R 151144Z MAY 24
MARADMIN 222/24
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC MRA MM//
SUBJ/MILITARY AWARDS GUIDANCE FOR THE 2024 PERMANENT CHANGE OF STATION SEASON//
REF/A/DOC/SECNAV/YMD: 20190529//
REF/B/DOC/SECNAV/YMD: 20190816//
REF/C/DOC/CMC/YMD: 20121015//
REF/D/MSGID/MSG/CMC WASHINGTON DC MRA MM/YMD: 20210217//
NARR/REF A IS SECNAVINST 1650.1J, DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY MILITARY AWARDS POLICY. REF B IS SECNAV M-1650.1, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS AWARDS MANUAL. REF C IS MCO 1650.19J W/CH-1, ADMINISTRATIVE AND ISSUE PROCEDURES FOR DECORATIONS, MEDALS, AND AWARDS. REF D IS MARADMIN 074/21 COMMANDANT OF THE MARINE CORPS' DELEGATION OF AWARDING AUTHORITY FOR MILITARY AWARDS//
POC/J. E. JAMES/LTCOL/HQMC MMPB-3/TEL: 703-784-9342/POC/A. L. CRUZ/CAPT/HQMC MMPB-31/TEL: 703-784-9343/DSN: 312-278-9342/EMAIL: SMB_HQMC_PERS_AWARDS@USMC.MIL//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. Per the references, the following guidance on Department of the Navy (DoN) Personal Military Decorations (PMDs) in anticipation of the 2024 Permanent Change of Station (PCS) Season is provided.
2. Identifying Award Nominees. Prior to the start of the PCS season, unit award administrators (UAAs) should identify the outbound population for the command by downloading a unit outbound roster from the Marine Online Outbound Interview Module. UAAs should publish this information to the command leadership. Award originators are to identify those highly performing individuals deserving of DoN PMDs and submit the appropriate recommendation via the Improved Awards Processing System (iAPS). Nominations shall be submitted in a timely manner to ensure the award is complete by the anticipated presentation date.
3. DoN PMD Format and Processing. All DoN PMDs for Marine Corps Commands shall be originated in iAPS.
3.a. Summary of Action (SOA). Reference (b) limits the SOA for PMDs to two pages. Because the iAPS SOA field has no lines or character limit, award originators must check content length by using the “print PDF” button in iAPS, to verify that the SOA does not exceed two pages. A SOA is required for PMD nominations for all Marine Corps commands.
3.b. Citations and Certificates. Originators should pay close attention to the opening and closing sentences in reference (b). Awarding authorities are responsible for ensuring that the award produced and presented matches that which was approved in iAPS. The certificate and citation must be attached to the "certificate" section of the iAPS case to enable the upload of the award into the nominee’s Official Military Personnel File (OMPF).
3.b.1. Meritorious Service Medal and Above. In order to comply with reference (b), the character limit for the Meritorious Service Medal and above is 1670, and the citation is written in standard sentence case format.
3.b.2. Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and Below. The character limit for iAPS citations will remain at 1250, in all-capital letters. Commands are authorized to deviate from the formatting requirements in reference (b) as identified below:
3.b.2.a. Pitch will be between 8 to 12 point.
3.b.2.b. Margins will be between 0.5” and 1.0.”
4. Timeline for Submission. Reference (b) states PMD nominations should be submitted to arrive at the final awarding authority for adjudication at least 60 days prior to the desired presentation date. Failure to do so may result in the PMD not being adjudicated in time for the desired presentation. The intent is for approved PMDs to be presented to the recipient prior to detachment or separation from the command in which the action took place. It is recommended that award originators plan the timeline for submission based on the 60 day requirement.
4.a. In accordance with References (a) and (d), awards approved by CMC, the nominations must reach CMC (MMPB-31) in iAPS NLT 60 days prior to the planned presentation date.
4.b. In accordance with References (a) and (d), awards approved by the SECNAV must reach CMC (MMPB-31) in iAPS NLT 90 days prior to the planned presentation date.
5. Requests to expedite PMDs pending decision by CMC or higher. Per reference (c), CMC (MMPB-31) will take action on requests to expedite PMDs in cases of retirement, relief and appointments, or changes of command. A request to expedite an award must be signed by the senior endorsing General Officer or their Chief of Staff. A request to expedite an award reduces the number of votes required by the HQMC Military Awards Board; it does not guarantee that the award will be completed by the desired presentation date. The request must include an explanation as to why the award must be expedited.
6. Retirement and Separation Awards.
6.a. Meritorious Period End Date. Please note that the end date of the meritorious period for separation or retirement awards should be a date about two weeks prior to the commencement of terminal leave. This ensures that the award can be reported in MCTFS and added to the DD-214 discharge certificate. Awards not reported in MCTFS prior to a Marine commencing terminal leave are normally not recorded on the DD-214 discharge certificate and require the Marine to request a correction to their DD-214 and service record.
6.b. Other Service Originators. Those Marines who are retiring from a joint command may be nominated for a DoN award. The joint command should utilize the NAVMC 11533. A blank copy of the NAVMC 11533 can be found on the MMPB-31 website at https:(slash)(slash)www.manpower.usmc.mil/wordpress/?active_marine=active-marines-home/manpower-management-division/manpower-managment-performance-branch-mmpb/military-awards-mmpb-3/personal-awards-mmpb-31/tools-for-originators-administrators. Once the NAVMC 11533 has been endorsed up to the first General or Flag Officer in the joint chain of command it should be submitted to the MMPB-3 shared mailbox.
7. Certificates of Commendation and Below. Though a SOA tab exists for Certificates of Commendation, a SOA is not required. Simply type “SOA not required” in this field. Meritorious Masts recommendations created in iAPS, tend to automatically be forwarded to MMPB-31 erroneously. It is recommended that the award is originated by the approver and that a signed certificate is uploaded prior to approval. This will alleviate unsigned documents being uploaded into OMPFs.
8. Common Mistakes regarding PMDs.
8.a. Incorrect opening or closing sentences. Specifically, on the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal. Utilize Reference (b).
8.b. Different action dates on the NAVMC 11533 award form, SOA, citation, and certificate.
8.c. Incorrect action dates for Marines separating from service. Specifically making the date too late to allow for processing to MCTFS.
8.d. Different dates for award approval in iAPS and date on certificate, see reference (b).
8.e. Incorrect use of “great” credit. “Great” is only used on awards of the Air Medal and above.
8.f. A commander approving an award for which they are not the awarding authority.
8.g. Also, the commander directing an originator to rescind an award and originate a lesser award. Per reference (b), an award nomination may only be downgraded or disapproved by the official who has the authority to approve the award.
8.h. Award approved in iAPS does not match award certificate and citation presented to the recipient.
8.i. A Marine commander approving a DoN PMD for a foreign service member.
8.j. Attaching documents other than the signed citation or certificate to the "certificate" field in iAPS for upload into the recipient’s OMPF. Do not attach letters of transmittal or the NAVMC 11533.
8.k. Administrative Corrections should be submitted to MMPB-31 utilizing the template for administrative change requests on the MMPB-31 website.
9. This MARADMIN is applicable to the total force.
10. Release authorized by BGen Ryan S. Rideout, Director, Manpower Management Division.//