IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 27 February 2020 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20180006277 APPLICANT REQUESTS: approval of 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) FACTS: 1. The applicant states he unknowingly and unintentionally enrolled into the BRS through the Defense Finance and Accounting Services (DFAS) website "MyPay." The message on MyPay "prompt up to click through" while he was trying to get his Wage and Tax Statement (W-2). He believes "it was placed" at the very top of MyPay almost as a click bait and without any warning about enrolling into the BRS. 2. The applicant enlisted in the Army National Guard on 3 October 2008. 3. His National Guard Bureau (NGB) Form 23B (Retirement Points History Statement) shows that as of December 2017, he was an ARNG member who had accrued less than 4,320 retirement points. 4. Information obtained from the U.S. Army Human Resources Command confirms the applicant opted into the BRS on 5 January 2018. 5. Guidance from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G- 1, states that prior to the beginning of the BRS enrollment, DFAS moved the Leave and Earnings (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 an 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, the supporting documents, the records, applicable regulations, and the facts above, the Board found that relief is warranted as recommended in the Board Determination and Recommendation below. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 :XXX :XXX :XX 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 withdraw him from the Blended Retirement System (BRS) effective 5 January 2018. 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 BRS, dated 27 January 2017, advised that the 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 1 January 2018 will automatically be enrolled in BRS. Service members who enter service on or before 31 December 2017, are grandfathered into the legacy high-3 retirement system. However, service members in the active component as of 31 December 31 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 31 December 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. 2. All Army Activities Message Number 028/2018 states that effective 1 January 2018, eligible Soldiers who completed the mandatory training were eligible to enroll in the BRS. The DoD's policy is that this informed decision by a Soldier eligible to enroll in the BRS is irrevocable. //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20180006277 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1