ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


	
	BOARD DATE:  18 July 2019

	DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20170003490


APPLICANT REQUESTS: Reversal of the National Guard Bureau’s (NGB) Exception to 
Policy (ETP) denial to retain a $10,000.00 Reenlistment Bonus (REB).

APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: 

*	DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record)
*	DA Form 4836 (Oath of Extension of Enlistment or Reenlistment), dated 14 April 
2013
*	NGB Form 600-7-3-R-E (Annex R to DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment 
Document Armed Forces of the United States) or DA Form 4836 Addendum), 
dated 14 April 2013
*	Memorandum, Subject: Request for ETP for REB, dated 19 October 2015

FACTS:

1.  The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, United 
States Code (USC), section 1552 (b); however, the Army Board for Correction of 
Military Records (ABCMR) conducted a substantive review of this case and determined 
it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 

2.  The applicant states in pertinent part, he extended his enlistment in the Army 
National Guard (ARNG) on 14 April 2013 as a 31B (Military Police).  His extension 
contract included a Selected Reserve Incentive Program (SRIP) bonus in the amount of 
$10,000.00.  When he extended, the battalion career counselor advised him to sign the 
documents and turn them in.  He relied on the expertise of the battalion career 
counselor and/or command staff to properly generate paperwork.  On the bonus 
addendum, his name was printed under the Soldier’s name and service representative 
block on page 9; therefore, he signed that block twice under the advice of the career 
counselor.  This action rendered his contract invalid.  In addition, the acting immediate 
commander at the time did not sign the document.  He was told a new addendum was 
to be generated, however, they sent the addendum along with his extension contract to 
battalion.  Therefore he was never paid his bonus.  


3.  A review of the applicant’s service records show the following on:

*	29 March 2007 – the applicant enlisted in the California Army National Guard for 
a period of 6 years
*	14 April 2013 – the applicant extended his current enlistment for a period of 6 
years changing his expiration term of service from 28 March 2014 to 28 March 
2020, his record is void of an extension addendum
*	19 October 2015 – by memorandum, the applicant was informed his request to 
retain the $10,000.00 REB was denied because:

*	the bonus addendum was missing the witnessing officer’s signature and 
service representative’s signature which violated Department of Defense 
Instruction (DODI) 1205.21 (Reserve Component Incentive Programs 
Procedures), paragraph E5.3
*	service member signed as the service representative which violated ARNG 
SRIP 13-01

4.  The applicant provides:

*	NGB From 600-7-3-R-E showing the following in:

*	section 2 (Eligibility):

*	item 13, he understood the addendum must be signed on the same date 
as the execution date of DA Form 4836 to include having his, the service 
representative and the witnessing officer signatures present for the 
addendum to be valid
*	item 16b, he was extending duty Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) 
qualified in MOS 31B for 6 years

*	section 3 (Bonus Amount and Payments), item 1(b), he would receive a 
bonus in the amount of $10,000.00
*	section 8 (Authentication) shows the applicant endorsed the form in the 
Soldier’s section
*	section 9 (Certification of Service Representative) shows the applicant 
endorsed the form as the service representative and the witnessing officer did 
not endorse the form

5.  DODI 1205.21 (Reserve Component Incentive Programs Procedures), currently in 
effect, requires each written agreement REB will be authenticated with the service 
representative’s signature, the service member’s signature and the witnessing officer’s 
typed name, grade and signature. 

6.  ARNG SRIP Policy Number 13-01, in effect at the time states the addendum is not 
valid if it was signed before or after the execution date of the DD Form 4 or DA Form 
4836 and was not signed and dated by the Soldier, service representative, and the 
witnessing officer at the time the document was executed.

BOARD DISCUSSION:

1.  The Board carefully considered the applicant’s request, supporting documents and 
evidence in the records.  The Board considered the applicant’s statement, his extension 
of service, the denial of the exception to policy by the National Guard Bureau and the 
reason for that denial.  The Board found that the applicant extended his enlistment for a 
bonus in good faith and that he is being denied the bonus due to administrative errors 
on the appropriate addendum and errors in processing the documents.  The Board 
determined, based on the preponderance of evidence, that the denial of his bonus due 
to administrative errors was an injustice and that as long as he remained otherwise 
qualified a correction to the record entitling him to the bonus was appropriate.

2.  After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found that 
relief was warranted.
BOARD VOTE:

Mbr 1	Mbr 2	Mbr 3

:X	:X	:X	GRANT FULL RELIEF

:	:	:	GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

:	:	:	GRANT FORMAL HEARING

:	:	:	DENY APPLICATION
















BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:
The Board determined the evidence presented is 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 to show:
-	The NGB 600-7-3-R-E (BCN: R13040315CA) signed by the applicant on 
04/14/2013 in conjunction with the DA 4836 extension of service signed on 
the same date, was also signed by the appropriate Service Representative 
and Witnessing Officer;
-	The properly signed forms were process and accepted by the appropriate 
authorities, and;
-	The applicant was paid the bonus amount in accordance with the signed 
contract documents/addendum.



	  
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.


ADMINISTRATIVE NOTE(S):

Not Applicable

?
REFERENCES:

1.  Title 10, USC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military 
records must be filed within three years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice.  
This provision of law also allows the ABCMR to excuse an applicant's failure to timely 
file within the three-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in 
the interest of justice to do so.
2.  DODI 1205.21 (Reserve Component Incentive Programs Procedures) currently in 
effect, requires each written agreement REB will be authenticated with the service 
representative’s signature, the service member’s signature and the witnessing officer’s 
typed name, grade and signature. 

3.  ARNG SRIP Policy Number 13-01, in effect at the time states the addendum is not 
valid if it was signed before or after the execution date of the DD Form 4 or DA Form 
4836 and was not signed and dated by the Soldier, service representative, and the 
witnessing officer at the time the document was executed.


ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)	 AR20170003490
	
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