IN THE CASE OF: 

		BOARD DATE: 12 July 2023

		DOCKET NUMBER: AR20230000816


APPLICANT REQUESTS: correction of his reenlistment documents reflecting the rank 
of sergeant (SGT)/E-5 with entitlement to the proper Selective Retention Bonus (SRB).

APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENT(S) CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD:

*	DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record)
*	Self-Authored Request
*	DA Form 1059 (Service School Academic Evaluation Report) Basic Leader 
Course (BLC)
*	DA Form 1059 Advanced Leader Course (ALC)
*	DD Form 4 (Enlistment/Reenlistment Document Armed Forces of the United 
States)
*	DA Form 3286-79 (Statements for Reenlistment)
*	DA Form 3340 (Request for Continued Service in the Regular Army)
*	DA Form 4789 (Statement of Entitlement to Retention Incentive)
*	Orders Number 218-97 Promotion Orders to SGT

FACTS:

1.  The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, U.S. 
Code (USC), section 1552 (b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military 
Records 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 his application and self-authored letter, in effect:

	a.  In September 2019, Class 314, was scheduled to graduate and their DA Forms 
1059 were prepared incorrectly. The DA Forms 1059 were dated and signed before the 
actual graduation. The U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) School's branch 
returned the DA Forms 1059 back to the Special Warfare Center and School (SWCS) to 
be redone. This prevented Soldiers in that class from being promoted with the Special 
Promotion Categories in a timely manner, their dates of rank would be adjusted once 
the DA Forms 1059 were completed correctly. All the Soldiers had to meet the 36 
months Service Remaining Requirement (SRR) in order to complete a Permanent 
Change of Station (PCS) to their next duty station. 

	b.  While the DA Form 1059 issue was being resolved at SWCS, the Army released 
a new SRB message, Military Personnel (MILPER) Message Number 19-261, which 
was released on 23 August 2019 and effective on 9 September 2019. This new SRB 
message dramatically changed the bonus tier. 

	c.  The SWCS Retention Team quickly screened every Soldier that was eligible to 
reenlist so they could be properly counseled on the effects of the new SRB message. 
The SWCS sent a career counselor on temporary duty to Yuma, AZ, where most of the 
students were, to counsel each Soldier individually so they could take action based on 
the SRB message that was set to expire on 8 September 2019. 

	d.  The DA Forms 1059 were not able to be completed prior to the expiration of the 
SRB message. These students were given the only two choices that they were eligible 
for, reenlist under the old SRB at the lower rank or wait and reenlist under the new SRB 
at the higher rank. They had to reenlist because of the SRR. Most of the students could 
not max out the bonus because they were more than 12 months from their expiration 
term of service, and they did not want to reenlist for 6 years. These Soldiers lost 
thousands of dollars in SRB entitlements because of the difference between reenlisting 
as an E-4 and E-5. The applicant was forced to reenlist at a lower rank due to an 
administrative error. It was later proven that he was in fact promoted to SGT in July of 
2019 but forced to reenlist as a specialist in September 2019. He was in the PCS 
process to arrive at his first duty station in a Special Operations Forces unit. The email 
chain was missed by him, and he did not get the opportunity to file this claim until now. 

	e.  U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) Retention contacted HRC, 
Retention Management Branch and requested to either have antedated reenlistment 
contracts or corrected copies of reenlistment contracts authorized for these students. 
They knew the DA Forms 1059 were being processed and they knew that their ranks 
would be backdated to reflect their graduation date. Technically all of their information 
was correct on the date of reenlistment, and they were unable to process either an 
antedated or corrected contract. 

	f.  In order for HRC to authorize an antedated or corrected copy the contract must 
fulfill the Defective, Unfulfilled, or Erroneous (DUFE) requirements, the data and the 
contracts were all correct as of the day of reenlistment and did not fit these criteria. HRC 
directed that once the DA Forms 1059 were corrected and the date of rank was updated 
the Soldiers could request an update to their military records by the Army Board for 
Correction of Military Record (ABCMR) process. 

	g.  USASOC Retention then reached out to Headquarters, Department of the Army 
(HQDA) and requested an exception to policy (ETP). Unfortunately, due to the same 
DUFE criteria, HQDA was unable to process an ETP and said the only recourse was 
the ABCMR. Because of the unique nature of the situation and knowing the ABCMR 
process is very lengthy, HQDA submitted all 34 cases as a batch case to the ABCMR 
and attempted to get it expedited. 

	h.  The ABCMR rejected the batch case and stated that each individual Soldier 
would have to submit an ABCMR case, the average wait time for ABCMR cases is 
currently 500 plus days. 

3.  The applicant's service records contain the following documents for the Board's 
consideration:

   a.	DD Form 4 shows the applicant enlisted in the US Army Reserve (USAR) 
Delayed Entry Program (DEP) on 23 September 2016, for a period of 8 years. On 
24 October 2016, the applicant was discharged from the USAR DEP and entered active 
duty for a period of 5 years. 

	b.  DA Form 1059, dated 23 October 2017, shows the applicant completed BLC. 

	c.  DA Form 1059 shows on 26 July 2019 the applicant completed the Special 
Forces Engineer Sergeant Course and ALC. 

	d.  Orders Number 218-97, published by Headquarters, U.S. Army Garrison, Fort 
Bragg, dated 6 August 2019, shows the applicant was promoted from specialist (SPC) 
to SGT in primary Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) 18C (Special Forces Engineer 
Sergeant), effective 26 July 2019 with a date of rank of 26 July 2019.

	e.  On 6 September 2019:

   (1) DD Form 4 shows the applicant reenlisted in the Regular Army on 
6 September 2019 in the rank of SPC for a period of 5 years with entitlement to a tier 8 
SRB in MOS 18C. 

		(2) DA Form 4789 (Statement of Entitlement to Retention Incentive) shows the 
applicant, in the rank of SPC, agreed to perform duties in MOS 18C for an incentive 
amount of $18,600.00 his additional obligated service would end on 
5 September 2024. 

	f.  The applicant remains on active duty.

4.  The applicant provides the following documents, not previously considered, for the 
Board's consideration:

	a.  DA Form 3286-79 dated 6 September 2019, which is the applicant's general 
statement of understanding, in-service reenlistment option, and statement of law 
violations and previous conditions. The entire form is available for the Board's 
consideration. 

	b.  DA Form 3340 dated 6 September 2019, which is a request by the applicant for 
reenlistment in the rank of SPC. The commander approved the applicant's request. 

5.  On 13 March 2023, the HRC, Chief, Reenlistment and Reclassification Branch, 
provided an advisory opinion for the Board's consideration, which states in effect:

	a.  From a review of the facts pertaining to the applicant's reenlistment, dated 
6 September 2019, it was determined his rank was correct at the time the reenlistment 
was executed. On 6 September 2019, the applicant's rank was SPC. His promotion 
order to SGT was signed after the reenlistment on 6 September 2019 making his 
contract administratively correct, on the date of reenlistment. 

	b.  In order for HRC to authorize an antedated or corrected copy, the contract must 
be determined to be DUFE in order to be corrected. Because all the information on the 
contract was correct at the time of reenlistment, corrections of the contract is outside the 
scope of their authority. 

	c.  Although correction of the contract is outside the scope of their authority, had the 
DA Form 1059 been published correctly and timely, the applicant would have been 
eligible for the higher bonus, which in their opinion, is within the scope of the Board to 
direct relief. HRC offers the advisory opinion that the applicant was adversely affected 
due to the delay in publishing a correct DA Form 1059 and that had that been 
accomplished correctly he would have reenlisted for a higher bonus, at the time of 
reenlistment. 

6.  On 21 March 2023, the advisory opinion was provided to the applicant to allow him 
the opportunity to respond. He did not respond. 

BOARD DISCUSSION:

After reviewing the application, all supporting documents, and the evidence found within 
the military record, the Board found that relief was warranted. The Board carefully 
considered the applicant's record of service, documents submitted in support of the 
petition and executed a comprehensive and standard review based on law, policy and 
regulation.  Upon review of the applicant’s petition, available military records and the 
HRC, Chief, Reenlistment and Reclassification Branch advisory opinion, the Board 
concurred with the advising official finding sufficient evidence to show at no fault of the 
applicant, due to the delay in publishing a correct DA Form 1059 and had that been 
accomplished correctly the applicant would have reenlisted for a higher bonus, at the 
time of reenlistment. The Board determined correction to the applicant records is 
warranted to show the corrected DA Form 1059 was received by HRC in a timely 
manner and correction of his reenlistment documents reflecting the rank of sergeant 
(SGT)/E-5 with entitlement to the proper Selective Retention Bonus (SRB) is warranted.


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 by Human Resources 
Command (HRC) to show correction of the applicant’s reenlistment documents 
reflecting the rank of sergeant (SGT)/E-5 with entitlement to the proper Selective 
Retention Bonus (SRB).


	 
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.  Title 10, UC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military 
records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice.  This 
provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) 
to excuse an applicant's failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the 
ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so.  

2.  Army Regulation 601-280 (Army Retention Program) Chapter 5 - Selective Retention 
Bonuses for Enlisted Personnel Section states the entitlement portion of this chapter on 
pay and allowances has been approved by the Department of Defense (DoD) Military 
Pay and Allowance Committee. These procedures are prescribed by statute in 
accordance with Title 37, USC, sections 331 and 373. The SRB Program provides a 
monetary incentive that may be offered to retain adequate numbers of qualified 
personnel in certain reenlistment categories. The MOSs designated for the SRB 
Program will be announced by message from HRC, Retention and Reclassification 
Branch. The SRB Program is a retention incentive paid to Soldiers who reenlist for a 
minimum of 3 years in a military skill designated as critical. Specific eligibility criteria is 
announced in the respective MILPER message for each bonus program. Upon 
reenlistment with an SRB, the Soldier must sign a written agreement. It states the 
Soldier has been counseled and understands the conditions under which continued 
entitlement to the SRB may be stopped and a pro rata portion of the advance bonus 
payments may be recouped. This agreement will also clearly specify the terms of the 
active service commitment entitled the Soldier to a bonus. 

3.  MILPER Message Number 19-261, SRB Program, dated 23 August 2019 states in 
effect Soldiers reenlisting may be entitled to a lump sum, flat-rate, SRB payment. 
Bonuses that are identified for a specific location must adhere to the rules. Soldiers 
must posses a primary MOS, rank and total active federal service with associated skill 
qualification identifier, additional skill identifier or language code, if any. The table shows 
both a SPC and SGT with an MOS in the career management field of 18 would receive 
a Tier 8 bonus. A Tier 8 bonus as a SPC was in the amount of $47,200.00; a Tier 8 
bonus as a SGT was in the amount of $52,000.00 for a reenlistment greater than 60 
months.

//NOTHING FOLLOWS//
ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)	AR20230000816


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ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


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