RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS

IN THE MATTER OF:	DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2021-03092

XXXXXXXXXXXX	COUNSEL: NONE
	
	HEARING REQUESTED: NO 

APPLICANT’S REQUEST

She be eligible to receive her Continuation Pay (CP) under the Blended Retirement System (BRS).

APPLICANT’S CONTENTIONS

She received initial notification of “potential” [sic] eligibility for Blended Retirement System Continuation Pay on 19 January 2021.  She then acknowledged the notification and downloaded the Statement of Understanding (SOU), but did not receive notification of a new incident that was built in MyPers.  In addition, she did not receive any additional notification within the 90 day window prior to her 12th year anniversary date.  

Furthermore, there was confusion about the 12-year anniversary date and it was assumed that 5 November would be the anniversary date (based on the date she entered active duty and not the date she commissioned); however, on 16 August 21, she contacted the Total Force Service Center (TFSC) and discovered that the date was in fact 9 May 2021 and she missed the cutoff date by three months. 

The applicant’s complete submission is at Exhibit A.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

The applicant is an active duty Air Force major (O-4).  

The Military Personnel Data System (MilPDS) shows that the applicant’s actual “Pay Date” (also referred to as the Pay Entry Base Date [PEBD]) is 9 May 2009.  Since she had less than 12 years of service as of 31 December 2017, she was eligible to opt-in to the BRS and did so on 2 January 2018.  Furthermore, under the BRS, the applicant was eligible for CP, provided her election was made prior to the 12th anniversary of her “Pay Date” (9 May 2021).   

On 16 August 2021, according to the “Continuation Pay Statement of Understanding and Election,” form provided by the applicant, she requested CP.  On that same date, her commander approved her request; however, the request was initiated after the 9 May 2021 anniversary date of her 12th year from her Pay Date.  

For more information, see the excerpt of the applicant’s record at Exhibit B and the advisory at Exhibit D.

APPLICABLE AUTHORITY/GUIDANCE

General Blended Retirement System Guidance:  Sections 631 through 635 of Public Law 114-92, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016, amended in Public Law 114-80, National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017.

On 27 January 2017, the Deputy Secretary of Defense implemented guidance for the newly created retirement system for the Uniformed Services, which was enacted in the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016.  This system, called the Blended Retirement System combines the traditional legacy retirement pension, also known as a defined benefit, with a defined contribution benefit into a Thrift Savings Plan.  The Blended Retirement System went into effect on 1 January 2018.  

Active component Service members with fewer than 12 years of service as of 31 December 2017, calculated from their Pay Entry Base Date [PEBD] (for the Air Force it is referred to as the “Pay Date”), and members of the National Guard or Reserve who have accrued fewer than 4,320 points as of 31 December 2017, are also grandfathered under the current retirement system but may choose to opt-in to the Blended Retirement System.  

Guidance on Continuation Pay: In accordance with AFI 36-3012, Military Entitlements, Chapter 4, Continuation Pay and Personnel Services Delivery (PSD) Guide, Blended Retirement System (BRS) Continuation (CP) Execution, Organization, and Responsibilities: 

Members of the Uniformed Services who are covered by the Blended Retirement System are eligible to receive a one-time, mid-career bonus payment in exchange for an agreement to perform additional obligated service. The amount is determined by applying a multiplier to the member’s monthly base pay. For RegAF Airmen, the multiplier is 2.5 and for ANG or AFR Airmen, the multiplier is 0.5.

Service members eligible to receive continuation pay must have completed not less than 8 and not more than 12 years of service, as computed from the members Pay Entry Base Date (otherwise referred to in the Air Force as the “Pay Date”).  In addition, the member must complete the Statement of Understanding and Election (SOU), obtain their commander’s approval for Continuation Pay, and commit to a four year military service obligation. The election for Continuation Pay must be made prior to the member’s 12th year of service based on pay date but no earlier than 90 days in advance.

According to a myPers article, Blended Retirement System Continuation Pay, updated on 12 March 2021, “Airmen will be notified of their potential eligibility for BRS CP and receive a BRS CP Election SOU via myPers messaging starting approximately 90 days prior to the potential BRS CP effective date.”  In addition, the Continuation Pay fact sheet pulled from myPers states that notification for Continuation Pay will start 60 days before a member’s 12th year of service.

For more information, see Exhibit C.

AIR FORCE EVALUATION

HQ AFPC/DPSSM, recommends denying the application.  There is no evidence of an error or injustice.  On 16 August 2021, the applicant acknowledged her eligibility for Continuation Pay via myPers and provided the required documentation.  However, since the applicant’s pay date anniversary was 9 May 2009, she was notified that she had missed her 12th year service anniversary and was no longer eligible to elect CP.  The applicant was no longer eligible because she did not sign and submit her SOU, electing CP prior to her 12th year pay date anniversary in accordance with Air Force Instruction.  

The complete advisory opinion is at Exhibit D.

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION

The Board sent a copy of the advisory opinion to the applicant on 28 December 2021 for comment (Exhibit E), and the applicant replied on 26 January 2022.  In her response, the applicant clarifies the circumstances surrounding her case.  When she missed the cut off date for submitting her SOU, it was during the peak of COVID, teleworking, buying a house, healing post-partum, and PCSing from an overseas location.  She admits there was an oversight on her end and she misunderstood the date and timeline for the submission of the SOU.  Much of this confusion was due to the circumstances, the Pay Date confusion (commissioning and active duty dates were six months apart), and the fact that she received the initial (and only) notification on BRS continuation pay about 120 days in advance.  In this regard, the applicant argues that according to the MyPers website, notification will be sent out 90 days in advance.  Because of this, she set a reminder in her calendar to follow up in July/August 2021, which she thought would be approximately 90 days out from the deadline, but she came to find out that it was actually past her actual Pay Date and her deadline to submit the SOU.    

She realizes there was some misunderstanding on her end, but she sincerely hopes that the circumstance surrounding her case are considered and her honest mistake does not prevent her from an entitlement she always intended to elect.   

The applicant’s complete response is at Exhibit F.

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION

1.  The application was timely filed.

2.  The applicant exhausted all available non-judicial relief before applying to the Board.

3.  After reviewing all Exhibits, the Board concludes the applicant is not the victim of an error or injustice.  The Board acknowledges the applicant’s admitted misunderstanding of her pay date and the life circumstances she endured during the timeframe of her submission for continuation pay.  However, we do not find her argument sufficiently persuasive to override the rational provided by the Air Force office of primary responsibility.  The applicant was properly notified of Continuation Pay eligibility and had sufficient time to process her statement of understanding. We further find it unreasonable to not follow-up and ensure the proper procedures are followed to retain such an important entitlement.  Moreover the applicant has presented no evidence that she has been treated differently than those similarly situated.  As such, the Board concurs with the rationale and recommendation of HQ AFPC/DPSSM and finds a preponderance of the evidence does not substantiate the applicant’s contentions.  Therefore, the Board recommends against correcting the applicant’s records.

RECOMMENDATION

The Board recommends informing the applicant the evidence did not demonstrate material error or injustice, and the Board will reconsider the application only upon receipt of relevant evidence not already presented.

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-2021-03092 in Executive Session on 15 March 2022:

, 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 17 Aug 2021.
Exhibit B:	Documentary evidence, including relevant excerpts from official records.
Exhibit C:	Blended Retirement System Guidance.
Exhibit D:	Advisory opinion, HQ AFPC/DPSSM, dated 22 December 2021.
Exhibit E:	Notification of advisory, SAF/MRBC to applicant, dated 28 December 2021.
Exhibit F:  Applicant’s Response w/atchs, dated 26 January 2022.

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.