B-140178, AUG. 24, 1959

B-140178, AUG. 24, 1959

TO MR. RICHARD E. WADDELL:

REFERENCE IS MADE TO YOUR LETTER OF JUNE 18, 1959, FORWARDED HERE BY THE FINANCE AND ACCOUNTING OFFICER, FINANCE CENTER, UNITED STATES ARMY, IN EFFECT REQUESTING REVIEW OF OUR SETTLEMENT OF JUNE 4, 1959, WHICH AUTHORIZED PAYMENT OF $47.88, AS REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE TRAVEL OF YOUR DEPENDENT WIFE, INCIDENT TO YOUR MILITARY SERVICE.

BY ARMY DEPARTMENT LETTER ORDER 5-234, DATED MAY 18, 1956, YOU WERE ORDERED TO TEMPORARY DUTY PENDING FURTHER ORDERS AT THE ORDNANCE SCHOOL, ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, MARYLAND, EFFECTIVE JUNE 30, 1957. THIS ORDER SHOWS YOUR HOME OF RECORD AS 3944 OAK STREET, KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI. ARMY DEPARTMENT, LETTER ORDER NO. 2-40, DATED FEBRUARY 14, 1957, AMENDED LETTER ORDER NO. 5-234, TO DIRECT YOU TO REPORT TO THE ORDNANCE SCHOOL, ABERDEEN PROVING GROUNDS, NOT LATER THAN APRIL 25, 1957, FOR TEMPORARY DUTY PENDING FURTHER ORDERS WITH NO CHANGE IN YOUR HOME ADDRESS. LETTER ORDER RP (OS) 3-82, DATED MARCH 19, 1957, FROM HEADQUARTERS, U.S. ARMY MILITARY DISTRICT, NEW JERSEY, INDICATES THAT YOUR ADDRESS AT THAT TIME WAS 230 MT. VERNON PL., APT. 2K, NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, AND STATES THAT YOU WERE CALLED TO ACTIVE DUTY BY AD LO 2 40 OF FEBRUARY 14, 1957. HOWEVER, LETTER ORDER RP (OS) 3-82 DOES NOT PURPORT TO AMEND YOUR ORDERS TO ACTIVE DUTY BUT APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN ISSUED ONLY FOR THE PURPOSE OF RELIEVING YOU FROM YOUR RESERVE UNIT ASSIGNMENT AND, HENCE, IS WITHOUT EFFECT TO CHANGE YOUR HOME OF RECORD, OR THE POINT FROM WHICH CALLED TO ACTIVE DUTY.

IT APPEARS THAT AFTER COMPLETION OF YOUR TEMPORARY DUTY AT THE ORDNANCE SCHOOL, YOU WERE ASSIGNED TO THE PERSONNEL CENTER, FORT DIX, NEW JERSEY, FOR FURTHER ASSIGNMENT TO UNITED STATES ARMY, EUROPE. YOU INDICATE THAT YOU WERE INFORMED THAT UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY CIRCULAR 608-10 YOUR WIFE COULD NOT ACCOMPANY YOU TO EUROPE AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE UNLESS YOU VOLUNTARILY ACCEPTED A FULL TOUR OF DUTY THERE. YOUR WIFE, WHO HAD BEEN LIVING AT ABERDEEN, MARYLAND, THEREUPON TRAVELED TO OKLAHOMA CITY, OKLAHOMA, AND REMAINED AT THAT POINT UNTIL YOUR RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY ON JANUARY 23, 1959, AT WHICH TIME SHE TRAVELED TO YOUR PRESENT ADDRESS.

YOU HAVE CLAIMED REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE TRAVEL OF YOUR WIFE FROM ABERDEEN TO OKLAHOMA CITY, AND FROM OKLAHOMA CITY TO MURRAY HILL UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS 7057 AND 7058. BY OUR SETTLEMENT OF JUNE 4, 1959, YOU WERE AUTHORIZED PAYMENT IN THE AMOUNT OF $47.88 FOR TRAVEL FROM ABERDEEN TO OKLAHOMA CITY, LIMITED TO THE COST FROM YOUR HOME OF RECORD, KANSAS CITY, TO OKLAHOMA CITY, AND FROM OKLAHOMA CITY TO MURRAY HILL, LIMITED TO THE COST OF TRAVEL FROM OKLAHOMA CITY TO KANSAS CITY.

PARAGRAPH 7005 OF THE APPLICABLE REGULATIONS PROVIDES THAT WHEN A MEMBER IS TRANSFERRED OR ASSIGNED UNDER PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION ORDERS TO A PLACE WHERE HIS DEPENDENTS ARE NOT PERMITTED, FOR MILITARY REASONS,TO ACCOMPANY HIM--- AS IN THIS CASE--- HE IS ENTITLED TO TRANSPORTATION OF DEPENDENTS AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE FROM THE PLACE AT WHICH THE DEPENDENTS ARE LOCATED ON THE DATE HE RECEIVED SUCH ORDERS TO ANY PLACE IN THE UNITED STATES, WHICH HE MAY DESIGNATE, NOT TO EXCEED THE DISTANCE FROM THE LAST POINT TO WHICH THEY WERE TRANSFERRED AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE, TO THE PLACE SO DESIGNATED. IN CIRCUMSTANCES SUCH AS YOURS--- YOUR DEPENDENT NOT HAVING BEEN PREVIOUSLY TRANSPORTED AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE TO ANY POINT--- THE LIMITING DISTANCE IS THAT FROM THE POINT WHICH CAN BE CONSIDERED YOUR PERMANENT STATION FOR THESE PURPOSES, THAT IS, YOUR HOME OF RECORD AT THE TIME OF YOUR PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION, TO THIS DESIGNATED PLACE. YOU WERE ENTITLED, THEREFORE, TO REIMBURSEMENT FOR DEPENDENT TRAVEL LIMITED TO THE COST OF TRAVEL FROM YOUR HOME OF RECORD TO OKLAHOMA CITY. BARRING FURTHER EVIDENCE OF A CHANGE IN YOUR HOME OF RECORD IT MUST BE CONSIDERED TO HAVE BEEN KANSAS CITY IN AUGUST 1957. THE PAYMENT OF TRAVEL ALLOWANCE FOR YOUR DEPENDENT UPON YOUR RELEASE FROM ACTIVE SERVICE MUST BE PURSUANT TO PARAGRAPH 4157AND 7011-1 OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS WHICH PROVIDE, RESPECTIVELY, THAT A MEMBER ON ACTIVE DUTY WHO IS SEPARATED FROM THE SERVICE OR RELIEVED FROM ACTIVE DUTY, WILL BE ENTITLED TO MILEAGE FROM HIS LAST DUTY STATION TO HIS HOME OF RECORD, OR THE PLACE FROM WHICH HE WAS ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY, AS THE MEMBER MAY ELECT, AND TO TRANSPORTATION OF DEPENDENTS, NOT TO EXCEED THE DISTANCE FROM HIS LAST DUTY STATION, OR PLACE TO WHICH HIS DEPENDENTS WERE LAST TRANSPORTED AT GOVERNMENT EXPENSE, TO THE PLACE TO WHICH THE MEMBER ELECTS TO RECEIVE TRAVEL ALLOWANCES FOR HIS TRAVEL UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF PARAGRAPH 4157.

SPECIAL ORDERS NO. 22, OF JANUARY 22, 1959, SHOW YOUR HOME OF RECORD AT TIME OF ENTERING ON ACTIVE DUTY AS NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, AND YOU APPARENTLY ELECTED TO RECEIVE TRAVEL ALLOWANCE TO THAT POINT UPON YOUR RELEASE. PARAGRAPH 1150-3 (A) OF THE JOINT TRAVEL REGULATIONS, HOWEVER, PROVIDES THAT UNLESS PROPERLY CORRECTED THE HOME OF RECORD OF A MEMBER SHALL BE THAT RECORDED AS THE HOME AT THE TIME ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY. CHANGE OF SUCH RECORD AFTER ENTERING THE RELEVANT TOUR OF ACTIVE DUTY IS PERMISSIBLE ONLY WHEN BASED UPON A BONA FIDE CORRECTION OF THE RECORD TO REFLECT THE ACTUAL HOME OF THE MEMBER ON ENTRY INTO SERVICE. B-133960, DECEMBER 18, 1957. NO SUCH CORRECTION APPEARS TO HAVE BEEN MADE IN YOUR CASE, NOR DOES IT APPEAR THAT YOU MADE A PROPER REPORT OF A CHANGE IN YOUR ACTUAL HOME PRIOR TO THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF LETTER ORDERS 5-234 OF MAY 18, 1956, ORDERING YOU TO ACTIVE DUTY. SINCE KANSAS CITY WAS YOUR HOME OF RECORD AND THE POINT FROM WHICH YOU WERE ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY, YOUR RIGHTS TO REIMBURSEMENT FOR THE TRAVEL OF YOUR DEPENDENT WIFE UPON RELEASE FROM ACTIVE DUTY WERE LIMITED TO THE CONSTRUCTIVE COST OF TRAVEL FROM OKLAHOMA CITY TO KANSAS CITY AS STATED IN OUR SETTLEMENT.