IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  12 November 2013

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20130016017 


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 cash payment for Post-Deployment/Mobilization Respite Absence (PDMRA) days for the period 22 June 2011 to 1 May 2012.

2.  The applicant states:

	a.  his 2012 request for PDMRA was disapproved.

	b.  he was not afforded any time prior to or at the end of his orders (22 June 2011 to 21 June 2012) which was in the Gray Area 2 (GA2) time frame, to expend any PDMRA days, nor was a calculation of PDMRA days completed prior to the end of the orders.  

   c.  adjudication of the PDMRA benefits should have occurred prior to the end of the qualifying period (1 May 2012), affording him the opportunity to expend any PDMRA days prior to the end of that specific order/period of service, and before beginning the following Title 10, U.S. Code 12301(d), order through 1 May 2013. 

3.  The applicant provides:

* DA Forms 4187 (Personnel Action)
* Memorandum for record, dated 22 May 2013


* DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) for the period ending 15 June 2009
* PDMRA calculator

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant was ordered to active duty from the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) on 28 September 2007 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  He served as a human resources specialist in Honduras from 10 October 2007 to 14 March 2009.  On 15 June 2009, he was released from active duty.  Item 18 (Remarks) of his DD Form 214 for the period 15 June 2009 shows the entry "PDMRA LEAVE FROM 20090403 TO 20090606."

2.  He was promoted to sergeant major on 1 December 2010.

3.  Orders, dated 17 May 2011, show he was ordered to active duty with a reporting date of 22 June 2011 for a period not to exceed 365 days unless extended or terminated.  These orders state he would be released from active duty (REFRAD) no later than 20 June 2012.      

4.  Orders, dated 5 April 2012, show he was ordered to active duty with a reporting date of 2 May 2012 for a period of 365 days.  The end date is shown as 1 May 2013.   

5.  He provides a DA Form 4187, dated 14 November 2012, which shows he requested a cash payment for the PDMRA days.  On 22 May 2013, the U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) PDMRA Team disapproved his request for the PDMRA days.  The authority stated:

	a.  in accordance with Public Law 112-120, dated 25 May 2012, GA2 only applies to individual qualifying orders that commenced before 1 October 2011 and continued on or after 1 October 2011.  Additionally, GA2 was enacted to identify and correct errors specifically related to the calculation of PDMRA benefits that may have occurred or resulted from relevant changes that took effect on 1 October 2011.  Although the Title 10, U.S. Code, section 12302 order for the period 22 June 2011 to 20 June 2012 is a qualifying order for PDMRA consideration, the applicant has been on continuous back-to-back orders since 28 September 2007 and the service periods have not been adjudicated; therefore, there is no error to correct or adjust under GA2.



	b.  adjudication of the PDMRA benefits should have occurred prior to the end of the qualifying period (1 May 2012), affording him the opportunity to expend any PDMRA days prior to the end of that specific order/period of service, and before beginning the current Title 10, U.S. Code 12301(d) order through 1 May 2013.  

	c.  PDMRA days cannot be carried forward/rolled over to new mobilization orders.  PDMRA is a use or lose benefit for the mobilization period under which it is earned.

	d.  PDMRA days earned during a mobilization to a qualifying foreign outside the Continental United States country that is not officially "leave restricted" must be used during the mobilization orders period.  Soldiers will not be extended on contingency operations for active duty operational support (CO-ADOS) orders to use any accrued PDMRA days when the Soldier was eligible to use the PDMRA during the mobilization order period.  It is the Soldier's responsibility to schedule their usage of any earned PDMRA while at their mobilization permanent duty station or return to the demobilization/transition center/REFRAD point in sufficient time to use earned PDMRA days before the order end date.  Only Soldiers that are returning from theater deployments (leave restricted areas) will be extended on CO-ADOS orders to utilize earned PDMRA, as well as any accrued annual leave.

	e.  PDMRA days earned cannot be cashed out.  PDMRA is intended to be used as a period of "administrative time-off/respite" to reintegrate with family after an arduous deployment or prolonged family separation.  If not used for that purpose, there is no option for selling any unused PDMRA days at separation/REFRAD.     

6.  PDMRA is designed to give extra time off to Reserve and National Guard members to compensate them for too little dwell time at home between deployments.  PDMRA days are available to Active Component Soldiers who deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, or with certain theater units and other areas as determined by the Secretary of the Army or his designated representative.  PDMRA days are also available to Reserve Component (RC) Soldiers, but they must have been mobilized under Title 10, U.S. Code, sections 12301a, 12302, or 12304.  Any voluntary mobilizations under Title 10, U.S. Code, section 12301d, RC Soldiers serving contingency operations-active duty for operational support tours or Retiree Recalls, do not qualify for PDMRA unless mobilization was in conjunction with deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan.  However, an RC Soldier involuntarily called to active duty under the above sections of Title 10, U.S. Code, need not be deployed to a combat zone to accrue PDMRA days.  Soldiers who have been mobilized or deployed more than the Army plan called for will accrue PDMRA days after the 13th month on active duty orders.  PDMRA is initially earned at a rate of 1 day per month and the number of days increases as the Soldier remains in an active duty status.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant requests a cash payment for PDMRA days for the period 
22 June 2011 to 1 May 2012 because he was not afforded the opportunity to expend any PDMRA days.  By law, PDMRA days earned cannot be cashed out.  PDMRA is intended to be used as a period of "administrative time-off/respite" to reintegrate with family after an arduous deployment or prolonged family separation.  If not used for that purpose, there is no option for selling any unused PDMRA days at separation/REFRAD.     

2.  In addition, it is the Soldier's responsibility to schedule their usage of any earned PDMRA while at their mobilization permanent duty station or return to the demobilization/transition center/REFRAD point in sufficient time to use earned PDMRA days before the order end date.  

3.  Since he used PDMRA leave from 3 April 2009 to 6 June 2009, it appears he was fully aware of his responsibility to schedule the usage of his earned PDMRA days.

4.  PDMRA days cannot be carried forward/rolled over to new mobilization orders.  PDMRA is a use or lose benefit for the mobilization period under which it is earned.

5.  Based on the foregoing, there is insufficient evidence on which to base granting the 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)                                         AR20130016017





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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20130016017



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