserve (USMCR) service and for attending summer camp while in the 408th Finance.  He has been trying since 1995 to correct his records.

4.  The applicant’s military records show that he was born on 26 June 1939.  He initially enlisted in the USMCR on 7 March 1957.  After serving several periods in the USMCR, the U. S. Navy, and the USMC, he enlisted in the U. S. Army Reserve (USAR) on 1 August 1974 with a subsequent reenlistment on 5 May 1979 for 6 years.

5.  On 5 May 1995, an ARPC Form 249-3, Chronological Record of Military Service, was prepared and showed the applicant had completed 6 years,           11 months and 24 days qualifying service for retirement.  

6.  At the request of the Board, the Army Reserve Personnel Command         (AR-PERSCOM) recomputed the applicant’s retirement points.  AR-PERSCOM made a minor adjustment to his retirement year ending (RYE) dates for the first  6 entries (from 28 February to 6 March with one further 5-day adjustment due to his change of component from USMCR to U. S. Navy) and prepared an updated ARPC Form 249-3 on 9 June 2000.  The applicant’s retirement points for RYE    7 March 1958 increased from 15 to 72 points.  His retirement points for RYE       1 March 1959 increased from 148 to 220.  His next RYE is 7 March 1959 due to a change of component and he was credited with 5 additional points.  His retirement points for RYE 9 January 1971 increased from 15 to 31.  His retirement points for RYE 31 July 1977 increased from 45 to 59.  (This was due to adding 14 days active duty points which appears to be from his training with the 408th Finance).  His retirement points for RYE 31 July 1978 increased from 66 to 71.  

7.  AR-PERSCOM credited the applicant with 15 membership points for RYE     31 July 1984 and 11 membership points for RYE 4 May 1985.  The applicant had been transferred to the USAR Control Group (Reinforcement) on 11 May 1984 for unsatisfactory participation and had been discharged from the USAR on        4 May 1985 upon his expiration term of service.

8.  The 9 June 2000 ARPC Form 249-3 shows the applicant completed 18 years, 11 months and 24 days of qualifying service for retirement.

9.  The applicant provides further evidence in the form of Leave and Earnings Statements (LESs) to show he earned an additional 20 inactive duty points during RYE 31 July 1984 (27 and 28 August, 23, 24 and 25 September, and      15 and 16 October 1983 and 23, 24 and 30 June 1984) and that he performed drills in August 1984 for an additional 6 inactive duty points for RYE 4 May 1985. However, his LES for September 1984 shows that pay was collected for all the drills identified as being performed in June and August 1984.  In addition, the corrected point totals for these RYEs would not have totaled 50 points and so could not make those years qualifying years for retirement.

10.  Army Regulation 140-185 prescribes the types of training and activities for which retirement points are authorized and the procedures for recording retirement point credits and training for USAR soldiers.  In pertinent part, it provides that an annual Statement of Retired Points will be prepared for all soldiers regardless of the number of points awarded.  The purpose of the statement is to give a permanent record of the total retirement points a soldier earns during a retirement year; to tell the soldier whether he/she earned sufficient points to be credited with a qualifying period for retired pay or for retention in an active status; and to give the soldier an opportunity to request correction of errors in the statement.

11.  Army Regulation 140-1 provides policy guidance on the mission, organization and training of the U.S. Army Reserve.  In pertinent part, it states that Standby Reserve soldiers (active) may earn retirement points or promotion credit or both. Standby Reserve soldiers on the inactive list are not authorized Reserve duty training, retirement point credit or promotion consideration.

12.  Army Regulation 135-180 implements statutory authorities governing the granting of “retired pay” to soldiers and former Reserve components soldiers.

13.  Sections 12731 through 12740 of Title 10, U.S. code, authorize retired pay for Reserve component military service.  Under this law, a Reserve soldier must complete a minimum of 20 qualifying years of service to be eligible for retired pay at age 60.  The term “good years” is an unofficial term used to mean years in which 50 or more retirement points are earned during each year and which count as qualifying years of service for retirement benefits at age 60.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  It appears that AR-PERSCOM has corrected the retirement points for all but one of the applicant’s RYEs.  In making the corrections, the applicant has been credited with an additional 2 qualifying years for retirement for a total of 18 years, 11 months and 24 days of qualifying years for retirement.

2.  Additional corrections need to be made to the applicant’s RYE 31 July 1984 to show he earned 14 inactive duty points.  Although his LESs show he earned drill points in June and August 1984, his September 1984 LES shows he was erroneously paid for those drills.  However, the additional points correction does not give the applicant 50 points for RYE 31 July 1984 and so no additional qualifying years for retirement can be added.

3.  The Board notes the applicant’s contention that he discovered the errors in 1995.  However, he should have been receiving his statement of retirement points annually and should have discovered the error no later than 1985.

4.  If the applicant believes the statement of retirement points is still inaccurate, he must provide further evidence of points earned and unaccounted for and provide such evidence to AR-PERSCOM, ATTN:  ARPC-PSR-I, 1 Reserve Way, St. Louis, MO 63132-5200.  The applicant should understand that only if additional points can be added to those RYEs that currently show he did not earn at least 50 points is there a possibility he may be eligible for additional qualifying years for retirement.  If he is already credited for a qualifying year for a particular RYE, additional points for that RYE will not help him acquire additional qualifying years.

5.  In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing the applicant earned 14 inactive duty points in RYE 31 July 1984 for a total of 29 points and by making the appropriate correction to the applicant’s total points creditable.

BOARD VOTE:  

__tsk___  __sk____  __jhk___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

			Ted S. Kanamine
		______________________
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000035795	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20000725	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	(GRANT)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	135.02	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.