IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 24 November 2015 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150008009 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, correction of his records to show he is authorized Assignment Incentive Pay (AIP) for service in the Republic of Korea (ROK), and payment of AIP. 2. The applicant states: a. He has not received his entitled AIP in accordance with All Army Activities (ALARACT) Message 121/2013, paragraph 3, part II. In accordance with this ALARACT Message, he is entitled to $300.00 per month of AIP as an incentive to bring his family to Area 1. He submitted his request for command sponsorship in November 2013 and his request was approved on 21 January 2014. Concurrent travel was approved on 7 April 2014 and his command-sponsored spouse arrived in Area 1 on 30 April 2014. He submitted a DA Form 4187 (Personnel Action) to begin AIP in July 2014. b. He submitted all of the required documentation but it was rejected by the finance center due to confusion over the multiple Military Personnel (MILPER) Messages that govern AIP. He attempted to rectify the situation with his squadron, his brigade, and the finance detachment; however, all attempts were unsuccessful. The Division Inspector General (IG) advised that he petition the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR). 3. The applicant provides: * Orders 150-28, issued by Headquarters, U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, Fort Benning, Georgia on 30 May 2013, with amending orders 210-21, 241-21, and 270-42, issued by the same headquarters * a memorandum from U.S. Army Installation Management Command Pacific Region, ROK, dated 21 January 2014, subject: Family Travel/Command Sponsorship Approval for (Applicant), XXX-XX-8867 * a memorandum from U.S. Army Installation Management Command Pacific Region, ROK, dated 7 April 2014, subject: Family Travel Approval for (Applicant), XXX-XX-8867 * his spouse's VISA, dated 19 June 2014 * DA Form 4187, Request for AIP, dated 3 July 2014 * a memorandum from Headquarters, 2nd Infantry Division, ROK, dated 21 April 2015, subject: Retroactive AIP Program Korea for Fiscal Year 2013 CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant is a Regular Army Soldier serving in the rank/grade of captain (CPT)/O-3. 2. The applicant arrived in Korea on or about 29 October 2013 and was assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Troop, 4th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, at Camp Hovey (Area 1). 3. The applicant provides: a. Orders 150-28, issued by Headquarters, U.S. Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, Fort Benning, Georgia on 30 May 2013, with amending orders 210-21, 241-21, and 270-42, which assigned him to 4th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment with a report date of 1 November 2013. b. A memorandum to the Commander, 2nd Infantry Division from the Director, Human Resources, U.S. Army Installation Management Command Pacific Region, ROK, dated 21 January 2014, subject: Family Travel/Command Sponsorship Approval for (Applicant), XXX-XX-8867. This memorandum provided that family travel and command sponsorship was approved for the applicant's family members; specifically, his spouse. It granted deferred travel to economy quarters. It stated services were limited in the Camp Red Cloud or Camp Casey enclave and there was no government family housing in Area 1. Upon completion of inprocessing, a non-availability statement would be issued to command sponsored families to secure private rental housing. c. A memorandum to the Commander, 2nd Infantry Division from the Director, Human Resources, U.S. Army Installation Management Command Pacific Region, ROK, dated 7 April 2014, subject: Family Travel Approval for (Applicant), XXX-XX-8867. This memorandum provided that family travel was authorized 7 April 2014 for the applicant's spouse to travel to Dongduchon, Area 1. Economy quarters had been secured by the applicant. d. A DA Form 4187, dated 3 July 2014, wherein he requested AIP from 30 April 2014 in accordance with Army Regulation 614-30 (Overseas Service) and MILPER Message 11-145. He stated he was command-sponsored on a 24-month tour, in Area I, Korea, and he agreed to accept AIP in the amount of $300 per month for each month he served in the assignment of the AIP agreement. This form shows his immediate commander recommended approval of his request. e. A memorandum from Headquarters, 2nd Infantry Division, ROK, dated 21 April 2015, subject: Retroactive AIP Program Korea for Fiscal Year 2013. In this memorandum, the 2nd Infantry Division Commander stated: (1) [The applicant] arrived at the 2nd Infantry Division on 29 October 2013. His command-sponsored family member arrived in May 2014 to his assignment in Dongducheon, Korea. Under MILPER Message #11-145 and ALARACT 121/2013, [the applicant] was authorized AIP for Korea. (2) The established method of agreement was either a DA Form 4187 or a memorandum under MILPER Message #11-145. In accordance with ALARACT 121/2013, paragraph (3), Part II: Individual program guidance, Korea, paragraph (2), "Soldiers who volunteer for a 24-month initial assignment to Uijeongbu / Dongducheon. Agreements for this category become effective on the date of arrival to the assignment." (3) [The applicant] has been on a command-sponsored, 24-month accompanied tour since his arrival on 29 October 2013, at which time ALARACT 121/2013 was still in effect. This AIP program was an incentive program that encouraged Soldiers/Officers to bring their families to Area 1 – Uijeongbu I Dongducheon for a two year tour, and in doing so, they would receive $300 per month. [The applicant's] family accompanied him to Area 1 (Dongducheon). Under this program, a DA Form 4187 was not a requirement indicated in the message; rather, it stated that AIP was effective on the date of the Soldier's arrival to his/her assignment. (4) The Soldier initially submitted his CSP/AIP application and the required documents in November 2013. The CSP/AIP application was approved on 21 January 2014. However, the Squadron S1 advised the Soldier that he was not authorized to receive AIP or submit the DA Form 4187 to initiate pay until his spouse arrived in Dongducheon. The spouse arrived in May 2014. After the arrival of his spouse, he submitted a DA Form 4187 to begin receiving AIP; however, the DA Form 4187 was rejected by finance due to the multiple MILPER messages that regulated AIP. (5) The Soldier has not received any incentive pay since his spouse's arrival in Korea. The junior Soldiers in both the Squadron S1 and finance office were confused by the multiple MILPER messages resulting in multiple delays in processing and ultimately rejecting the DA Form 4187 to begin payment. (6) To compound the issue, the new MILPER Message 14-037 (effective date of 1 January 2014, published on 12 February 2014) now required the DA Form 4187 to be routed through 8th Army G1 for processing and it also stipulated that 8th Army available funds were only for Fiscal Year 2014 and out years, not Fiscal Year 2013 AIP. If Soldiers under the Fiscal Year 2013 AIP program had their paperwork signed after the new AIP message took effect in January 2014, they would incur an additional year to the AIP contract. Consequently, many of the Soldiers in this category have stopped the process and are applying for their incentive pay through the Army Board for Correction of Military Records. (7) After thorough analysis, we determined there were many factors that led to the administrative delays as well as conflicting guidance and differing interpretation of the AIP policy guidance caused by MILPER and ALARACT messages to the subordinate commands. Eighth Army and DA G1 concur with the message confusion; however, through their acknowledgement, a FRAGO to clarify the discrepancies and to provide guidance to subordinate elements was not produced. (8) The aforementioned issues, as well as the inordinate amount of time it took to process the paperwork from the Squadron to Brigade to the finance office for approval, were the catalyst for the delays, which is not due to the fault of the Soldier. Therefore, I am requesting your office consider retroactive payment of his incentive pay. 4. In the processing of this case an advisory opinion was obtained on 20 July 2015 from the Chief, Compensations and Entitlements Division, Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, Headquarters, Department of the Army. The advisory official recommended approval of the applicant's request for entitlement to AIP and opined, in part: a. After careful review of his case, and in accordance with ALARACT 121/2013 Part II (2), the applicant was qualified for the $300.00 AIP, Korea, effective 29 October 2013, the date he arrived in Korea. b. Due to many conflicting guidance and interpretations of ALARACT 121/2013, MILPER Messages, and Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) guidance, his DA Form 4187 was submitted in July 2014 but was rejected by DFAS. c. For retroactive military personnel, Army AIP disbursements must be charged against the FY when earned. In the applicant's case, his AIP disbursements due between 29 October 2013 and 30 September 2014 totaled $3,330.00 and his AIP disbursements due between 1 October 2014 and 30 September 2015 total $3,600.00. 5. The applicant was provided a copy of the advisory opinion on 21 July 2015 for his information and for comment and/or rebuttal; however, no response was received. 6. ALARACT 121/2013, dated 7 May 2013, established the guidance for the AIP program. It stated, in part, the purpose of the AIP was to provide an additional monetary incentive in the assignment process to encourage members to volunteer for difficult to fill, or less desirable assignments, assignment locations, or certain assignment periods. The three categories of assignments eligible for this program are: * Soldiers who volunteer for a 36-month initial assignment to Pyeongtaek, Osan, Daegu, Chinhae, or Seoul; agreements for this category become effective on the date of arrival to the assignment * Soldiers who volunteer for a 24-month initial assignment to Uijongbu or Donghueon; agreements for this category become effective on the date of arrival to the assignment * Soldiers who accept an initial tour to Korea in any location and later elect to extend their assignment length by 12 or 24 months; agreements for this category become effective upon commencement of the tour with an extension agreement, or entering the extension, whichever is earlier DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: The evidence of record confirms the applicant was assigned to Korea on 29 October 2013 to serve a 24-month command-sponsored tour in Dongduchon, Korea. As verified by the advisory official, he entered into a written agreement to serve 24-months in Area I, within the prescribed time limits. As such, he meets the criteria under the AIP program for receipt of AIP in the amount of $300 per month from 29 October 2013, the date of his arrival in Korea. BOARD VOTE: ____X___ ____X___ ____X___ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was 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 he was authorized AIP in the amount of $300 per month commencing on 29 October 2013, the date of his arrival in Korea * paying him all back AIP due as a result of this correction _______ _ 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. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150010445 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150008009 6 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1