IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 17 May 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150010273 BOARD VOTE: _________ _______ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ___x____ ____x___ ___x_____ DENY APPLICATION 2 Enclosures 1. Board Determination/Recommendation 2. Evidence and Consideration IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 17 May 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150010273 BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned. _______ _ _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. IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 17 May 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150010273 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 reimbursement for 9 days of pay taken from his final pay upon retirement. 2. The applicant states: a. He would like to recover the 9 days of pay taken from his final pay at retirement in 2014. This pay was lost due to erroneous information put out by Fort Belvoir finance during the transition assistance briefing, the 30-day briefing, and the final out briefing prior to the start of his transition leave. The pay was lost due to incorrect information put out by Fort Belvoir finance. He has addressed this issue with Fort Belvoir finance (several times), the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS), and the Fort Belvoir Inspector General (IG) Office. After many weeks and help from the IG, Fort Belvoir furnished a letter. b. During a pre-retirement briefing, Fort Belvoir finance office advised that retirees were allowed to take more than 75 days of transition leave without losing days as long as it started prior to 1 October. He asked if he would be allowed to take 93 days of leave starting on 30 September and finishing on 31 December and he was told that it was authorized and he would not lose any days because the transition leave started prior to 1 October. He asked this question again at the 30-day pre-retirement briefing when the transition leave form along with other documents were turned in for review and quality control 30 days prior to the final out appointment. He was given the same answer; the leave was authorized because it started prior to 1 October. c. At his final out appointment on 29 September (one day prior to his leave starting), he met with finance to review all documents for correctness. The finance representative said that he (the applicant) would only lose 1 day of leave because he went over his authorized leave by 1/2 day. Overall, it appears that he has lost 9 days of leave/pay because of the incorrect information put out by the Fort Belvoir finance. Although they have admitted to putting this information out in briefings and did not address it during all of the review and quality control checks before final out-processing they have advised him that there is nothing they will do to correct the mistake. 3. The applicant provides his September through December 2014 Leave and Earnings Statements (LESs), a DA Form 1559 (IG Action Request), and response from the IG. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant enlisted in the Regular Army on 25 October 1984. He served through multiple reenlistments in a variety of assignments and he attained the rank/grade of sergeant major (SGM)/E-9. He retired on 31 December 2014 and was placed on the retired list in his retired rank/grade of SGM/E-9 on 1 January 2015. 2. According to his September through December 2014 LESs, a break-down of his leave balance is as follows: Month Brought Forward Balance Earned Used Credit Balance Use/Lose Leave Lost September 72 30 17 85 10 0 October 75 2.5 0 77.5 30 10 November 75 5 0 80 30 10 December 75 6.5 82 -0.5 0 9 3. On 9 February 2015, he submitted an IG Action Request indicating he lost over $2,000 worth of leave due to incorrect information put out by the Fort Belvoir Finance Office. 4. On 4 June 2015, the Fort Belvoir IG, after consulting with DFAS, responded to his request. An IG official stated: a. The applicant reported to the finance office after his separation date, 31 December 2014, to request a status of his final pay check with Mr. Mc--. During the follow-up session, he stated the information briefed during the finance out-processing briefing/finance final out appointment (29 September 2014) stated as long as leave is taken before 30 September 2014, the leave balance would be carried forward and leave days would not be lost. Mr. Mc-- later confirmed the erroneous information briefed. The applicant stated he was skeptical about the information conveyed regarding the leave carried forward balance and solicited assistance from his S-1 representative. He stated his S-1 representative informed him to follow the guidance of the finance technician. b. The applicant lost 9 leave days for Fiscal Year 2014 (FY14) because his leave balance of 85 days exceeded the leave carried forward balance limit of 75 days on 30 September 2014. The leave balance must be at or below to prevent leave days from being lost. He also incurred an excess leave balance of 9.5 days on 31 December 2014 because the transition leave taken from 30 September 2014 thru 31 December 2014 exceeded the accrued leave balance earned. c. He requested the lost leave to be restored due to the erroneous information provided. The IG explained the finance office is not the approving authority to restore leave days lost. The IG also explained the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) process. He also requested a memorandum stating he was provided the misinformation. d. His final active duty pay check for $1,348.88 was released on 11 February 2015 to the bank information on the Soldier's military pay account. Since his pay and allowances are paid on a 30-day basis, the excess leave balance should have been reduced from 10.5 to 9.5 on the final LES. A case was sent to DFAS Review and Audits on 7 April 2015 to restore a day of excess leave that was over collected on the final LES. A residual payment for $342.07 on 6 May 2015 is the reimbursement of a day for excess leave over-collected and a refund of SGLI premiums collected for January 2015. Below is a breakdown on how the leave was lost for FY14, how leave was accrued, how leave was charged for FY14/15 and excess leave until the 31 December 2014. * September 2014 LES reflects total accrued leave balance as 85 days * October 2014 LES reflects total accrued leave balance as 77.5 days; 85 days leave balance (September 2014) minus 75 days leave balance carried forward = 10 days lost for FY14; 75 days leave balance carried forward plus 2.5 days accrued for October 2014 and zero leave days charged = 77.5 days * November 2014 LES reflects total accrued leave balance as 80 days; 77.5 days leave balance (October 2014) plus 2.5 days earned for November 2014 and zero leave days charged = 80 days * December 2014 LES reflects total accrued leave balance as -0.5; 80 days leave balance (November 2014) plus 1.5 days earned for December 2014 = 81.5 days; transition Leave period from 30 September thru 31 December 2014 for 93 days was processed on 14 December 2014; the 10 days lost on the October 2014 LES was systemically corrected to 9 days lost to account for the 1 day leave taken on 30 September 2014 for FY14 * the remaining transition leave of 92 was charged for FY15 as follows: 1 October 2014 thru 21 December 2014 = 82 days charged; 82 days taken subtracted from 81.5 accrued leave = -0.5; from 22 - 31 December 2014 = 10 day taken as excess leave = -10.0; accrued leave balance (-0.5) plus excess leave (-10.0) = total excess (negative) leave balance = -10.5 5. An advisory opinion was received on 6 November 2015 from the Compensation and Entitlements Branch at the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1. An advisory official stated that based on a careful review of the facts surrounding this situation, the G-1 recommends disapproval of the applicant's request to be paid 9 extra days of pay based on leave that he states was erroneously taken from him. His position is that he should not have lost this leave, and that Fort Belvoir finance personnel provided him erroneous information that cost him 9 days of pay in his final pay check. The supporting documentation that he submitted from the Fort Belvoir Defense Military Pay Office (DMPO) lays out exactly what actions were taken in his case. Although the letter from the DMPO states that they gave out erroneous information regarding leave, a SGM in the Army for 30 years should know that one cannot exceed the maximum leave balance on 30 September of each FY, or the service member will lose the excess leave. Because the 9 excess days of leave were decremented from his leave balance, there is no evidence to show that his final pay was not computed correctly. 6. The applicant responded on 15 December 2015. He stated: * he is very surprised and disappointed by the Army G-1's position as he feels the Army G-1 disregarded the accountability issue by finance * he is very familiar with the Army leave regulation but he repeatedly asked the subject matter experts, who gave him incorrect information; there were other Soldiers present during that briefing and he asked the question about leave more than once, just to be clear * he turned in his leave request based on the information provided, after having been told he could take more leave * the G-1's opinion overlooks a systematic problem with quality control and responsibility of finance personnel supporting the National Capitol Region * he does not agree with the opinion and he asks the Board to disregard it and grant him relief REFERENCES: Army Regulation 600-8-10 (Leaves and Passes) covers leave and pass programs. It prescribes the policies, operating tasks, and steps governing military personnel absences. a. Paragraph 2-2 states the leave and pass program is designed to allow Soldiers to use their authorized leave to the maximum extent possible. Commanders will establish an annual leave program to manage leave designed to provide the maximum opportunity for all Soldiers to take leave to minimize loss and payment of leave not taken and a caution to Soldiers who do not take leave, that they may lose leave at the end of the FY. Also, Soldiers who maintain a 60-day leave balance, and wait late in the FY to take leave, will be informed that they risk loss of leave over 60 days if the operational situation requires their presence. b. Paragraph 2-3 states Soldiers on active duty earn 30 days of leave a year with pay and allowances at the rate of 2 1/2 days a month. Except when authorized special leave accrual (paragraph 3-2), Soldiers may accrue and carry forward up to 60 days leave at the end of each FY. Accrued leave that exceeds 60 days at the end of the FY is lost except as authorized in chapter 3. c. Paragraph 3-2 states special leave accrual is authorized to Soldiers who served in an area in which he or she was entitled to hostile fire or imminent danger pay for at least 120 continuous days. Special leave accrual authorizes Soldiers to carry forward up to 90 days of leave at the end of an FY (60 days normal leave carry over plus 30 days special leave accrual). Commanders in the grade of O-5 or higher are the approval authority for Soldiers who serve at least 120 continuous days in an area in which the Soldier is entitled to hostile fire and imminent danger pay. Commanders will not approve special leave accrual until after the FY, when it becomes known how much leave Soldier will lose. DISCUSSION: 1. Soldiers on active duty earn 30 days of leave a year with pay and allowances at the rate of 2 1/2 days a month. Unless authorized special leave accrual Soldiers may accrue and carry forward up to 60 days leave at the end of each FY. Accrued leave that exceeds 60 days at the end of the FY is lost. 2. The applicant retired on 31 December 2014. His transition leave began on 30 September 2014 (FY14) and ended on 31 December 2014 (FY15). He appears to have taken more leave than he had earned. Soldiers are granted advanced leave when their accrued leave is exhausted and advanced leave normally changes to excess leave on the date of separation. 3. As the Army G-1 official opines, the supporting documentation that he submitted from the Fort Belvoir DMPO lays out exactly what actions were taken in his case. Although he may have been given erroneous information regarding leave, the fact remains that a Soldier cannot exceed the maximum leave balance on 30 September of each FY, or the service member will lose the excess leave. Because the 9 excess days of leave were decremented from his leave balance, there is no evidence to show that his final pay was not computed correctly. There is no error or injustice. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings AR20150000953 Enclosure 1 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150010273 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150010273 6 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Enclosure 2