DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

 

BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 
Application for the Correction of 
the Coast Guard Record of: 
 
                                                                                        BCMR Docket No. 2001-093 
 
 
   

 

 
 

FINAL DECISION 

 
ANDREWS, Deputy Chair: 
 
 
This is a proceeding under the provisions of section 1552 of title 10 and section 
425  of  title  14  of  the  United  States  Code.    It  was  docketed  on  June  4,  2001,  after  the 
Board received the applicant’s completed application. 
 
 
appointed members who were designated to serve as the Board in this case. 
 

This  final  decision,  dated  April  11,  2002,  is  signed  by  the  three  duly  

APPLICANT’S REQUEST AND ALLEGATIONS  

 
 
The applicant, a xxxxxxxxxxxxx who enlisted in the Coast Guard on August 5, 
1991,  asked  the  Board  to  correct  his  military  record  by  replacing  his  six-year 
reenlistment contract dated April 9, 2001, with a three-month extension contract and a 
new  six-year  reenlistment  contract  dated  October  11,  2001.    He  alleged  that  the 
correction would entitle him to receive a Zone B selective reenlistment bonus (SRB)1 at 
the E-7 pay grade under ALCOAST 127/01, rather than the one he has received at the 
E-6 pay grade under ALCOAST 488/00.  
 

                                                 
1  SRBs  vary  according  to  the  member’s  pay  grade,  the  length  of  the  member’s  active  duty  service,  the 
length of the period of reenlistment or extension of enlistment, and the “multiple” with which the SRB is 
calculated, which reflects the Coast Guard’s need for personnel in the member’s skill rating.  Coast Guard 
members who have served between 21 months and 6 years on active duty are in “Zone A,” while those 
who have more than 6 but less than 10 years of active duty service are in “Zone B.”  With more than 6 
years of active service, the applicant was in Zone B.  Members may not receive more than one bonus per 
zone. 
 

 
The applicant alleged that in April 2001, his then-current enlistment was ending 
on July 9, 2001, but he wanted to wait to reenlist because he was xxxx on the advance-
ment list to xxxxxxxxxx; pay grade E-7) and wanted to receive an SRB at the E-7 pay 
grade.  When ALDIST 127/01 was issued on March 27, 2001, however, he realized that 
no Zone B SRB would be authorized for members in the xx rating between May 1 and 
October 1, 2001.  Therefore, on April 9, 2001, while still an E-6, he reenlisted for six years 
to earn the SRB before it was canceled on May 1st. 
 
 
The applicant stated that when ALCOAST 198/01 was issued on April 30, 2001, 
it authorized short-term extensions for members whose enlistments ended and whose 
sixth  and  tenth  active  duty  anniversaries  fell  between  May  1  and October 1, 2001, so 
that those members could reenlist in October and receive an SRB just as if their actual 
anniversaries had fallen in October.  The applicant argued that if ALCOAST 198/01 had 
been issued before he reenlisted on April 9, 2001, he would have elected to sign a short-
term extension and reenlist in October 2001, at the E-7 pay grade to get a bigger SRB. 
 
 
In support of his allegations, the applicant submitted a copy of an email he sent 
on March 29, 2001.  In the email, he indicated that he wanted to get an SRB by reenlist-
ing within three months of his tenth anniversary. 
 

SUMMARY OF THE RECORD AND REGULATIONS  

Commanding  officers  may  authorize  a  short  term  extension  up  to  5 
months to expire [no later than] 31 October 2001 for members whose 6 or 
10-year anniversary date and expiration of enlistment date both fall on or 
after 1 May 2001 but before 1 October 2001.  Upon the expiration of their 
short term extension, members must reenlist for a minimum of three years 

The  applicant  enlisted  on  August  5,  1991,  for  a  term  of  four  years,  through 

 
 
August 4, 1995.  On July 10, 1995, he reenlisted for six years, through July 9, 2001.  
 
 
Under Article 12.B.7. of the Personnel Manual, members may be discharged and 
immediately reenlisted anytime during the three months immediately prior to the end 
of their enlistments.  On April 9, 2001, ninety days before the end of his enlistment, the 
applicant reenlisted for six years.  At the time, ALCOAST 488/00 was in effect, author-
izing  a  Zone  B  SRB  with  a  multiple  of  1  for  members  in  the  xx  rating.    However, 
ALCOAST 127/01, issued on March 27, 2001, had announced that the Zone B SRB for xx 
would be canceled as of May 1, 2001, and would not be reauthorized until October 1, 
2001.  By reenlisting before May 1, 2001, the applicant received the Zone B SRB with a 
multiple of 1 as an E-6 under ALCOAST 488/00.   
 
 
the following: 
 

On April 30, 2001, the Commandant issued ALCOAST 198/01, which provided 

to receive the SRB. 

On June 1, 2001, the applicant was advanced to xx/E-7. 

 
 
 

VIEWS OF THE COAST GUARD 

On October 29, 2001, the Chief Counsel of the Coast Guard recommended that 

 
 
the Board deny the applicant’s request.  
 
 
The Chief Counsel argued that the record indicates that the applicant purpose-
fully chose to reenlist on April 9, 2001, three months before the end of his enlistment 
because he was aware that the SRB authorized for his rating under ALCOAST 488/00 
was being canceled as of May 1, 2001.  The Chief Counsel admitted that if the applicant 
had  known  about  ALCOAST  198/01  in  advance,  he  could  have  signed  a  short-term 
extension  contract  and  reenlisted  in  October  2001  to  receive  an  SRB  at  the  E-7  pay 
grade.    However,  he  argued,  the  Coast  Guard  “had  no  duty  to  release  ALCOAST 
198/01 in time to benefit the Applicant.  On the contrary, the Coast Guard bases its SRB 
policies with the benefit of knowing how many reenlistments and extensions have been 
executed.”    He  argued  that  the  applicant  had  not  proved  that  the  Coast  Guard 
committed any error or that he had suffered an injustice. 
 

APPLICANT’S RESPONSE TO THE VIEWS OF THE COAST GUARD 

 
 
On November 2, 2001, the BCMR sent the applicant a copy of the Chief Counsel’s 
advisory  opinion  and  invited  him  to  respond  within  fifteen  days.    No  response  was 
received.  
 

FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS 

 
 
The  Board  makes  the  following  findings  and  conclusions  on  the  basis  of  the  
applicant's military record and submissions, the Coast Guard's submissions, and appli-
cable law: 
 

1. 

The  Board  has  jurisdiction  concerning  this  matter  pursuant  to  10  U.S.C. 

§ 1552, and the application was timely. 
 

2. 

Under the SRB Instruction, COMDTINST 7220.33, members are entitled to 
accurate counseling about their SRB eligibility whenever they reenlist.  The record indi-
cates  that  in  late  March  or  early  April  2001,  the  applicant  was  accurately  counseled 
about his SRB eligibility in accordance with the regulations in effect at that time.  On 
April 9, 2001, there was no way for the applicant’s command to foresee the issuance of 
ALCOAST 198/01, and ALCOAST 127/01 indicated that the applicant would become 
ineligible  for  a  Zone  B  SRB  if  he  did  not  reenlist  before  May  1,  2001.    Therefore,  the 

Board finds that the applicant has not proved that he was erroneously counseled about 
his SRB eligibility when he reenlisted on April 9, 2001. 

If the applicant had waited to reenlist, he could have taken advantage of 
the provisions of ALCOAST 198/01 and received his SRB based on his higher basic pay 
as an E-7.  However, without foresight of ALCOAST 198/01, he wisely chose to reenlist 
before the SRB expired on May 1, 2001.  

The  applicant  has  not  proved  that  he  was  entitled  to  know  about 
ALCOAST 198/01 before the regulation was issued.  He has not proved that the Coast 
Guard committed any error or injustice with respect to his April 9, 2001, reenlistment. 

 
3. 

 
4. 

 
5. 
 
 
 

 Accordingly, the applicant’s request should be denied. 

The application of xxxxxxxxxxxx, USCG, for correction of his military record is 

ORDER 

 

denied.  
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 

 
Terence W. Carlson 

 

 

 

 
 
Robert A. Monniere 

 

 

 
Mark A. Tomicich