MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:      

	BOARD DATE:           27 JUNE 2002                   
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR2002069824

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

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. Kenneth H. Aucock		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Ms. Irene N. Wheelwright		Chairperson	
	Ms. Kathleen A. Newman		Member	
	Mr. Richard T. Dunbar		Member	

	The Board, established pursuant to authority contained in 10 U.S.C. 1552, convened at the call of the Chairperson on the above date.  In accordance with Army Regulation 15-185, the application and the available military records pertinent to the corrective action requested were reviewed to determine whether to authorize a formal hearing, recommend that the records be corrected without a formal hearing, or to deny the application without a formal hearing if it is determined that insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.

	The applicant requests correction of military records as stated in the application to the Board and as restated herein.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

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

APPLICANT REQUESTS:  That he receive the $5,000.00 reenlistment bonus as stipulated in his contract when he enlisted in the Army Reserve from the North Carolina Army National Guard in August 2000.  

APPLICANT STATES:  That an Army Reserve recruiter at the Military Entrance Processing Station (MEPS) informed him that he was eligible for the enlistment bonus because he met the requirements for that bonus – less than 14 years service, no prior reenlistment bonus, and MOS (military occupational specialty) qualified.

EVIDENCE OF RECORD:  The applicant's military records show:

The applicant served on active duty from 27 August 1986 until 26 May 1988 and was released to the Army Reserve Control Group in pay grade E-3.

Orders published by the State of North Carolina, Office of The Adjutant General, on 17 August 2000 show that the applicant was reduced from the rank of Staff Sergeant to Sergeant, effective 1 August 2000 for failure to meet service remaining requirements.  Those same orders show that he was discharged from the Army National Guard and as a Reserve of the Army in the rank of Sergeant on 1 August 2000.

On 28 August 2000 the applicant enlisted in the Army Reserve for six years.     DD Form 1966 series (Record of Military Processing) shows that he enlisted for an assignment to the 991 TC Co in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, in MOS 92G20.  The remarks section of that form shows that he had prior service in the Army from August 1998 to August 2000 in an inactive Reserve [National Guard] status.

United States Army Recruiting Command (USAREC) Form 1122-R-E (USAREC Addendum to DA Form 3540 (Acknowledgment of Enlistment) shows that the applicant stated that he understood that he was entitled to benefits under the Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) in the amount of $9,180.00.

DA Form 3540-R (Certificate and Acknowledgement of U.S. Army Reserve Service Requirements and Methods of Fulfillment) shows that the applicant indicated that he was a former member of the Armed Forces having no remaining statutory military service obligation, and that he enlisted in the Army Reserve for the term of service stipulated on the enlistment document.  That form indicates that addendums to that form had been completed, signed by the applicant, and attached to the certificate.  Those addendums included DA Form 3286-67 (Statement of Understanding), DA Form 5261-4-R (Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum), and DA Form 5261-5-R (Selected Reserve Incentive Program – USAR Prior Service Enlistment Bonus Addendum).

The Statement of Understanding shows that the applicant indicated that he had enlisted for the MGIB and the Loan Repayment Program.  The applicant also completed a Statement of Understanding explaining the obligation and eligibility requirements for entitlement under the Selected Reserve MGIB.  The applicant completed the Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum agreeing to serve in the Selected Reserve in MOS 92G20, for which a loan repayment in the maximum amount of $10,000.00 had been approved by Department of the Army.

The applicant completed the Selected Reserve Incentive Program – USAR Prior Service Enlistment Bonus Addendum, in which he acknowledged that he met the eligibility criteria for an enlistment bonus, that he was enlisting in the Army Reserve for six years, and that he had to serve in a Selected Reserve Troop Program Unit (TPU) satisfactorily for the entire six years.  He stated that he was eligible for a prior service enlistment bonus in that he had less than 10 years of total military service [prior to the applicant’s enlistment, the 10 years of total military service had been changed to 14 years of total military service], and that he was enlisting for six years for a bonus of $5,000.00.   

In a 3 December 2001 memorandum to the Army Reserve Personnel Command at St. Louis, the military personnel officer of the 108th Division in Charlotte, North Carolina, stated that the MEPS station informed the applicant that he was eligible for the prior service enlistment bonus since he was transferring from the Army National Guard to the Army Reserve.  That official stated that a soldier was eligible for the bonus if he had been out of the military for at least one year and had less than 14 years of service.  He did say that the applicant was out for approximately 27 days.  He stated that the applicant was approximately 13 days short of having 14 years of service.  He questioned as to what actions could be taken to award the applicant the bonus, since his contract was in error.  He stated that an NCO had contacted the Office of the Chief of the Army Reserve (OCAR), who informed him that the applicant should apply to this Board for relief. 
 
Army Regulation 135-7 provides for a cash bonus to eligible persons with prior military service who enlist in the Army National Guard or Army Reserve and contract to service in a troop program unit of the Selected Reserve in a designated MOS announced by Department of the Army.  The incentive offers $5000.00 for an enlistment to serve six years in a TPU.  A person is eligible for this bonus if he received an honorable discharge at the conclusion of his last period of military service, if he has completed his statutory military service obligation, if he had not previously been paid an enlistment or reenlistment bonus, if he has less than 14 years of total military service, and if last discharged from the Army National Guard or Army Reserve, he has been out of the military service for at least 12 months.

DISCUSSION:  Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record, applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:

1.  Notwithstanding the applicant’s statements, he is not entitled to the enlistment bonus.  Discharged from the Army National Guard, 27 days later he enlisted in the Army Reserve.  He was not out of military service for the required year in order to be entitled to the bonus.  

2.  The applicant has submitted neither probative evidence nor a convincing argument in support of his request.   

3.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must show to the satisfaction of the Board, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would satisfy that requirement.

4.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.

DETERMINATION:  The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__INW __  __KAN __  __RTD __  DENY APPLICATION

		    Carl W. S. Chun
		    Director, Army Board for Correction
    of Military Records

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2002069824	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20020627	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE	(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)	
DATE OF DISCHARGE	YYYYMMDD	
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY	AR .  .  .  .  .  	
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	DENY	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	128.00	
2.	288	
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.