IN THE CASE OF:
BOARD DATE: 9 July 2015
DOCKET NUMBER: AR20140017327
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 that he be paid the Selected Reserve Incentive Program (SRIP) Bonus for which he contracted.
2. The applicant states, in effect, that he contracted to serve in the United States Army Reserve (USAR) for a period of 3 years in return for a $20,000 SRIP bonus incentive in military specialty 24A. However, he has been denied his bonus because he failed to sign the form in one place. He goes on to state that the denial of his bonus has had a negative impact on his finances. He also states that he has exhausted his administrative remedies without success.
3. The applicant provides copies of his USAR contract, DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty), Officer Record Brief, and emails related to his attempts to obtain his bonus.
CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:
1. The applicant was serving in the Regular Army as a captain (CPT) in functional area (FA) 24A when he contracted to serve in the USAR for a period of 3 years in return for a $20,000 SRIP bonus in FA 24A on 7 May 2013.
2. On 1 July 2013, the applicant was honorably discharged due to non-selection for permanent promotion. He had served 10 years, 7 months and 11 days of active service.
3. On 2 July 2013, he was appointed as a USAR CPT in FA 24 and was assigned to a troop program unit in Georgia.
4. It appears that in August 2013, the applicant was notified that finance would not pay his bonus because his addendum was not signed and because additional documents were missing from his bonus packet. The applicant was advised to submit a request for an exception to policy.
5. In the processing of this case a staff advisory opinion was obtained from the Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff, G1, which opines, in effect, that notwithstanding that his signature is not contained on his bonus agreement, the counselor and witness statements are present, which indicates that the applicant was qualified to receive the SRIP bonus and recommends that it be paid. The advisory opinion was provided to the applicant for comment and to date no response has been received by the staff of the Board.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:
1. The applicantÂ’s contentions and supporting documents have been carefully considered and appear to have merit.
2. The fact that his bonus addendum was not signed by the applicant is an administrative oversight on the part of the officials that prepared the addendum and not the applicant. Accordingly, the applicant should not be penalized for administrative errors that were the responsibility of personnel who were required to administer those documents.
3. Accordingly, the applicant should be paid his SRIP bonus in accordance with the terms of his contract.
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 Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by showing that the applicant has been granted an exception to policy and is entitled to be paid his SRIP in accordance with the terms of his agreement.
_______ _ 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) AR20140017327
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