BOARD DATE: 28 July 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150014313 BOARD VOTE: ___x_____ __x______ _x____ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION 2 Enclosures 1. Board Determination/Recommendation 2. Evidence and Consideration BOARD DATE: 28 July 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150014313 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 records of the individual concerned be corrected by: * showing the applicant executed a written agreement for an Officer Affiliation Bonus (OAB), which was signed, witnessed, accepted and dated on 5 February 2015 * paying him the OAB as specified in his written agreement, if otherwise eligible ____________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. BOARD DATE: 28 July 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150014313 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, in effect, an exception to policy (ETP) that allows him to receive the $20,000.00 Officer Affiliation Bonus (OAB) he contracted for. 2. The applicant states: a. After coming off active duty he signed a contract with the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR). The terms of the contract, stated to him before signing, included a $20,000 lump sum OAB. He has honored his portion of the contract and performed all required duties and responsibilities. In addition, he has been diligent in following up on his paperwork and has made attempts to ensure that the unit processed his contract and OAB. However, he has not received his bonus; he was informed that due to a mistake made by the unit, he is now denied the bonus that he was guaranteed. Leadership in the unit has apologized numerous times and is working hard to correct the situation. b. When the OAB was originally submitted for processing, it was rejected for discrepancies within the bonus written agreement. After resubmitting the agreement with the necessary corrections, it was again rejected because the dates did not match with the transfer paperwork. It is unjust to be denied the OAB based upon errors that were out of his control. He respectfully requests that the terms guaranteed to him during his affiliation process be honored. 3. The applicant provides copies of: * his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), for the period ending 14 January 2014 * Written Agreement – USAR Officer/Warrant Officer Affiliation Bonus Acknowledgement, which was signed on 17 December 2014 and witnessed on 24 March 2015 * Orders Number C-02-502640, issued by U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC), Fort Knox, Kentucky on 23 February 2015, which transferred him to the USAR Control Group (Reinforcement) on 23 February 2015 * a memorandum from Headquarters, USAR Command (USARC) to Commander, Army Reserve Careers Division (ARCD), dated 17 June 2015, subject: ETP for Captain (CPT) [Applicant], 9803 CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Following service in the Regular Army, the applicant was appointed as a Reserve commissioned officer, in the rank of CPT, on 15 January 2014. 2. The applicant provides and his record contains a Written Agreement – USAR Officer/Warrant Officer Affiliation Bonus Acknowledgement, which contains inconsistent dates. The applicant and service representative signed and dated the agreement on 17 December 2014, while the witnessing officer signed and dated the agreement on 24 March 2015. 3. The written agreement shows he agreed to serve in the Selected Reserve (SELRES) in the critical skill in which he was accessed. The form stated or showed, in pertinent part: a. Section III (Acknowledgement) (1) He was accepting reassignment to 3rd Battalion, Support Element, ARCD, Office of the Chief, Army Reserve, and he agreed to serve in the SELRES in a critical officer skill (01A (Army Officer Generalist)), unit, or pay grade designated for bonus entitlement by the Secretary of the Army or his delegate. (2) He was currently serving on active duty for more than 30 days or he was a member of a Reserve component not on active duty, and if he previously served on active duty, he was released from that duty under honorable conditions. (3) He had not previously received an affiliation bonus for service in the SELRES. (4) He was not currently receiving financial assistance (Reserve Officers' Training Corps scholarship) or special pay, and would not receive such assistance during the period of the agreement. (5) He had never been a two-time non-select/passover for any previous promotion. b. Section V (Entitlement) (1) "I am eligible for an affiliation bonus by affiliating from Individual Ready Reserve (IRR) status, or as a prior service applicant into a USAR SELRES unit for $20,000." (2) "I will be paid an affiliation bonus or lump sum in accordance with the [Selected Reserve Incentive Program] SRIP list. The initial bonus payment will be initiated by the gaining unit commander per published procedures upon assignment to the SELRES unit or upon meeting AOC requirements for the position, whichever is later. 4. The applicant was reassigned from the Individual Ready Reserve to a troop program unit of the USAR on 5 February 2015. 5. The applicant provides and his records contain a memorandum from the USARC, addressed to the Commander, ARCD and dated 17 June 2015, which denied the applicant's request for an ETP. The memorandum stated, in pertinent part: The request for ETP is disapproved. CPT [Applicant] affiliated with the Army Reserve (AR) on 10 December 2014 for a 3 year $20,000 OAB in area of concentration 90A, Logistician. The USAR Pay Center (UPC) rejected payment of his OAB because of discrepancies with his bonus written agreement. Army policy requires that the OAB written agreement be completed by all parties, (service member, service representative, and witnessing officer) on the same date and on or before the effective date of assignment. CPT [Applicant's] original written agreement was missing the service representative's signature and date. His unit resubmitted the bonus packet to the UPC with a new written agreement, payment was again rejected because the new written agreement contained a witnessing officer's signature which was dated 24 March 2015, more than a month after CPT [Applicant] effective date of assignment. Therefore, the OAB is disapproved. REFERENCES: Department of Defense Instruction Number 1205.21 prescribes policy and procedures for management of the Reserve components incentive programs. Paragraph 4.1. Incentive skills shall be used to attract and retain individuals possessing or qualifying for training in critical skills and/or critical units needed in wartime and to sustain membership and maintain readiness in the National Guard and Reserve components. DISCUSSION: 1. The applicant's request for an ETP to allow him to receive the $20,000.00 OAB incentive he contracted for was carefully considered. 2. The applicant's OAB written agreement shows he was offered and accepted a 3-year obligation in the SELRES with a lump sum payment of $20,000 for the critical skill in which he was accessed. 3. The applicant and the service representative signed and dated the written agreement for the OAB on 17 December 2014. The signature of the witnessing officer was dated 24 March 2015, more than 1 month after the applicant's effective date of assignment to the unit. 4. Service representatives and/or Unit Commanders are responsible for verifying eligibility and ensuring all documentation pertinent to the incentive offered is properly completed. The applicant should not be penalized for the administrative errors committed by those responsible for the accuracy of his pertinent documents. 5. Notwithstanding the USARC's denial of the applicant's ETP request, he should not be penalized for what appears to be an administrative error in the processing of his OAB. Therefore, as a matter of equity and fairness, his record should be corrected to show he and the service representative signed a written agreement for OAB on 5 February 2015, the date he was assigned to the unit, and the signatures were witnessed by a witnessing officer on the same date. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings AR20150000953 Enclosure 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150014313 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150014313 4 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 2