RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2013-00041 XXXXXXX COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His records be corrected to show that he was authorized Foreign Language Proficiency Pay (FLPP) for the period from 9 Jun 2011 through 20 Jul 2011. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: On 9 Jun 2011, he completed his re-certification. On 20 Jul 2011, he took the Upper Range (UR) Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT). While achieving a higher score would have given him a new certification date, this examination had no bearing on his current certification. He would not have been eligible to take the UR DLPT without first being certified on the Lower Range (LR) DLPT. In support of his request, the applicant provides copies of DoDI 7280.03, Foreign Language Proficiency Bonus (FLPB), DFAS-IN Form 0-641, Statement of Military Pay Account, and Foreign Language Earned/Paid Spreadsheet. The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the letter prepared by the appropriate office of the Air Force. Accordingly, there is no need to recite these facts in this Record of Proceedings. ________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIM recommends denial. DPSIM states that in accordance with AFI 36-2605, Air Force Military Personnel Testing System, paragraph 1.19.3. "Individuals receiving FLPB must re-certify (retest) annually." AFI 36-2605, paragraph A10.6.1. states "Retest personnel receiving FLPB within 12 months of previous administration. Unless otherwise required, personnel testing to qualify or re-qualify for FLPB are responsible for meeting this requirement. Failure to meet the annual requirement will result in the loss of FLPB." While the applicant states he re- certified on the LR DLPT on 9 Jun 2011, and took the UR DPLT; without any documentation to support his claim, they cannot determine the validity of the error. The complete DPSIM evaluation is at Exhibit C. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: On 25 Oct 2013, the applicant provided a copy of DA Form 330, Language Proficiency Questionnaire. His complete submission is at Exhibit D. ________________________________________________________________ ADDITIONAL AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSIM recommends denial. DPSIM states that in accordance with Air Force Personnel Test Catalog, DLPT-V, the applicant is required to have a passing score in the UR tests for the Korean Language to receive FLPP ($400 per month). To quality for the UR tests for the Korean language, the applicant first needed to complete the LR tests for the same language with a passing score; which he completed on 9 Jun 2011. He would not receive any FLPP pay between the LR tests and the UR tests, due to the fact he needed a passing UR test score to receive FLPP pay for the Korean language. His FLPP pay should not have started until he completed his UR test on 21 Jul 2011. The complete DPSIM evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit E. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE ADDITIONAL AIR FORCE EVALUATION: The interpretation regarding Air Force Personnel Test Catalog, DLPT-V is incorrect. This document is simply stating that DLPT- V in Korean was only available for the UR. At the time the test was administered, a score of “2” on the LR was required to satisfy the annual re-certification requirement outlined in AFI 36-2605. The LR had a max score of “3,” which he successfully achieved on 9 Jun 2011; thereby satisfying the requirement outlined in AFI 36-2605. On the other hand, the UR had a max score of “4” affording him the opportunity to improve his score and thereby increase his FLPB. However, he was required to have a score of “3” on the LR in order to be allowed to take the UR. Because of this, the minimum score on the UR was a “3.” The DLPT-V did not become the official test of record for Korean until Oct 2011. Therefore, achieving a passing score on the DLPT-IV on 9 Jun 2011 satisfied the annual testing requirement according to AFI 36-2605. Therefore, his FLPB payments were not made in error. The applicant’s complete response is at Exhibit G. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. After carefully reviewing the applicant’s complete submission we find the evidence presented is sufficient to grant the requested relief. In this respect, we note the applicant provided a copy of DA Form 330, which reflects that he satisfied the annual re- certification requirement as outlined in AFI 36-36-2605. Additionally, the Board staff contacted the OPR and they are now in agreement that the applicant should have been authorized FLPP from 9 Jun 2011 through 20 Jul 2011. Therefore, we believe the applicant has suffered an injustice and the records should be corrected to show that he was authorized FLPP for the contested period. Accordingly, we recommend his records be corrected as indicated below. ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that he was authorized Foreign Language Proficiency Pay from 9 Jun 2011 through 20 Jul 2011 in the amount of $560.00. ________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR BC-2013- 00041 in Executive Session on 29 Oct 2013 and 11 Dec 2013, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: , Panel Chair , Member , Member ? All members voted to correct the record as recommended. The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR BC-2013- 00041 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 18 Jan 2013, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIM, dated 23 Aug 2013. Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 19 Sep 2013. Exhibit D. DA Form 330, Language Proficiency Questionnaire. Exhibit E. Letter, AFPC/DPSIM, dated 15 Nov 2013, w/atch. Exhibit F. Letter, SAF/MRBC, dated 15 Nov 2013, w/atch. Exhibit G. Electronic Communiqué, Applicant, dated 16 Nov 2013. 3 4