IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 19 January 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150003972 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests correction of her military records to show she remains entitled to her Reenlistment Bonus (REB) and Student Loan Repayment Program (SLRP) incentive. 2. The applicant states: a. She was not made aware that she did not qualify for the bonuses. According to her State Incentive Manager there were new rules in 2007 and she was entitled to the bonuses. b. She is not a subject matter expert in the bonus program and she took the Incentive Manager's word for it and signed the 6-year contract. This was not a matter of ignorance, nor was it blind faith, on her part, and she took the same actions that thousands of Soldiers take every day. She asked a superior for guidance on an issue, a superior that the California Army National Guard (CAARNG) appointed as a subject matter expert, and believed the guidance she was given. c. The CAARNG wants to recoup money that was paid due to the criminal negligence of a person the Government put in place to run the Reenlistment Bonus program that caused this injustice. The recoupment of this money would neither be fair nor would it be just and therefore would not be in the best interests of the United States Government. d. She first became aware that she was ineligible for this money when the State of California Incentives Task Force began an investigation into the actions of the then State Incentives Manager, Master Sergeant (MSG) J____. Prior to that she had no idea that she was being paid incentives that people were not authorized. Her request should be approved because these actions were due to the criminal actions of MSG J____. Had she known she was ineligible for this money she would never have taken it. e. Granting relief would allow her and her family to finally put this issue behind them and start fresh. Forgiving this debt would put an end to a very sad chapter in the history of the CAARNG. To force repayment of this debt would be a manifest injustice and not be in the best interests of the United States. 3. The applicant provides copies of – * her memorandum for record * DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) ending 8 December 1998 * 18 April 1994 primary military occupational specialty (MOS) orders * 5 November 2001 extension of enlistment documents with bonus addendums * 8 September 2007 extension of enlistment documents with bonus addendums * Documents showing the status of her student loans * 18 May 2012 memorandum notifying her the REB and SLRP incentives were terminated * CAARNG denials of her exception to policy (ETP) requests for the REB ad SLRP CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant is a retired CAARNG staff sergeant/E-6. 2. A DA Form 4836 (Oath of Extension of Enlistment or Reenlistment) shows she reenlisted in the CAARNG for a period of 3 years on 5 November 2001. In conjunction with this action: a. An NGB Form 600-7-3-R-E (Annex R to DD Form 4 or DA Form 4836 Reenlistment/Extension Bonus Addendum Army National Guard of the United States) shows she understood she would receive an REB of $2,500. b. An NGB Form 600-7-5-R-E (Annex L to DD Form 4 Student Loan Repayment Program Addendum Army National Guard of the United States) shows she elected to participate in the SLRP. c. The applicant and Nathan B. B_____ (Enlisting Officer) signed both the above forms. 3. A DA Form 4836 shows she extended her enlistment for an additional period of 6 years on 8 September 2007. In conjunction with this extension: a. An NGB Form 600-7-3-R-E shows she understood she would receive a $15,000 REB. b. An NGB Form 600-7-5-R-E shows she elected to participate in the SLRP. c. The applicant and Brigadier General Louis J. A________ (Enlisting Officer) signed the above forms. 4. A Headquarters, CAARNG, memorandum, subject: Notification of Termination/Recoupment of Incentives, dated 18 May 2012, notified the applicant that the payments of her REB and SLRP incentives were terminated with recoupment in the amount of $30,000. The payments were made in violation of Army regulations and Department of Defense (DoD) guidance. She was further advised she may be eligible for appeals and/or various repayment options. 5. Two NGB, U.S. Property and Fiscal Office for California memoranda, dated 13 December 2012, notified her that the National Guard of California Incentives Task Force found her to be in debt to the U. S. Government in the amounts of $15,000 for the REB and $15,000 for the SLRP. 6. In her "Response to Incentives Notice of Indebtedness" the applicant indicated she did not acknowledge the validity of the debt and she would seek a correction of records through this Board. 7. Two CAARNG Soldier Incentives Assistance Center memoranda, dated 5 February 2015, deny her request for an ETP to retain the REB and SLRB. a. Retention of the $15,000 REB was denied because she was a Military Technician at the time she signed the incentive agreement (and was not deployed). This is in violation of Department of Defense Instruction 1205.21 (Reserve Component Incentive Programs Procedures) and NGB Form 600-7-R-E, Section II – Eligibility, paragraph 4. The $15,000 is subject to recoupment. b. Retention of the SLRP was denied because she had previously received $6,000 in benefits for a 2001 SLRP incentive, and $9,000 in SLRP incentives for the 2007 reenlistment which is in violation of Army Regulation (AR) (Incentive Programs) and NGB Form 600-7-5-R-E, Section II – Eligibility, paragraph 3a. The amount subject to recoupment is $15,000. 8. She provides a memorandum for record statement of facts, in which she states that: a. After review of her $30,000 recoupment documentation, the Incentives Task Force (ITF) Bonus Audit form states that she was a military technician from 1998, which is false. Per the attached military technician documentation, the start date was effective 27 July 2003. Also, reviewing her packet she has numerous MOS unit transfers, while she has no knowledge of being moved. She has always carried the MOS of 92A and has been doing this MOS throughout her military career. b. The following statement of facts include what took place 8 September 2007 during the signing of her extension contract which took place in the city of Ventura, CA during the re­enlistment conference for 2007. She was recommended by her battalion career counselor, Sergeant (SGT) G_______, when she was with the 118th Maintenance Company, to attend the re­enlistment/retention conference in Ventura, CA, as an incentive to encourage her to extend for another 6 years. She did not want to enlist another 6 years, she only wanted to extend 1 more year because she was tired of the military and wanted time to look for another job. With that being said, SGT G_______ convinced her to go to the re-enlistment/retention conference and she agreed. c. On 8 September 2007, she was sitting down with the recruiter and the original contract she was to sign was for an extension of 1 year. She was told by the recruiter that she should re-consider and sign a contract for 6 years because of the bonuses that were being offered during that time. The recruiter called for the State Incentives Manager and while she was sitting there, then- sergeant first class (SFC) J____ came and sat down to talk to her. She stated the Army had new rules for military technicians and the applicant qualified for the bonuses that were being offered. SFC J_____ convinced her to redo her enlistment contract and sign the 6-year contract. The only thing she is at fault for was relying on an expert the government put in place to help her, and the other Soldiers there, to navigate the bonus/student loan incentive program. While she was there the enlistment recruiters were trying to push Soldiers through the long lines and she was not able to thoroughly read what she was signing/initialing. She was told where to initial and sign by the recruiter to speed up the process. After the signing of her enlistment documents SFC J_____ stated to her that once she got back in town from the conference, to email her so she could give her the bonus control numbers on her contract that she didn't put on the documents during the time that she was signing. SFC J_____ also stated that she was to email her promissory notes so she could submit for a loan payment. The applicant emailed the documents to SFC J_____ following the conference as she advised her too. d. Lastly, she must say that she did not know she was not eligible for any type of bonus because she was specifically told by the subject matter expert, SFC J_____, that she was eligible for a bonus and to go ahead and sign the 6-year enlistment contract. She relied on her word and feel that she was manipulated into signing a contract to meet the numbers the CAARNG was trying to meet. 9. She provides a Standard Form (SF) 50 (Notification of Personnel Action), dated 11 August 2003, showing that effective 27 July 2003, she accepted an "Excepted Appointment" as a Secretary (Office Automation), GS 05, in the Army Aviation Support Facility, Sacramento, CA. An accompanying Nomination for Technician Employment form, dated 25 July 2003, shows her military grade as SGT/E-5. 10. She provides copies of NGB and Defense Finance and Accounting Service payment authorization documents, which show MSG J_____ authorized the REB and SLRP payments. 11. The Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense memorandum delegates to the Secretary concerned a determination on a case-by-case basis that bonus repayment will not be required if it is determined that such repayment would be contrary to personnel policy or management objectives, against equity and good conscience, or contrary to the best interest of the United States. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The applicant contends she should not have to repay her REB and SLRP incentives. She was not made aware that she did not qualify for the bonuses. According to her State Incentive Manger at the time, then-SFC J____, there were new rules in 2007 and the applicant was entitled to the bonuses. The applicant is not a subject matter expert in the bonus program and she took the Incentive Manager's word for it and signed the 6-year contract. She claims she entered into an extension contract under the impression she was eligible for the SLRP and extension bonus incentives. 2. She claims the CAARNG Incentive Noncommissioned Officer told her she was eligible for the SLRP and enlistment bonus and arranged for the payments. 3. When it became apparent she was not eligible for the payments she received notices of indebtedness. 4. Her requests for an ETP to retain the REB and SLRP were denied by the CAARNG. 5. In view of the alleged misinformation from the CAARNG Incentive Program Noncommissioned Officer in the administering of the REB and SLRP bonus incentives, as a matter of equity, the applicant's request should be granted. BOARD VOTE: ____x____ ___x_____ ___x___ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army and State ARNG records of the individual concerned be corrected by: a. showing the appropriate authority approved an exception to policy for the applicant to retain eligibility for the REB and SLRP incentives in question and b. returning to her all monies that may have been recouped relating to these incentives. _____________x______________ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20110020775 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150003972 6 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1