IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  22 December 2011

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20110001704 


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 a manual bonus control number (BCN) be issued for the Officer Accession Bonus (OAB) contract he signed on 25 September 2010.

2.  He states:

   a.  through no fault of his own, his OAB was not entered in the Information Management and Reporting Center (IMARC) system before 30 September 2010, thereby requiring an exception to policy for issuance of a manual BCN; and 
   
   b.  As of 1 October 2010, the National Guard Bureau (NGB) no longer authorized exceptions to policy in this matter which requires Soldiers to submit a request to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) for adjudication.  

3.  He provides:

* Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum
* NGB Form 337 (Oaths of Office)
* Four memoranda from the NGB
* Email from the Missouri Army National Guard (MOARNG) with application procedures to apply to the ABCMR
* Three memoranda from the MOARNG
* DA Form 2823 (Sworn Statement)


CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The NGB issued the following memoranda that:  

   a.  on 11 January 2010, implemented guidance for incentive contracts not in IMARC;

   b.  on 7 July 2010, updated the implementation of the guidance for incentive contracts not in iMARC; and 
   
   c.  on 26 August 2010, established 30 September 2010 as the final date to submit manual BCN exception to policy requests for Selected Reserve Incentive Program contracts executed prior to 1 October 2010.

2.  The applicant was appointed in the MOARNG on 25 September 2010 in the rank of warrant officer one (WO1) after completion of prior enlisted service.  

3.  On 25 September 2010, he completed a Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum which stated in part:

	a.  He agreed to serve in the Selected Reserve in area of concentration 351L (Counterintelligence Technician) for 6 years;

	b.  He was not being accessed for continuous active duty service; and

	c.  He was to receive a bonus of $10,000 paid in two installations.  The first 50 percent installment was to be processed upon completion of Basic Officer Leadership Course III and qualification in his critical skill.  The second and final payment of 50 percent was to be processed on the third year anniversary of his agreement.  

4.  In an email, dated 26 October 2010, from a MOARNG staff member, the applicant was notified of the following:

	a.  there was a recent change in the Incentives arena that pertained to bonus contracts being loaded into the IMARC system the same month as the bonus was signed;

	b.  he signed his bonus addendum when he became a WO1, but it was left undated based on the requirement that his bonus be dated the same day of commissioning;

	c.  the bonus addendum was kept in a suspense file awaiting his graduation date of 25 September 2010; however, she didn’t input his bonus into the IMARC system because she was out sick the last week of September;

	d.  her failure to input the bonus prior to 1 October [2010] required this office to request an exception to policy to the NGB; and

	e.  his request must be forwarded to the ABCMR.

5.  On 26 October 2010, an ARNG recruiting and retention battalion submitted a request to NGB for an exception to policy pertaining to the issuance of a manual BCN for the applicant and three other warrant officers.  Their accession bonus addenda were signed and forwarded on 25 September 2010 for input into IMARC; however, the person responsible for accomplishing this task was out sick.  The error was not discovered until after 1 October, thereby necessitating a request for an exception to policy.

6.  On 1 November 2010, the MOARNG submitted a memorandum to NGB requesting an exception to policy for the applicant for issuance of a manual BCN.

7.  On 9 December 2010, the NGB disapproved the request for an exception to policy for a manual BCN to allow the applicant to receive the $10,000 OAB.  The NGB stated the request for a manual BCN for his OAB was received after the suspense date, making him ineligible for the incentive and BCN.  The NGB stated he could file a claim with the ABCMR if he believed and error or injustice still existed.

8.  On 20 December 2010, a staff member from the MOARNG, 27th Recruiting and Retention Battalion submitted a sworn statement explaining why the applicant's BCN was not requested through the IMARC system prior to 30 September 2010. 

9.  In a memorandum, dated 5 January 2011, the MOARNG, 27th Recruiting and Retention Battalion recommended approval of adjudication pertaining to the applicant and the issuance of a manual BCN.  It is through no fault of his own that his BCN was not requested through the IMARC system prior to 
30 September 2010.

10.  During the processing of this case, an advisory opinion was obtained from the Acting Chief, Personnel Policy Division, NGB.  The NGB recommends the applicant's contract be amended to indicate a valid BCN.  The NGB stated that through no fault of the Soldier, the office staff member responsible for assigning a BCN was unavailable due to illness from the time he was appointed to the suspense date of 30 September 2010.

11.  The advisory opinion was forwarded to the applicant for comments.  However, no response has been received from him.

12.  Title 37, U.S. Code, section 308j(b), states the Secretary concerned may pay an accession bonus under this section to an eligible person who enters into an agreement with the Secretary to (a) accept an appointment as an officer in the Armed Forces, and (b) to serve in the Selected Reserve of the Ready Reserve in a skill designated under paragraph (2) for a period specified in the agreement.  Paragraph (2)(a) states the Secretary concerned shall designate for an Armed Force under the Secretary's jurisdiction the officer skills to which the authority under this subsection is to be applied.  Paragraph (2)(b) states a skill may be designated for an Armed Force under subparagraph (a) if, to mitigate a current or projected significant shortage of personnel in that Armed Force who are qualified in that skill, it is critical to increase the number of persons accessed into that armed force who are qualified in that skill or are to be trained in that skill.  Paragraph (b) states an accession bonus payable to a person pursuant to an agreement under this section accrues on the date on which that agreement is accepted by the Secretary concerned.

13.  National Guard Regulation 600-7 (Selective Reserve Incentive Programs), chapter 2, paragraph 2-5, provides enlistment bonus contracts are valid only with BCNs which will be issued from the State Incentive Management Office to Military Entrance Processing Station counselors and reported to NGB on a monthly basis.  The State Incentive Manager will verify accession packets as prescribed by state policy for BCNs, accuracy of enlistment contract and bonus addendum, critical skill and bonus unit eligibility, valid position vacancy, and required educational level.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant’s claim of entitlement to an OAB in the amount of $10,000.00 was carefully considered and found to have merit.  

2.  He accepted his appointment in the MOARNG for a period of 6 years and signed his Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum in good faith.

3.  He should not be penalized for the administrative errors committed by his unit and the State Incentive Office.  Had his paperwork been submitted in a timely manner his BCN would have been assigned.  
4.  Therefore, in the interest of justice, a valid BCN should be assigned and the applicant paid his OAB in accordance with his Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum.

BOARD VOTE:

____x___  ____x___  ____x___  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 State Army National Guard and Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by:

   a.  showing he was assigned a valid BCN prior to the 30 September 2010 deadline for an OAB in the amount of $10,000.00;
   
   b.  showing he is eligible for payment of the bonus in accordance with the terms of his Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum; and

   c.  paying him, out of Army National Guard funds, the bonus as specified in his Written Agreement, Officer/Warrant Officer Accession Bonus Addendum.




      _______ _   _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)                                         AR20110001704





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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20110001704



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