IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 12 January 2016 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20150013519 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 the recoupment of his non-prior service enlistment bonus (NPSEB) be stopped. 2. The applicant states at the time he was going through financial hardship. He had nowhere to live and no income. After he returned home from annual training he was laid off and he was unable to find work. He moved to Maryland to get help from his family. He was informed military occupational specialty (MOS) 13B (Cannon Crewmember) was not available in Maryland so he was forced to reclassify to MOS 13F (Fire Support Specialist). 3. The applicant provides no additional evidence in support of his application. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. On 31 March 2009, he enlisted in the Mississippi Army National Guard (MSARNG) for 8 years. 2. On 31 March 2009, he signed Annex E to DD Form 4, NPSEB Addendum ARNG of the U.S. a. Section II - Eligibility, shows he enlisted for the critical skill MOS 13B under the 6x2 or 8x0 enlistment option and would receive a NPSEB (50/50 payment). b. Section III - Payments, shows he was to receive a total bonus of $20,000.00 for the bonus option, to be paid at 50 percent when he completed initial active duty for training and awarded the MOS for which he enlisted. The second payment of 50 percent was to be paid on the 36-month anniversary of his date of enlistment. c. Section VI - Termination with Recoupment, states that he understood he would be terminated from bonus eligibility, with recoupment, if he voluntarily transferred into a non-critical skill MOS or transferred from the unit for which the bonus was awarded upon enlistment. Recoupment would be calculated from the date of transfer. d. Upon termination the amount of monies he would be entitled to from the incentive would be calculated by multiplying the number of months served satisfactorily during the term for which the incentive was authorized by the proportionate monthly dollar amount. The proportionate monthly dollar amount is determined by dividing the total authorized bonus amount by the total amount of months in the original contractual obligation. The amount of the bonus that he is entitled to keep, as calculated above, will be subtracted from the total bonus paid to date. If calculations indicate an overpayment, that amount will be recouped. If calculations indicate that he had earned more than he had received, he would be paid the difference less taxes in a final installment. 3. On 21 June 2010, he was awarded MOS 13B, effective 23 July 2010. 4. On 6 August 2012, he was granted an exception to policy (ETP) due to the enlisting official failing to sign and date his bonus addendum. 5. On 13 August 2012, he voluntarily transferred to the Maryland Army National Guard (MDARNG) in MOS 13F. At this point his NPSEB for MOS 13B would have been terminated. He was awarded MOS 13F on 25 May 2013. 6. On 13 April 2014, he extended his enlistment for 3 years in the MDARNG for a reenlistment/extension bonus amount of $5,000.00. 7. On 6 January 2015, Joint Force Headquarters (JFHQ), MD, 5th Regiment Armory, Baltimore, MD notified the applicant a discrepancy had been discovered with his bonus incentive contract that must be resolved to avoid eligibility termination. a. Information concerning the discrepancy was: (1) Incentive Type - NPSEB (2) Discrepancy - MOS change (3) Discrepancy amount - $10,000.00 (4) Reason for the discrepancy - Soldier transferred out of critical skill for which bonus was awarded upon enlistment. b. He may be eligible for an ETP. His request for an ETP, a signed statement along with supporting documentation must be submitted to the State Incentive Manager within 45 days for the date of this letter. Failure to submit a request within 45 days will result in immediate termination with possible recoupment of his incentive. 8. On 23 April 2015, JFHQ, MD notified him his incentive contract had been terminated. a. Incentive type - NPSEB b. Discrepancy - MOS change c. Recoupment amount - $1,444.44 d. Amount withheld - $3,000.00 e. Reason for termination - Soldier transferred out of critical skill for which bonus was awarded upon enlistment. 9. On 22 October 2015, an advisory opinion was received from the National Guard Bureau (NGB). NGB recommended disapproval of the applicant's application. The Soldier's debt was established with the Department of Finance Accounting System (sic) due to a change to his contracted MOS. Additionally, there was no evidence that the applicant ever submitted a request for an ETP. 10. The applicant was provided a copy of NGB's advisory opinion. However, he did not provide a statement or rebuttal in response to that opinion. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. On 31 March 2009, he enlisted in the MSARNG in MOS 13B for a $20,000.00 NPSEB. He was awarded MOS 13B effective 23 July 2010 at which time he was to receive 50 percent ($10,000.000) of his NPSEB. 2. He was to receive the second 50 percent of his NPSEB on the 36th month anniversary of the date of his enlistment, 31 March 2012. There is no evidence showing whether he received this payment on or after 31 March 2012. 3. On 13 August 2012, he voluntarily transferred to the MDARNG in MOS 13F. At this time his NPSEB should have been terminated. Recoupment is to be calculated from the date of his transfer. 4. He served approximately 41 months satisfactorily during the term for which the incentive was authorized. He is authorized to keep that portion of the NPSEB earned during that 41 months. However, any portion paid in excess of 41 months is recoupable as he agreed to in his contract on 31 March 2009. 5. The applicant has not shown whether any portion of his current recoupment includes monies he earned during the 41 months he was serving in MOS 13B. BOARD VOTE: ________ ________ ________ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ____X___ ____X___ ____X___ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined that 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. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150013519 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20150013519 4 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1