Military problem

Change of Homeport Difficulties

A change of homeport at what cost to the Sailor! The change of homeport is an overwhelming milestone for Sailors and a command heading into an inactivation period to complete. Naval leaders need to layout an effective change of homeport plan identifying step-by-step what Sailors need to accomplish, which will ease the burden of undue stress on themselves and their dependents. This essay will examine the problem with the change of homeport, provide a discussion of the scope of the problems, and present recommendations to solve the lesson learned and mistakes made with a change of homeport.

Problem

Change of Homeport is an overwhelming milestone for any Sailors and Navy vessels heading into a decommissioning period. Each passing year Navy ships are reaching their service life, shift homeports, and begin their inactivation period. A Sailor that have Projected Rotation Date (PRD) or End of Active Obligated Service (EAOS) with less than 12 months after the Effective Date are issued Personnel Category Two Orders, which causes hardship on the Sailor and dependents. Personnel Category Orders must explain the hardship. As per Military Personnel Manual (MILPERSMAN), Personnel Category One Orders allows a Sailor fully funded unit move orders that authorize household goods shipments (HHG), privately operated vehicle (POV), dependent travel and transportation. While Personnel Category Two Orders prohibits dependent travel and transportation but allows a POV shipment to the next permanent duty station (PDS). Personnel Category Three Orders works in conjunction with Permanent Change of Station Orders (PCS) and allows POV shipment only. Dependents will have to use the PCS order to move to the new PDS. Now that the background of the Personnel Category for orders has been understood, we can identify another common problem with change of homeports. After the Effective Date has been established, and the Personnel Category Orders are issued, Sailors tend to start moving their dependents and HHG to the new PDS. When Sailors move dependents at this time, entitlements can be lost. Per Joint Travel Regulation (JTR, Par 100102), “housing and station allowances are tied to the effective date of the homeport change and not the dependent’s move date unless formal permission is received for advanced or delayed dependent travel.” Another potential hardship is dependents in school or that have careers now have to adjust for the home port move. Personnel with Category One orders delay their dependent travel up to 180 days after the Effective Date (JTR, Par 050901). Now that the problem of order categories and likely monetary loss has been identified, the scope and impact of these issues can be discussed.

Discussion

The negative impact and financial constraints this can have on a Sailor and his dependent are astronomical. Often overlooked is the impact that the change of homeport moves have on dependents. When the Sailor has children in school or a spouse with a career, their family cannot just up and move. Even if the family moves early to the new PDS before the Effective Date, the Basic Allowance for Housing will not change to the new rate unless approval is granted from Commander, Naval Personnel Command (NPC). Naval leaders must engage with the Sailors to identify the problems as soon as possible and offers ways to correct them. Also, Sailors with less than six months remaining on their PRDs/EAOS should be transferred to the Transient Personnel Unit to complete their time or to another seagoing unit. Now that significance of the issues has been discussed, the following recommendations are presented to mitigate the problems.

Recommendation

Based on the facts given, the Navy should take the following actions. Combine Personnel Category Orders one and two. Combining Personnel Category Orders one and two will allow Sailors to remain filling the billet at the command, will not affect manning, and will be able to move their HHG and POVs to their new PDS. A second recommendation is to increase the delay in dependant travel from 180 days to nine months. Increasing the delay in dependant travel from 180 days to nine months would allow dependants to complete the school year, sell a home, or transfer from their current employment. Finally, to reduce any misunderstanding, Type Commanders (TYCOMS), Immediate Superior in Commands (ISIC), PSDs, and the affected Command need to have a bi-monthly meeting to ensure that the command is on track with the change of Homeport Effective Date.

Conclusion

In Summary, this paper highlighted problems with Personnel Category Orders and loss of entitlements with early dependent departure from PDS, provided a discussion on the impacts to dependents, and made recommendations on how to resolve reoccurring issues. By effectively understanding the strenuous demands of change of homeport, naval leaders will ensure their Sailors know how to make the transition go smoother for them and their dependents. Naval leaders will not have all the answers for their Sailors, but any issues identified should be handled with urgency as not to cause undue stress and ensure the transition goes smoothly. Ronald Regan said it best, “The greatest leader is not necessarily the one who does the greatest things.” “He is the one that gets the people to do the greatest things.”

References

Joint Travel Regulation Volume 1. (2012). The Per Diem Travel and Transportation Allowance Committee. Alexandria, VA, Department of Defense. Retrieved from https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/ccap/cc/jcchb/Files/FormsPubsRegs/Pubs/jftr_vol1.pdf

Military Personnel Manual. (2003) Procedures for Members Assigned to Activities Scheduled For Change Of Homeport or Permanent Duty Station. Pg 2256-2275. (MILPERMAN). Millington, TN; Commander Military Personnel Command. Retrieved from https://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/milpersman/1000/1300Assignment/Documents/1306-1800.pdf

Military Personnel Manual. (2003). Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Entitlement Policy – Issuing Change of Homeport Certificates. Pg 1018-1021. (MILPERMAN). Millington, TN; Commander Military Personnel Command. Retrieved from https://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/milpersman/1000/1300Assignment/Documents/1306-1800.pdf