IN THE CASE OF:  	  

		BOARD DATE:  19 March 2015	  

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20150000017 


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 to his record to show a date of rank (DOR) of Major (MAJ)/O-4 effective 4 February 2014.  

2.  He states:

   a.  Through no fault of his own, his promotion packet was lost while pending Federal Recognition in the legacy system.  The loss occurred due to a system error when the legacy system was shut off and the e-tracker system was stood up, which resulted in 80% of his promotion information being lost.  
   
   b.  He was a branch transfer from the Medical Specialist (MS) to Special Forces (SF) Branch, which took nearly a year to occur.  He was mandated to put in a promotion packet for MAJ for his original MS Branch even though he was conducting a branch transfer.  The board results for the MS Branch were delayed 9 months, and so when he was put in for promotion to MAJ in August 2013 while taking over the SF Commanding Officer at Company A, 5th Battalion, 19th SF Group, Airborne, the promotion was kicked back because he was already a Department of the Army (DA) select for MAJ in the MS Branch.
   
   c.  He was promoted into the wrong branch during the DA board, which caused his promotion to MAJ/O-4 to be kicked out of the Federal Recognition promotion board in August 2013 for the SF Branch.  Furthermore, he states, the California Army National Guard (CAARNG) declined his promotion without his knowledge.  He resubmitted his package for promotion in September but requested it to be backdated to August 2013.  At that point, the promotion packet was lost by the National Guard Board (NGB), but this was not known until 7 months later.  
   
   d.  This caused his packet to be removed and the State of California declined the DA promotion as well.  They resubmitted his promotion packet again, and after no movement for 4 months he noticed fellow MAJ's being moved onto scrolls and/or promoted, but he was still not being promoted.  
   
   e.  He contacted Intelligence (S-2) at the state Troop Command, and subsequently the Deputy Chief of Staff (G-1) office to alert them of the issues, to no avail.  After 7 months had passed, he states he was contacted by the G1 office who stated there were some problems with the legacy system transferring old documents into the new system.  Therefore, the delay pushed back his scroll promotion date to 18 June 2014. 
   
3.  He provides e-mail correspondence.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  After having had prior enlisted service, the applicant on 16 January 2003 was appointed as a second lieutenant (2LT)/O-1 in the Utah ARNG (UTARNG), but he never received permanent Federal Recognition.

2.  On 23 May 2003, the applicant successfully completed the Inter-service Physician Assistant Program.

3.  On 23 May 2003, the applicant was promoted in the UTARNG in the MS Branch as a 65D (Physician Assistant), in the grade of 2LT/O-1, and granted temporary Federal Recognition.  However, there was no evidence to show that he received permanent Federal Recognition as a 2LT/O-1 from the UTARNG within the six-month period required by the National Guard/Army regulations.

4.  On 12 March 2004, U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC) issued the applicant a letter of Appointment as a Reserve Commissioned Officer of the UTARNG, with a DOR of 25 August 2003 at a 2LT/O-1.

5.  The applicant submitted a request to the ABCMR to show his promotion to 2LT/O-1 be backdated with an effective date of 23 May 2003 in the UTARNG due do no fault of his own.  His case was approved on 22 August 2006.  In addition, the Board also granted a backdated promotion to 1LT/O-2 with an effective date of 23 May 2005.  

6.  On 25 March 2009, the applicant was ordered to active duty in the grade of CPT/O-3, until 18 December 2009, when he was honorably released.  During this period, the applicant served in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  Upon his return to the states, he returned to his unit with the UTARNG.

7.  On 7 March 2013, the applicant transferred to California and took an oath of office into the CAARNG.

8.  In August 2013, the applicant was promoted to MAJ/O-4 in the MS Branch.  However, he put in for a branch transfer with the SF Branch.  

9.   He was assigned to the SF Branch as a CPT/O-3.

10.  The applicant's Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) revealed that the applicant was promoted in the CAARNG in the SF Branch to MAJ/O-4 with an effective date of 18 June 2014.  

11.  An email by the NGB dated 4 December 2014, states that "this officer should receive relief due to the system failure.  Due to the timeframe when the Legacy system was shut down and the eTRACKER system was stood up, 80% of the data was lost.  Due to no fault of this officer…[the applicant] should have been placed on scroll PL 03-14…[it] was approved on 4 February 2014."

12.  Title 10, U.S. Code, section 12203, provides that appointments of Reserve officers in the grades of lieutenant colonel and below shall be made by the President.  This authority has been delegated to the Secretary of Defense via executive order.  

13.  Executive Order 13358 (Assignment of Functions Relating to Certain Appointments, Promotions, and Commissions in the Armed Forces), issued
28 September 2004, delegated the authority of the President of the United States to appoint officers in the Reserve Component to the Secretary of Defense with no further sub-delegation authorized.  On 1 July 2005, the directive was issued that all officers appointed in the Reserve Component must be on a "scroll" approved and signed by the Secretary of Defense before an Oath of Office can be initiated.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant requests correction of his DOR to 4 February 2014 in the rank/grade of MAJ/O-4. 
 
2.  If not for the legacy system error, he would have been placed on scroll PL 03-14, which was approved on 4 February 2014 in the rank/grade of MAJ/O-4, based on the email from the NGB.  

3.  This Board does not have the authority to change the date of an appointment approved by the Secretary of Defense.  However, in light of the available evidence, as a matter of equity, it would be appropriate to correct his record by changing his DOR to 4 February 2014, vice 18 June 2014, now of record.  

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 changing his DOR for MAJ/O-4 to 4 February 2014.  




      _______ _   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)                                         AR20120002360



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20150000017



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