IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 16 April 2020 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20180006184 APPLICANT REQUESTS: An exception to policy to withdraw from the Blended Retirement System (BRS) APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * email correspondence * phone log FACTS: 1. The applicant states: a. She is requesting to opt-out of the BRS effective 2 January 2018. She made an erroneous opt-in for not paying close attention to the new BRS opt-in option located at the very top of the MyPay screen. For the last 11 years she has been in the military, the first option that pops up for her to select has always been her Leave and Earnings Statement (LES). b. Doing two things at once while she was at work, she selected the top option, which is now the BRS opt-in and the first screen that popped up was the address verification. Her address was incorrect, so she updated her address and submitted. The following screen was verification that BRS training had been conducted, knowing it is a requirement for every Soldier to complete, she selected “training completed” and clicked “submit.” Upon verifying training was completed, she received a pop-up screen indicating she had been opted into the BRS. c. It was a complete error due to not paying close attention, but having the BRS option in the place of where our LES has been for the longest time could cause issues. She understands the irrevocable action being implemented for Soldiers who elect to opt out at a later date, but for those who accidentally opt-in, this could be an issue. She has been in the military for 11 years and served 6 years on active duty. Figuring out the numbers, she is taking a huge cut in pay by erroneously opting in. d. She immediately tried to change the opt-in the moment she realized what she had done. She talked to personnel from MyPay, the State Active Guard/Reserve (AGR) Retirement Service, and the State G-1 Retirement Office, all of whom informed her this action was irrevocable. She is hoping because this was an erroneous/accidental opt-in and that she tried correcting it the same day, the Board will consider her request to opt- out of the BRS. 2. The applicant enlisted into the Army National Guard (ARNG) on 14 September 2006 and was appointed a Reserve Commissioned Officer in the grade of second lieutenant on 21 March 2014. 3. Her NGB Form 23B shows effective December 2017, she was an ARNG member in a paid status who had accrued less than 4,320 retirement points, thus eligible to opt-into the BRS. 4. Email correspondence from the Defense Finance and Accounting Services (DFAS) confirms the applicant opted into the BRS on 3 January 2018. Additional email correspondence shows she recognized her erroneous selection and immediately began requesting assistance to opt-out on the same date. 5. Guidance from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G- 1 states, in part, prior to the beginning of the BRS enrollment, DFAS moved the LES link on MyPay and replaced it with the BRS opt-in link. Service members immediately began to contact their respective Services of their "erroneous" enrollment while trying to acquire a LES and surprisingly received notification that they had opted into the BRS. After several complaints, the Department, in coordination with DFAS, moved the LES link back to its customary first position on MyPay and relocated the BRS link effective 26 January 2018. Given the relatively small number involved and the potential long term impact on the Soldier, the Army G-1 considers it the right thing to do and in the Army's best interest to give the benefit of the doubt to these Soldiers who notified the Army of their enrollment between 1 and 26 January 2018. BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found that relief is warranted. As a matter of fairness, the applicant should be withdrawn from the Blended Retirement System (BRS). BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : 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 voiding his election to participate in the Blended Retirement System (BRS). 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. REFERENCES: 1. Deputy Secretary of Defense Memorandum, Implementation of the Blended Retirement System, dated 27 January 2017, advised the Blended Retirement System (BRS) was go to into effect 1 January 2018. BRS offers service members portable government retirement savings, provides the Department of Defense (DoD) greater force management flexibility and is a key step in modernizing DoD’s ability to recruit, retain and maintain the talent required for military readiness, while reducing the direct cost to the American taxpayer. a. Eligibility: Service members who enter the military on or after January 1, 2018, will automatically be enrolled in BRS. Service members who enter service on or before December 31, 2017, are grandfathered into the legacy high-3 retirement system. However, service members in the active component as of December 31, 2017, who have served fewer than 12 years, or service members in the Reserve component who have accrued less than 4,320 retirement points as of December 31, 2017 and are in a paid status, will have the option of electing BRS or to remain in the legacy retirement system. b. Those currently serving members who were eligible to opt into BRS would have an entire year to make their opt-in decision. The opt-in or election period for BRS began 1 January 2018, and concluded on 31 December 2018. The decision to opt-in is irrevocable. 2. All Army Activity (ALARACT) Message Number 028/2018 states, effective 1 January 2018, eligible Soldiers who completed the mandatory training were eligible to enroll in the BRS. The Department of Defense policy is that this informed decision by a Soldier eligible to enroll in the BRS is irrevocable. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20180006184 4 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1