Opinion ID: 4523917
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Relevant Statutory Framework

Text: An officer in the United States Air Force who holds the grade of major must appear before a promotion board to receive further promotions. 10 U.S.C. §§ 611(a), 628(k). If that officer is twice passed over for promotion, he is typically discharged. Id. § 632(a). This system is sometimes referred to as an “up-or-out” system. Baude, 137 Fed. Cl. at 447. An officer who would otherwise be discharged under this “up-or-out” framework may nevertheless remain in active service if a continuation board selects him for continuation. 10 U.S.C. §§ 611, 637. Congress delegated the authority to promulgate regulations for the selection of active duty majors for continuation to the Secretary of Defense. Id. § 637(e). Pursuant to this authority, the Secretary of Defense issued Department of Defense Instruction (“DoDI”) 1320.08, which governs the operations of selective continuation boards. In relevant part, the regulation reads as follows: A commissioned officer on the Active Duty List in the grade of O-4 who is subject to discharge according to [10 U.S.C. § 632] shall normally be selected for continuation if the officer will qualify for retirement . . . within 6 years of the date of continuation. The Secretary of the Military Department con- cerned may, in unusual circumstances such as when an officer’s official personnel record contains derogatory information, discharge an officer involuntarily in accordance with [10 U.S.C. § 632]. When the Secretary of the Military Department concerned intends not to continue larger pools of officers in the grade of O-4 who would qualify for re- tirement within 6 years of the date of a continuation, the Secretary shall notify the [Under Case: 18-2038 Document: 39 Page: 5 Filed: 04/09/2020 BAUDE v. UNITED STATES 5 Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness] of the proposed course of action. DoDI 1320.08, ¶ 6.3 (emphases added). 2 These instructions are straightforward. An officer in a certain protective window—six years from retirement— “shall normally be selected for continuation” absent some “unusual circumstance.” Id. In other words, a department secretary must continue the officer unless there is a reason not to, e.g., derogatory information in their personnel file. The instruction also requires a department secretary to notify the Undersecretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness before “larger pools” of officers within this six-year protective window are not continued. Id.