B-113491, JUN. 23, 1961

B-113491, JUN. 23, 1961

TO MR. JACK L. MARTIN:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF FEBRUARY 23, 1961, ADDRESSED TO THE SETTLEMENTS DIVISION, FINANCE CENTER, UNITED STATES ARMY, INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, CONCERNING YOUR PAY ACCOUNT AS AN ENLISTED MAN IN THE UNITED STATES ARMY. YOU ASSERT THAT YOU WERE NEVER INDEBTED TO THE GOVERNMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF $790.50 AND, THEREFORE, REQUEST A REVIEW OF YOUR ACCOUNT. YOU ALSO CONTEND THAT AT THE TIME OF YOUR RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY YOU RECEIVED ONLY THE TRAVEL ALLOWANCE OF $76.25 AND NOT THE $500.33 AS SHOWN ON DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE FORM 214, WHICH FORM YOU STATE WAS GIVEN YOU WHEN RELEASED FROM ACTIVE DUTY.

IN OUR LETTER OF MARCH 27, 1953, B-113491, WE FURNISHED YOU A COMPREHENSIVE EXPLANATION CONCERNING THE SETTLEMENT MADE BY OUR CLAIMS DIVISION ON DECEMBER 31, 1952, WHICH ALLOWED YOU THE NET AMOUNT OF $229.50 ON ACCOUNT OF OVERDEDUCTION OF CLASS Q ALLOTMENT FROM YOUR PAY. A COPY OF THAT LETTER IS ENCLOSED. YOU WILL OBSERVE FROM THE FIRST PARAGRAPH OF THAT LETTER THAT THE CLASS Q ALLOTMENT DEDUCTIONS FROM YOUR PAY WERE IN THE TOTAL AMOUNT OF $1,020; HOWEVER, THAT AMOUNT WAS REQUIRED TO BE REDUCED BY THE IMPROPER CREDITS OF BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS AND QUARTERS ALLOWANCE WHICH WERE MADE IN YOUR PAY ACCOUNT AND BY PAYMENTS OF CLASS Q ALLOTMENT THAT WERE MADE TO YOUR MOTHER. THOSE CREDITS AND PAYMENTS, AGGREGATING $790.50, AS SHOWN IN THE LETTER OF MARCH 27, 1953, COMPRISED THE FOLLOWING ITEMS:

CHART

ALLOTMENT PAYMENTS AT $85 PER MONTH TO YOUR MOTHER (NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER 1950)

$170.00

BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS AT $45 PER MONTH FROM OCTOBER 28, 1950, TO JULY 22, 1951

397.50

BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS AT $67.50 PER MONTH FROM JULY 23 TO OCTOBER 15, 1951

186.75

QUARTERS ALLOWANCE AT $1.25 PER DAY FOR 29 DAYS' ACCRUED AND UNUSED LEAVE UPON RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY 36.25

TOTAL $790.50

IT APPEARS THAT THE SO-CALLED INDEBTEDNESS WITH WHICH YOU ARE CONCERNED, EXCEPT FOR THE FIRST AND LAST OF THE ABOVE LISTED ITEMS, IN FACT WAS NOT A TRUE INDEBTEDNESS ARISING BY VIRTUE OF AN OVERPAYMENT OR ERRONEOUS PAYMENT, BUT MERELY REPRESENTED ERRONEOUS CREDITS OF BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS WHICH EXISTED IN YOUR PAY ACCOUNT. IN ORDER TO PROPERLY ADJUST YOUR ACCOUNT, THE AMOUNT OF THE ERRONEOUS CREDITS OF BASIC ALLOWANCE FOR QUARTERS MUST BE DEDUCTED FROM THE AMOUNT DUE YOU ON ACCOUNT OF THE ERRONEOUS ALLOTMENT DEDUCTIONS MADE IN YOUR ACCOUNT. THE NET DIFFERENCE IS $229.50 WHICH WAS PAID TO YOU PURSUANT TO SETTLEMENT BY THIS OFFICE.

OUR RECORDS SHOW THAT THE OVERPAYMENT OF $20.10 MENTIONED IN THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF OUR LETTER OF MARCH 27, 1953, AND AN OVERPAYMENT OF SUBSISTENCE ALLOWANCE FOR $135 MADE TO YOU BY THE VETERANS ADMINISTRATION WERE LIQUIDATED IN FULL BY YOUR PERIODIC REMITTANCES MADE TO OUR CLAIMS DIVISION. IT IS ALSO SHOWN THAT, UPON RECEIPT OF YOUR FINAL REMITTANCE IN JUNE 1960, OUR CLAIMS DIVISION HAD CLOSED THE MATTER OF YOUR INDEBTEDNESS TO THE UNITED STATES.

WE FURNISHED YOU WITH OUR LETTER OF MARCH 27, 1953, PHOTOSTATIC COPIES OF YOUR MILITARY PAY RECORD COVERING THE PERIOD OF YOUR ACTIVE SERVICE. THAT RECORD DISCLOSES THAT PRIOR TO YOUR RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY YOU WERE PAID $90, LEAVING A BALANCE OF $410.33 IN YOUR ACCOUNT. IT HAS ALSO DISCLOSED THAT SUCH BALANCE WAS CLEARED BY THE ISSUANCE OF A CHECK FOR $410.33. THE CHECK, NO. 69,874, FOR $410.33 DRAWN NOVEMBER 1, 1951, OVER SYMBOL 215,402, TO YOUR ORDER, AND ADDRESSED TO YOU AT 1974 SOUTH HUDSON STREET, MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN, IS ON FILE HERE AFTER HAVING BEEN PAID BY THE TREASURER OF THE UNITED STATES ON NOVEMBER 20, 1951, UPON INDORSEMENTS IN YOUR NAME AND THE HACKLEY UNION NATIONAL BANK, MUSKEGON, MICHIGAN. VIEW OF YOUR ASSERTION THAT YOU DID NOT RECEIVE $500.33, BUT ONLY THE TRAVEL ALLOWANCE OF $76.25, WE ARE ENCLOSING A PHOTOCOPY OF THE CHECK FOR YOUR EXAMINATION.

ACCORDINGLY, IT APPEARS THAT OUR PREVIOUS REVIEW OF YOUR MILITARY PAY ACCOUNT WAS CORRECT AND, THEREFORE, NO FURTHER ACTION IN YOUR CASE IS NECESSARY.