IN THE CASE OF:	

		BOARD DATE:	  10 December 2009

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20090003979 


THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE:

1.  Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any).

2.  Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any).


THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests correction of her military records to show that she is entitled to receive reimbursement for her dependent's travel expense to the Republic of Korea.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that she was assigned as a master sergeant, pay grade E-8, on a 12-month dependent restricted tour to the Republic of Korea.  The applicant is a single parent.  Prior to arrival overseas, she relocated her dependent children from Fort Sam Houston, TX to Fort Campbell, KY, where their care provider was located.  Fort Campbell is also the location of the applicant's projected return assignment from the Republic of Korea.  The applicant received a travel settlement for the movement of her dependents.

3.  After arrival in the Republic of Korea, the applicant was selected for promotion to sergeant major, pay grade E-9.  She was asked to stay for 2 years and to fill a key billet.  The applicant accepted the position and applied for command sponsorship to bring her children to the Republic of Korea.  The Installation Management Command (IMCOM) section responsible for approving command sponsorship informed the applicant that she would have to do an in-place consecutive overseas tour (IPCOT), otherwise she would have to pay the travel costs of moving her dependent children to the Republic of Korea.  The applicant states she would have gladly requested an IPCOT except for the fact that she would have had to complete her first year in order to bring her children at government expense.

4.  The applicant contends that while still in the United States, she was advised by her new chain of command in the Republic of Korea to wait until after her arrival overseas before requesting command sponsorship since she would be initially assigned to "Camp Henry versus Yongsan."  Had she known then that later she would not be able to move her children at government expense she would have made different plans.  There was much misinformation and she made her move to the Republic of Korea without the full knowledge of the governing regulations.  She further states that she should be reimbursed for the cost of moving her children from Fort Campbell to the Republic of Korea.

5.  The applicant provides, in support of her application, a letter from the human resources assistant at Fort Sam Houston, dated 2 February 2009; permanent change of station orders to Camp Henry, Republic of Korea; email communication between the applicant and the Director of Logistics, U.S. Army Garrison (USAG), Camp Humphreys, Korea; command sponsorship orders, and an airline receipt.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  At the time of application, the applicant was serving on active duty in the Republic of Korea.

2.  U.S. Army IMCOM, Headquarters, USAG, Fort Sam Houston, Orders155-226, dated 24 April 2008, assigned the applicant to the 19th Combat Support Sustainment Replacement, Camp Henry, Korea, with an availability date of
1 June 2008.  She was assigned to the Republic of Korea on a 12-month dependent restricted tour.

3.  U.S. Army IMCOM, Korea Region, Travel Order 289-001, dated 15 October 2008, granted the applicant and her three dependent children concurrent travel to economy quarters in the Republic of Korea.  Her availability date was 15 October 2008.  Her new date for return from overseas (DEROS) was established as
12 June 2010, subject to change due to the date of arrival of her dependents to the Republic of Korea based on a 24-month command sponsored tour.
The additional instructions section of the travel order stated, in part, that this was a conditional approved command sponsored accompanied tour.  It stated the applicant elected not to serve an IPCOT and that she was not authorized to move her dependents at government expense with these travel orders.  It further stated that "Soldier has elected to move family members to Korea at own expense."

4.  A trip summary and receipt from Northwest Airlines shows that the applicant's three children traveled from the United States and arrived in the Republic of Korea on 27 December 2008.

5.  On 2 February 2009, the Human Resources Assistant located at Fort Sam Houston stated in a memorandum that he had conducted a one-on-one briefing with the applicant in April 2008.  He stated that he did not address the restrictions and consequences of moving dependents to a designated location and he did not have the applicant sign any statements regarding this issue.

6.  In the processing of this case, on 23 September 2009 an advisory opinion was obtained from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G-1, Chief, Compensation and Entitlements Division, Washington, DC.  The advisory official provided that the Army had authorized the applicant to move her dependents to a designated location of her choice in conjunction with her permanent change of station move to a dependent restricted tour.  The Joint Federal Travel Regulations (JFTR) does not provide authority for reimbursement of dependent travel expenses after a prior move to a designated location at government expense.  The advisory opinion was sent to the applicant to allow her the opportunity to submit comments or a rebuttal.

7.  On 7 October 2009, the applicant provided a rebuttal to the G-1 advisory opinion.  The applicant provided a copy of Department of Defense Instruction (DODI) 1315.18 (Procedures for Military Personnel Assignments).  She argued that paragraph E3.5.7 of this DODI authorized payment of her dependents' travel costs regardless of whether they were previously located to a designated place at government expense.

8.  DODI 1315.18, paragraph E3.5.7, provides that service members selected for and assigned to an overseas duty station where command-sponsored dependents are not authorized shall serve the prescribed unaccompanied tour.  A tour election is inappropriate because an accompanied tour is not authorized.  The member's dependents may be relocated to a designated place at government expense.  If an accompanied tour is authorized after the service member's arrival, then the service member shall be given the opportunity to serve the accompanied tour.  When the service member is eligible to serve the accompanied tour and the military service concerned approves the change, the service member's dependents shall be provided government transportation to the service member's duty station, regardless of whether they were previously relocated to a designated place.  For service member's dependents to be command sponsored, the service member shall serve the full, accompanied tour starting when the dependents are command sponsored.

9.  Paragraph E3.5.8.2 of this same DODI provides that relocating dependents from a previously approved designated place to the service member's new duty station (current duty station for those selected for an IPCOT) shall be approved only if the military service concerned approves the introduction of the service member's dependents into the country.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that she should be reimbursed for the expense of moving her three dependent children from the United States to the Republic of Korea. 

2.  The evidence shows that the applicant was initially assigned to the Republic of Korea on a dependent restricted tour and that she had relocated her dependent children to a designated location prior to arrival in the overseas country.

3.  The applicant was subsequently offered the opportunity to do an IPCOT and serve an accompanied tour in Korea.  She applied for command sponsorship of her dependents; however, she declined to serve an IPCOT.  Consequently, her children were not eligible to travel from the United States to the Republic of Korea at Government expense.

4.  The applicant contends that had she been advised while still at Fort Sam Houston about the requirements and restrictions concerning movement of dependents to a designated location, she would have made different plans.  Since the applicant was a single parent and the children's provider was located at Fort Campbell, it does not appear that any other plan would have made itself available.

5.  In view of the above, there is no basis for granting the applicant's requested relief.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___X____  __X____  ____X___  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

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.



      __________X_____________
               CHAIRPERSON
      
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.

ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090003979



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20090003979



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