IN THE CASE OF:  BOARD DATE:  24 October 2022 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20220001879 


APPLICANT REQUESTS:  correction of his record to show he is eligible to be paid Blended Retirement System (BRS) Continuation Pay (CP). 

APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: 

•DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record)

•E-mail from Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) R-T-

•E-mail from Sergeant Y-L-, Military Pay Office Al Asad Air Base, Iraq

•E-mail from K-A-, Brigade (BDE) S1, 419th Contracting Support BDE

•Request for CP BRS

•Officer Record Brief (ORB)



FACTS: 

1.The applicant states in effect, requests, and exception to policy (ETP) to be grantedapproval to receive the BRS CP per Army Regulation (AR) 637-1 (Army Compensationand Entitlements Policy), paragraph 18-26 (Continuation Pay). He was never properlyadvised that he had the opportunity to apply to receive BRS CP between his 8 through12-years of service. In 2018, he received online training regarding the BRS CP whichled him to believe the BRS CP was an automatic entitlement to be received upon thecompletion of his 12-years of service.

Between 2018 when he enrolled in BRS and January 2021, he was assigned to a non-traditional unit that did not have human resources support. He was reassigned in January 2021 to the 925th Contracting Battalion (BN) and within a few months he was identified for deployment. He was never notified that he was within the window for applying for his BRS CP, once he obtained his 12-years of service and he did not receive his BRS CP automatically, he assumed additional time was required to process the action. While he was at Fort Bliss, TX, waiting to deploy in September 2021 he began to research the BRS CP program and discovered an All Army Activities (ALARACT) from the previous year which stated BRS CP need to be applied for and was not automatic. Then he knew it could not be applied for after 12-years of service, he attempted it any way. He was informed he was not eligible to receive it as he had gone over 12-years of service. He believes he should be granted relief due to the members of his chain of command and the support staff in his unit were not aware of the policies and guidance in reference to the proper processing and timelines for Soldiers to receive BRS CP.  

2.A review of the applicant's service record shows:

a.On 3 April 2009, Orders Number 93-154-A-1550, issued by Headquarters (HQs),U. S. Army Cadet Command, the applicant was ordered to active duty, effective 
3 July 2009 for a 4-year active duty commitment. 

b.On 9 May 2009, the applicant completed his oath of office and was appointed aReserve commissioned officer in the rank of second lieutenant(2LT)/O1. 

c.The applicant obtained 12-years of service in 2021. His Pay Entry Base Date is
9 May 2009 and his Basic Active Service date is 3 July 2009. 

3.The applicant provides:

a.E-mail dated 4 October 2021 from LTC R-T- which responded to the applicant'srequest for a point of contact to assist him with the BRS CP. He was told a point of contact could not be located that was knowledgeable on BRS CP and recommended the applicant contact his local finance office. 

b.E-mail dated 13 October 2021 from SGT Y-L- which advised the applicant shewas told by Defense Finance and Accounting Service the applicant was no longer eligible to receive the BRS CP because he was over 12-years of service and he would have to apply to the Army Board for Corrections of Military Records to get it approved. 

c.E-mail dated 19 November 2021 from K-A which stated the best information hecould provide the applicant was to contact the point of contact in a memorandum he received or look at a website for information on BRS. 

d.Request form for BRS CP which shows the applicant agreed to accept the BRSCP in accordance with BRS CP Calendar year 2021 in the amount of 2.5 times his monthly basic pay and agreed to an Additional Obligated Service (AOS) of 3-years. The applicant requested a lump sum payment. The request form was signed by the applicant on 12 December 2021, but is void of an approval authority and certifying official endorsement. 

e.ORB dated 10 December 2021 which shows the applicant's BASD of 3 July 2009and PEBD of 9 May 2009. 

4.On 28 July 2022, the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G1 provided an advisoryopinion regarding the applicant's request for the correction of his records to show he iseligible to be paid the BRS CP. The advisory official stated his office did not support theapplicant's request due to the incorrect Additional Obligated Service (AOS) listed inblock 6d of the CP request. In accordance with Assistant Secretary for Manpower andReserve Affairs (ASA M&RA) the AOS length must be 4-years. However, if the applicantagreed to correct the AOS, his office would support the correction of the military recordand payment of the BRS CP request based on the date of the applicant would haveotherwise been qualified. Specifically, the date of the request would have to be no laterthan when the Soldier would have exactly 12-years of service for pay purposes. If reliefwould be granted, the payment would be as the pay grade for Major (MAJ)/O4 with 12-years for pay purposes from the 2021 pay scale ($8,066.70 x 2.05 = $20,166.75).

5.On 29 July 2022, the Army Review Boards Agency, Case Management Division,provided the applicant a copy of the advisory opinion for review and comment. On
4 August 2022, the applicant responded via e-mail in effect, he agreed with the advisoryopinion and adjusted the request for CP BRS document to correct the AOS to reflect 4-years per the policy. The applicant provided the corrected document dated 2 July 2021with a digital signature dated 4 August 2022.
BOARD DISCUSSION: 

After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board determined  that relief was warranted. The Board carefully considered the applicant’s request, supporting documents, evidence in the records and regulatory guidance. The Board reviewed the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G1 advisory and noted that the applicant agreed with the advisory, corrected the AOS to comply with a policy. Based on the preponderance of evidence available for review, the Board determined the  evidence presented sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. 














BOARD VOTE: 

Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 

:XXX :XXX :XXX 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 showing the applicant was in receipt of a completed continuation pay (CP) request prior to the completion of   
12 years of service and it was approved and processed in timely manner. 





Microsoft Office Signature Line...


REFERENCES: 

1.Public Law 114-92, National Defense Authorization Action (NDAA) for Fiscal Year(FY 2016, section 634 (CP for Full Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) Member with 12-Years ofService), (a) CP, the Secretary concerned shall make a payment of continuation pay toeach full TSP member of the uniformed services under the jurisdiction of the Secretarywho:

•completes 12 years of service; and

•enters into an agreement with the Secretary to serve for an additional


4-years of obligated service

(b)Amount, the amount of CP payable to a full TSP member under subsection (a) shallbe the amount that is equal to in the case of a member of a regular component:

•the monthly basic pay of the member at 12 years of service multiplied by 2.5;plus

•at the discretion of the Secretary concerned, the monthly basic pay of themember at 12-years of service multiplied by such number of months (not toexceed 13-months) as the Secretary concerned shall specify in the agreement ofthe member under subsection (a)



(d)Timing of Payment, the Secretary concerned shall pay CP under subsection (a) to afull TSP member when the member completes 12 years of service. If the Secretaryconcerned also provides CP under subsection (c) to the member, that CP shall beprovided when the member completes 12 years of service.

2.Title 37, United States Code, section 356 (CP) states:

a.The Secretary concerned shall pay CP under subsection (a) to a full TSPmember when the member has completed not less than 8 and not more than 12 years of service in a uniformed service. Enters into an agreement with the Secretary to serve for not less than three additional years of obligated service. A full TSP member may elect to receive CP in a lump sum or in a series of not more than four payments. 

b.Payment Amount—the Secretary concerned shall determine the payment amountunder this section as a multiple of a full TSP member's monthly basic pay. The multiple for a full TSP member who is a member of a Reserve Component, if the member is performing Active Guard/Reserve duty (as defined in Title 10, USC, section 101(d)(6)), shall not be less than 2.5 times the member's monthly basic pay. 

 c.  The maximum amount the Secretary concerned may pay a member under this section is — in the case of a member of a Regular Component—the monthly basic pay of the member at 12 years of service multiplied by 2.5. 
 
3.  Deputy Secretary of Defense Memorandum dated 27 January 2017, Subject: Implementation of the Blended Retirement System (BRS), implements guidance for the Blended Retirement System for the Uniformed Services, which was authorized in Public Law 114-92 section 631 through 635 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2016. Members of the Uniformed Service are covered under the provisions of the BRS who served in a Uniformed Service for fewer than 12-years as calculated from their Pay Entry Basic Date (PEBD). 
 
4.  Army Regulation 637-1 (Army Compensation and Entitlements Policy), provides Department of the Army (DA) policies for entitlements and collections of pay and allowances for active duty Soldiers. Paragraph 18-26 (Continuation Pay), the BRS provides for CP in exchange for additional service obligation by Soldiers when they reach between the 8 and 12-years point in their career. Soldiers will receive a minimum of 2.5 times base pay for Regular component and .5 times base pay for Reserve components if they commit to a minimum of 3-years of additional service. 
 
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