RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        5 October 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20060001282


      I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.

|     |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun               |     |Director             |
|     |Mr. G. E. Vandenberg              |     |Analyst              |


      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. James B. Gunlicks             |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Michael J. Flynn              |     |Member               |
|     |Mr. Scott W. Faught               |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests that his promotion to major be backdated to June
2003 with full back pay.

2.  The applicant states he was misinformed as to his eligibility for
promotion while serving in his TPU (Troop Program Unit) captain’s position.
 Additionally he was not transferred to the IRR (Individual Ready Reserve)
and allowed to accept his promotion until June 2004.

3.  The applicant provides sixteen pages of documents and e-mails related
to his promotion.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The records show the applicant was commissioned in the United States
Army Reserve (USAR) on 24 May 1989 as a second lieutenant in the Engineer
Branch.
2.  He served on active duty from 26 October 1990 through 30 July 1993 and
was transferred to the USAR Control Group (Reinforcement) as a first
lieutenant.

3.  On 30 June 1995 his request for transfer from the Engineer Branch to
the Civil Affairs Branch, in the specialty skill identifier (SSI) 38A, was
approved.  The applicant was serving with the 426th Civil Affairs Battalion
at this time.

4.  His Department of the Army (DA) Form 2-1 shows that as of 1 April 1996
the applicant was serving with the 426th Civil Affairs Battalion in the SSI
67C (Preventive Medicine Sciences) as a 72B entomologist.

5.  His unit was mobilized and he served on active duty from 11 April 1997
through 19 January 1998.  Upon release from active duty he returned to his
assignment with the 426th Civil Affairs Battalion as a captain.

6.  On 5 May 1999 the applicant was appointed a captain in the USAR SSI 72B
and is shown to be serving with the 426th Civil Affairs Battalion.

7.  On 4 September 1999, the applicant was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy,
in the field of entomology.



8.  The applicant was selected for promotion to major by the 2003 Major DA
Reserve Components Army Medical Department Selection Board.  At this time
the applicant was serving in a captain’s slot with the 426th Civil Affairs
Battalion, a TPU.

9.  An undated Headquarters, 351st Civil Affairs Command AOCP-CAA Form 4,
states “This officer is eligible for promotion in current slot….See #9, on
PQS, AR 140-10, para 2-24.”

10.  The e-mails provided by the applicant show that there were actions
taking place to promote the applicant during the period of October 2003
through January 2004.

11.  A 4 December 2003 e-mail, from sergeant first class (SFC) M____,
states he is unable to promote the applicant since he is not in a higher
grade position.  SFC M___ indicates the only exceptions are for physicians
and dentists.  He states that the applicant needs to find a major's
position or request he be promoted in the IRR.

12.  The applicant transferred to the IRR on 7 June 2004 and was promoted
to major effective the same date.

13.  United States Army Human Resources Command (AHRC) Orders M-11-
504527A01, dated 14 November 2005, amended the applicant’s reporting date.
He is listed as a major in the USAR (IMA).  Copies of the original orders
are not associated with the record.

14.  In the development of this case an advisory opinion was obtained from
the Chief of Special Action, Office of Promotions, Reserve Components,
AHRC, St. Louis, Missouri.  The Promotion Official notes that in order for
a USAR (TPU) officer to be promoted they must be in a position authorized
the higher grade.  The only exception to this regulation is for doctors and
dentists.  The applicant was promoted to major upon his transfer to the
IRR.

15.  A copy of the opinion was forwarded to the applicant and he submitted
a rebuttal.  In that rebuttal the applicant states he should not be held
liable for the misinformation provided him and errors made by his Branch
Personnel Section.  He outlines the actions he took to be afforded the
earlier effective date of promotion and contends that if he had been
properly advised of his options he would have transferred to the IRR in
June 2003 and been promoted at that time.  He states that he was denied
promotion in both his SSI and the position he was actually serving in, the
Detachment Commander a 38A major’s position.
16.  Army Pamphlet 611-21 (Military Occupational Specialties) lists the
officer career specialties.  A 72B67C code is an officer serving as an
entomologist in the preventive medicine area of concentration (AOC) of the
Medical Service Corps (MSC).

17.  Army Regulation 140-10 (Army Reserve Assignments, Attachments,
Details, and Transfers), prescribes policies, responsibilities, and
procedures to assign, attach, detail, remove, or transfer of USAR Soldiers.

18.  Paragraph 2-24 (Army Medical Department (AMEDD) positions) of this
regulation states:

   a. 67 series MSC officers will be assigned according to paragraph 2-25.


   b. AMEDD officers, other than 67 series MSC, will be assigned only to
unit positions requiring their specific AOC and ASI (additional skill
identifier ) if necessary.  This policy applies to both mandatory and
voluntary assignments.


   c. AMEDD officers, other than 67 series MSC, may be assigned to positions
requiring one grade above or 2 grades below their current rank if AOC
qualified.


   d. AMEDD officers, other than 67 series MSC, assigned against a lower
grade position will be (1) Removed when an officer of the required grade
becomes available; (2) Given 90 days to find a position for which AOC
qualified or involuntarily reassigned to the IRR; (3) AMEDD officers who
are overstrength or in positions for which they are not AOC qualified may
be cross leveled to positions which require their AOC.


19.  Paragraph 2-25, (Medical Service Corps positions) states that 67
series MSC officers may be mandatorily assigned to positions for which they
are AOC qualified.  They may volunteer for assignment to Army Promotion
List (APL) positions, provided they can become branch qualified within 3
years; understand they are not eligible for unit vacancy promotion in the
APL position until appointed in the APL branch; and that 67 series MSC
officers may be assigned to 67E and 67K positions only if they are AOC
qualified or currently enrolled in an AOC producing (67E/67K) course as
appropriate.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  It is unfortunate that the applicant may have received incorrect
information as to his promotion eligibility and the necessary actions that
needed to be taken for him to accept that promotion.
2.  However, the applicant was not fully eligible for promotion until he
was transferred to the IRR in June 2004.

3.  In order to afford the applicant the requested relief, he would have to
be shown to be transferred from the TPU to the IRR effective June 2003.
Since there is no provision for a member of the IRR to serve as an active
member of a TPU, with entitlement to pay and allowances for drilling
periods, such a transfer would, in effect, negate his TPU service and would
result in a loss of retirement points and the creation of an overpayment
for all pay and allowances received during that period.

4.  It is the policy of the ABCMR not to make any correction to a Soldier’s
record that would make the Soldier worse off than if the correction were
not requested.  Therefore, it would be inappropriate to correct the records
at this time.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

__JBG __  __MJF __  __SWF__  DENY APPLICATION


BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

The Board determined that the evidence presented does not demonstrate the
existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board
determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis
for correction of the records of the individual concerned.





                                  ___James B. Gunlicks _____
                                            CHAIRPERSON

                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20060001282                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |20061005                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |  . . .                                 |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |131                                     |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |




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