RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF: 			DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2015-04301

XXXXXXXXX (MEMBERS)			COUNSEL:  NONE

						HEARING DESIRED:  YES 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

She be paid for 34.5 days of lost terminal leave.  

She be paid basic allowance for housing (BAH) and basic allowance for subsistence (BAS).  

She receive 20.0 days of pay for permissive temporary duty (TDY) for house hunting.  

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

She was unable to fully out-process and take earned terminal leave due to mission related reasons.  Her loss of terminal leave days included unjustly not receiving BAS and BAH.  Her supervisor was aware of her impending retirement; however, she was not relieved of her duties and allowed to take leave.  As a result she lost her terminal leave, days for house hunting, and not being able to prepare her resume for transitioning properly for employment.  

She had a leave balance of 80.0 days at her estimated time of separation.  She previously was paid for 14.5 days leave and since the Air Force only allows a member to be paid for a total of 60 days in their career, she was left with a maximum of 45.5 days to be sold.  

She did not take any leave prior to her departure.  Her leave balance of 80.0 days minus the 45.5 maximum days she could have been paid, left her with a balance of 34.5 days lost.  If she had been allowed to take the 34.5 days leave, receive BAS, BAH, and 20 days’ pay for house hunting, her total amount of compensation would have been $11,292.94.  

She was unable to get a retirement physical or final dental cleaning/examination before her retirement/separation date.  

The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A.

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

On 30 September 2013, the applicant was relieved from active duty, and retired in the grade of master sergeant, effective 1 October 2013.  

According to the applicant’s leave and earning statement (LES) covering the period of 1 through 30 September 2013, she had a leave balance forward of 67.5 days leave from fiscal year (FY) 2012 into FY 2013.  During FY13, she earned 30 days of leave, bringing her balance to 97.5 days leave (67.5 + 30.0).  She used a total of 20.0 days leave.  Her new balance was 77.5 days (97.5 – 20.0).  During this month she accrued an additional 2.5 days leave, bringing her total to 80.0 days leave (77.5 + 2.5).  In addition, her LES indicated she was paid for 14.5 days leave.  

According to the applicant’s LES covering the period of 1 through 31 October 2013, she was paid lump sum leave (LSL) in the amount of $7,428.33 for 45.5 days of unused leave.  

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the memorandums prepared by the Air Force offices of primary responsibility (OPR), which are attached at Exhibits C, E, and F.   

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

NGB/FM recommends the applicant’s case be forwarded to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) for payment of 45.5 days of leave.  In accordance with (IAW) Air Force Instruction (AFI) 36-3003, Military Leave Program, a member can sell up to 60 days of leave during a career.  Per the applicant’s leave master record at the time of her retirement she had a total of 75.0 leave days and she had only sold 14.5 days of leave.  Therefore, the applicant should have been paid for 45.5 days of leave in her final pay.  There is no evidence the applicant was paid for this leave upon retiring.  

A complete copy of the NGB/FM evaluation is at Exhibit C.

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 6 April 2016 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit D).  As of this date, no response has been received by this office.

ADDITIONAL AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DP2SSM recommends denial.  IAW Title 37, United States Code, section 501, cumulative payment for accrued leave as an enlisted member, officer, or both cannot exceed 60 days.  Also, IAW AFI 36-3003 AFGM 6, terminal leave is chargeable leave taken in conjunction with retirement or separation from active duty.  A member’s last day of leave coincide with the last day of active duty.  

The applicant could receive payment for a maximum of 60.0 days of accrued leave during her military career.  She previously received payment for 14.5 days of leave; therefore, she had a remaining maximum amount of 45.5 days of leave in which she could receive payment (60.0 - 14.5 = 45.5).  The applicant indicated she had a total of 80.0 (45.5 + 34.5 = 80.0) days of leave at the time of retirement that she was unable to use.  

However, the applicant did not provide her latest leave and earning statement (LES) for September 2013 to determine what her final leave balance was at the time of retirement, effective 1 October 2013.  As such, a determination could not be made if the applicant had an accrued leave balance of 45.5 days to be awarded a payment.  

A complete copy of the AFPC/DP2SSM evaluation is at Exhibit E.

DFAS/IN recommends denial.  The maximum allowable lump sum leave to be paid over the course of a career is 60.0 days and there is no situation that will allow payment of leave beyond 60.0 days.  

The applicant was paid lump sum leave (LSL) for 14.5 days on 31 December 1996 and for 45.5 days on 30 September 2013, totaling 60.0 days LSL paid.  The applicant carried over 67.5 days of leave from fiscal year (FY) 2012 to FY 2013.  However, the maximum allowance for LSL is 60.0 days over the course of a career.  

The loss of allowance for failure to take terminal leave, or the loss of a house hunting trip cannot be addressed after discharge.  Anyone with a leave balance over the maximum allowable to carry forward should bring grievance to their command or Inspector General (IG).  This information should be well known as a senior non-commissioned officer.  

A complete copy of the DFAS/IN evaluation is at Exhibit F.

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF ADDITIONAL AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to the applicant on 21 December 2016 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit G).  As of this date, no response has been received by this office.

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations.
2.  The application was timely filed.

3.  Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice.  After a thorough review of the evidence or record, we believe the applicant is not the victim of an error or injustice.  We noted the comments of NGB/FM indicating the applicant should have been paid for 45.5 days of leave in her final pay since she had not received payment for the maximum of 60.0 days of accrued leave during her military career.  However, DFAS/IN determined that the applicant was paid for 14.5 days on 31 December 1996 and for 45.5 days on 30 September 2013, totaling 60.0 days, which is the maximum allowable lump sum leave to be paid over the course of a member’s career.  Therefore, the applicant’s contention that she was left with a maximum of 45.5 days to be sold at the time of her separation and was unjustly denied BAS and BAH is without merit.  With regard to the applicant’s contention that she receive 20.0 days of pay for permissive temporary duty (PTDY) for house hunting, she was not authorized house hunting privileges.  In accordance with AFI 36-3003, a member’s losing commander may approve house hunting up to 20 days for CONUS based members.  While ordinary leave is a right, PTDY is an administrative absence that must be authorized by a member’s commander.  Again, the applicant has not provided any evidence to substantiate she received such authorization and these matters cannot be addressed after discharge.  Moreover, we believe had she been in the position of losing leave, she should have known it and had the ability to correct this issue prior to separation.  Nevertheless, it appears that the leave system worked as designed and no error or injustice occurred.  Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the requested relief.  

4.  The applicant’s case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issues involved.  Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered.

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the application was denied without a personal appearance; and the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application.

The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-04301 in Executive Session on 23 February 2017 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

	, Panel Chair
	, Member
	, Member

The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-04301 was considered:

	Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 25 September 2015, w/atchs.
	Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
	Exhibit C.  Memorandum, NGB/FM, dated 2 March 2016.  
	Exhibit D.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 6 April 2016.
	Exhibit E.  Memorandum, AFPC/DP2SSM, dated 12 December  
                 2016.  
	Exhibit F.  Memorandum, DFAS/IN, dated 19 December 2016.  
	Exhibit G.  Memorandum, AFBCMR, dated 21 December 2016.  

Pursuant to paragraph 1 of AFI 36-2603 (Title 32 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 865.1), it is certified that a quorum was present at the Board's review and deliberations, and that the foregoing is a true and complete record of the Board's proceedings in the above entitled matter.