RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

IN THE MATTER OF:	DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2020-00140

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX	COUNSEL: NONE	

	HEARING REQUESTED: NO

APPLICANT’S REQUEST

His $6,382.41 debt for exceeding household goods (HHG) weight allowance be waived.  

APPLICANT’S CONTENTIONS

His debt for shipment of his personal property in Jul 16 from XXXX to XXXX was unjustified.  He returned to the same county he resided in before his enlistment.  

The move occurred in Jul 16 and he received a bill in Mar 19 for $6,382.41.  There was no explanation or breakdown of the debt and the remarks just stated “excess weight.”  He was able to determine through his traffic management office (TMO) and the joint personal property office (PPO), the reweigh information was not applied and he did not receive a weight credit for his spouse who is a federal employee.  On 1 Apr 19, he submitted a rebuttal to the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS).  On 24 Jul 19, he submitted an appeal to the U.S. Treasury.   

Over the course of 7 months, his requests for a copy of the DD Form 139, Pay Adjustment Authorization, were not acknowledged and his case was sent to a collection agency.  He received a threat of garnishment of his civilian pay.  He followed the directions for an appeal to halt the wage garnishment and waiver of his debt.  His appeal with the U.S. Treasury is in a holding state awaiting information from DFAS.

He was not afforded an opportunity to rebut the debt, which he was not timely made aware of.  He was entitled to a 500-pound credit for his professional gear and he did not choose to have his HHG delivered to a deviated location from his place of entry (POE) and home of record (HOR) area.  The applicant’s complete submission is at Exhibit A.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The applicant is a former Air Force staff sergeant (SSgt, E-5).

His DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, shows his HOR is XXXX and place of entry (POE) is XXXX.  

The applicant provides DD Form 139 dated 9 Jan 19, which shows his authorized cost, Joint Travel Regulation (JTR), plus packaging and professional gear was $16,890.53 for 12,074 pounds.  His actual cost was $23,272.94 for 13,040 pounds.  The applicant’s HHG was delivered to XXXX in lieu of the authorized destination of XXXX.  The amount due from the applicant for overweight of HHG entitlements was $6,382.41.  

He provides Debt Determination from PPA ECAF Adjudicators dated 25 Sep 19, which states their office adheres to the JTR when processing excess cost cases.   For more information, see the excerpt of the applicant’s record at Exhibit B and the advisory at Exhibit C.

APPLICABLE AUTHORITY

JTR, paragraph 051401, Authorized PCS Weight Allowance.  The authorized PCS weight allowance is normally determined by a service member’s grade on the effective date of the order, and whether or not the service member has dependents.  The weight of Professional Books, Papers and Equipment (PBPE&E) and required medical equipment is not included in the HHG weight allowance authorized.  Effective May 14, the PBPE&E maximum weight allowance is limited to 2,000 pounds net weight and must be declared at the origin of shipment and be documented, to include certification or approval per agency or transportation procedures.  The weight of accompanied baggage or excess accompanied baggage is also not included in the authorized weight allowance.  Per paragraph 051306, a service member must repay the service for the cost of transporting his HHG in excess of the specified weight allowance, unless there is a specific authorization for an increased weight allowance.  

AIR FORCE EVALUATION

PPA/PPE recommends denial.  Based on the evidence, the debt is valid.  The cost of the shipment to other than authorized location exceeded the maximum government obligation (MGO) coupled with the shipment weight exceeding his authorized JTR weight allowance.  Should the Board grant, his HOR would need to be changed to XXXX and his shipped personal property be within his authorized weight.

The applicant’s property at origin was 13,640 pounds.  He received a credit for 2,000 pounds for his dependent spouse and 74 pounds for PBP&E.  A reweigh was performed at destination and the weight was 13,040 pounds.  The lower weight was used in the computations of the excess cost.

He was authorized to ship and store personal property from XXXX to his HOR (XXXX) at an authorized total cost of $16,890.53 or to his POE of XXXX for a total cost of $16,872.36.  However, he elected to ship to XXXX, and the government paid a total cost of $23,272.94.  The JTR, paragraph 051306A-1 states the government must pay the total transportation cost and other applicable charges that exceeds the weight allowance.  The Government must collect excess costs from the service member.  The variance cost in the movement of his shipment to XXXX versus his HOR is due to additional cost associated with each service area as referenced in the Defense Personal Property Program domestic 400NG Tariff.  In this case, the applicant’s shipment was in excess of the authorized JTR weight by 966 pounds and the service area rate differed in cost.   The complete advisory opinion is at Exhibit C.

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION

The Board sent a copy of the advisory opinion to the applicant on 2 Mar 20 for comment (Exhibit D).  In an e-mail dated 23 Mar 20, the applicant informed the BCMR additional evidence would be delivered by certified mail to arrive the BCMR on 27 Mar 20.  In an e-mail dated 22 May 20, the BCMR informed the applicant his rebuttal response was not received and should be resubmitted.  As of this date, no response has been received.  

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION

1.  The application was timely filed.

2.  The applicant has not exhausted all available non-judicial relief before applying to the Board.

3.  After reviewing all Exhibits, the Board concludes insufficient evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice.  The Board notes PPA/PPE has reviewed this application and recommended denial.  However,  this Board is the highest administrative level of appeal within the Air Force and as such, an applicant must first exhaust all available avenues of administrative relief provided by existing law or regulations prior to seeking relief before this Board as required by the governing Air Force Instruction.  In view of this, we find this application is not ripe for adjudication at this level as there exists a subordinate level of appeal that has not first been depleted.  The Board advises the applicant to visit the following site http://www.dfas.mil/dfas/waiversandremissions/activemilitarywaivers.html. for information pertaining to a debt resulting in erroneous payments of wages and allowances and obtaining the DD Form 2789, Remission/Waiver of Indebtedness Application.  In view of this, the Board finds no basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application.  

RECOMMENDATION

The Board recommends informing the applicant that all available avenues of administrative relief have not been exhausted; and the Board will reconsider the application only upon receipt of documentary evidence indicating that said avenues of administrative relief have been exhausted.  

CERTIFICATION

The following quorum of the Board, as defined in Air Force Instruction (AFI) 36-2603, Air Force Board for Correction of Military Records (AFBCMR), paragraph 1.5, considered Docket Number BC-2020-00140 in Executive Session on 30 Jun 20:

 , Panel Chair
 , Panel Member
 , Panel Member

All members voted against correcting the record.  The panel considered the following:

Exhibit A:	Application, DD Form 149, w/atchs, dated 16 Oct 19.
Exhibit B:	Documentary evidence, including relevant excerpts from official records.
Exhibit C:	Advisory opinion, PPA/PPE, dated 27 Feb 20.
Exhibit D:	Notification of advisory, SAF/MRBC to applicant, dated DD MMM YY.
Exhibit E:	Applicant’s response, dated 2 Mar 20.
Exhibit F:	E-mail, SAF/MRBC, dated 22 May 20.  

Taken together with all Exhibits, this document constitutes the true and complete Record of Proceedings, as required by AFI 36-2603, paragraph 4.11.9.