MARADMINS : 626/13
R 251710Z NOV 13
UNCLASSIFIED/
MARADMIN 626/13
MSGID/GENADMIN/CMC WASHINGTON DC MRA MM//
SUBJ/ADMINISTRATIVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SUBMISSION OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE HUMANITARIAN SERVICE MEDAL (HSM)//
REF/A/MSGID:DOC/YMD:SECNAV/22AUG2006//
REF/B/MSGID:DOC/YMD:DOD/23NOV2010//
NARR/REF A IS SECNAVINST 1650.1H, NAVY AND MARINE CORPS AWARDS MANUAL. REF B IS DODM 1348.33M.//
POC/J.B. BEGALA/CAPT/MMMA/HQMC/TEL DSN: 278-9342/COML (703)784-9342/EMAIL:JOSEPH.BEGALA(AT)USMC.MIL/EMAIL:SMB(UNDERSCORE)HQMC(UNDERSCORE)PERS(UNDERSCORE)AWARDS(AT)USMC.MIL//
GENTEXT/REMARKS/1. THE PURPOSE OF THIS MARADMIN IS TO PROVIDE GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SUBMISSION OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE HUMANITARIAN SERVICE MEDAL (HSM) TO ENSURE ACCURATE AND TIMELY EXECUTION OF OSD AND CJSC GUIDANCE TO PROPERLY RECORD THE AWARD FOR QUALIFYING RECIPIENTS.
2. BACKGROUND. REF A, ARTICLE 420.18.E DESCRIBES THE TWO APPROVAL AUTHORITIES FOR THE HSM DEPENDING ON THE PARENT SERVICE(S) OF PERSONNEL PARTICIPATING IN THE OPERATION RECOMMENDED FOR RECOGNITION. VARIATION IN ROUTING BETWEEN THE AUTHORITIES, GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION OF THE RECOMMENDED OPERATION, AND STAFF TURNOVER HAVE COMPLICATED THE TIMELY RECOGNITION OF ELIGIBLE MARINES. THIS MARADMIN OUTLINES PROCEDURES TO ACCURATELY CAPTURE PARTICIPATION; IDENTIFY PARTICIPATING ORGANIZATIONS AND COMMANDERS; AND PREPARE FOR CORRECTIVE ACTION WHEN ADDITIONAL ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS ARE IDENTIFIED. CMC (MMMA) RECOMMENDS INCLUDING THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS MARADMIN IN ANNEX E OF ORDERS FOR OPERATIONS THAT MAY RESULT IN SUBMISSION OF AN HSM RECOMMENDATION.
3. DEFINITIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE CONSTRAINTS.
3.A. DEFINITIONS FOR TERMS AS USED IN THIS MARADMIN.
3.A.1. SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT. MARINE ORGANIZATION ACTUALLY PARTICIPATING IN OPERATIONS WITHIN THE AREA OF ELIGIBILITY (AOE) FOR AN INTENDED AWARD. THIS TERM DOES NOT NECESSARILY REFER TO THE THEATER MARFOR.
3.A.2. SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER. THE COMMANDING GENERAL OR COMMANDING OFFICER OF THE UNIT DESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH 3.A.1.
3.A.3. APPROVAL. THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE (SECDEF) OR THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY (SECNAV) APPROVES THE HSM FOR A SPECIFIC OPERATION.
3.A.4. DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY. REF B, ENCLOSURE 3, PARAGRAPH 9.F.(4) TASKS THE SERVICES TO DETERMINE INDIVIDUAL ELIGIBILITY AND RESTRICTS DELEGATION OF THIS DETERMINATION TO PERSONNEL IN THE GRADE OF O-6 AND ABOVE. CMC (MMMA) PROVIDES INDIVIDUAL ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION FOR ALL MARINES AND SAILORS ASSIGNED TO MARINE UNITS AFTER REVIEWING THE ENDORSEMENTS FROM THOSE COMMANDERS LISTED AS DESIGNATED ENDORSERS AS OUTLINED IN PARAGRAPH 4.B.2. THIS PROCESS SUPPORTS SECDEF'S GRADE RESTRICTION, IMPROVED AWARDS PROCESSING SYSTEM (IAPS) RIGHTS-MANAGEMENT LIMITATIONS, AND ALLOWS (IN RARE CASES) OFFICERS IN THE O-5 GRADE TO SERVE AS DESIGNATED ENDORSERS.
3.A.5. DESIGNATED ENDORSER. THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER WILL IDENTIFY DESIGNATED ENDORSERS TO ASSIST CMC (MMMA) IN MAKING DETERMINATION DECISIONS. ONLY DESIGNATED ENDORSERS WILL ROUTE HSM DETERMINATION RECOMMENDATIONS TO CMC (MMMA).
3.A.6. ENDORSER. COMMANDERS NOT IDENTIFIED AS DESIGNATED ENDORSERS WILL FORWARD ROSTERS AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DETERMINATION OF INDIVIDUAL ELIGIBILITY TO THE APPROPRIATE DESIGNATED ENDORSER.
3.B. IAPS REQUIREMENTS AND LIMITATIONS. CMC (MMMA) CANNOT DELEGATE APPROVAL AUTHORITY IN IAPS FOR A SPECIFIC OPERATION. ADDITIONALLY, PROPERLY RECORDING AN HSM REQUIRES A MARINE CORPS TOTAL FORCE SYSTEM (MCTFS) ENTRY, AN ENTRY IN THE CAR-HSM DATABASE TO CAPTURE ADDITIONAL OPERATIONAL DETAILS NOT STORED IN MCTFS, AND ADDITIONS TO MARINES' OFFICIAL MILITARY PERSONNEL FILES (OMPF). SYSTEM LIMITATIONS REQUIRE THESE ENTRIES TO ORIGINATE FROM CMC (MMMA). THE USE OF DESIGNATED ENDORSERS AND CMC APPROVAL OF ALL HSM ELIGIBILITY DECISIONS COMPLIES WITH OSD AND CJCS GUIDANCE WHILE ENSURING ACCURACY OF ALL SERVICE-LEVEL RECORDS.
3.C. ADMINISTRATIVE CONSTRAINTS FOR EXTERNAL ASSIGNMENTS. WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF REF B AND THE ANNOUNCEMENT MEMORANDUM FOR AN APPROVED HSM, JOINT COMMANDERS MAKE HSM DETERMINATION DECISIONS FOR MARINES ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE JOINT AWARDS. CMC (MMMA) REPORTS ALL JOINT AWARDS EARNED BY MARINES TO MCTFS AND THE CAR-HSM DATABASE. THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER DOES NOT DETERMINE ELIGIBILITY FOR MARINES ASSIGNED TO ELIGIBLE JOINT COMMANDS, BUT FOR ADMINISTRATIVE PURPOSES, MUST INCLUDE MARINES DETERMINED ELIGIBLE FOR THE HSM BY COMMANDERS OF ELIGIBLE JOINT UNITS WHEN SUBMITTING ROSTERS VIA IAPS.
3.D. MARINES ASSIGNED TO UNITS NOT INCLUDED IN THE APPROVAL MEMORANDUM. THE MARINE CORPS IS ONLY AUTHORIZED TO MAKE DETERMINATION DECISIONS WITHIN THE CONSTRAINTS OF REF B AND THE ANNOUNCING MEMORANDUM FOR A SPECIFIC OPERATION. THE MARINE CORPS MAY NOT DETERMINE A MARINE ELIGIBLE FOR AN HSM UNLESS THE MARINE IS ASSIGNED TO A UNIT APPROVED FOR THE AWARD. MARINES ASSIGNED TO ANY UNIT NOT LISTED IN THE ANNOUNCEMENT MEMORANDUM AND NOT SUBORDINATE TO A LISTED UNIT MUST SUBMIT A REQUEST FOR INCLUSION TO CMC (MMMA) VIA THE SENIOR MARINE COMMAND. CMC (MMMA) WILL FORWARD THE REQUEST AND ENDORSEMENT OF THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT TO THE APPROVAL AUTHORITY FOR DECISION.
4. ACTIONS CONCURRENT WITH OPERATIONS. REF A, ARTICLE 420.18.B.1 OUTLINES THE CRITERIA FOR THE HSM FOR MARINES. OF NOTE, THE REFERENCE REQUIRES MERITORIOUS, DIRECT, NON-ROUTINE PARTICIPATION IN A SIGNIFICANT MILITARY ACT OR OPERATION OF A HUMANITARIAN NATURE. ASSIGNMENT TO A LISTED UNIT OR PRESENCE IN THE DESIGNATED AREA DOES NOT ESTABLISH ELIGIBILITY FOR THE HSM.
4.A. ROSTER OF ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS. EXPERIENCE HAS SHOWN THAT COLLECTING THE ROSTER OF PARTICIPATING INDIVIDUALS AFTER AN AWARD HAS BEEN RECOMMENDED OR APPROVED INTRODUCES UNNECESSARY INACCURACIES: DESERVING MARINES ARE OMITTED, INELIGIBLE MARINES ARE INCLUDED, AND IN SOME CASES, INDIVIDUAL MARINES ARE LISTED MORE THAN ONCE.
4.A.1 TO IMPROVE ACCURACY AND TIMELINESS, THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT HEADQUARTERS MUST MAINTAIN A DIGITAL ROSTER OF INDIVIDUAL MARINES WHOSE CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE EFFORT WOULD MAKE THEM DESERVING OF THE HUMANITARIAN SERVICE MEDAL SHOULD AN AWARD ULTIMATELY BE RECOMMENDED AND APPROVED. FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EASE, CMC (MMMA) RECOMMENDS USING THE IAPS ROSTER FORMAT BECAUSE THIS VERSION WILL BE REQUIRED FOR PROCESSING ANY HSM RESULTING FROM THE OPERATION.
4.B. TASK ORGANIZATION AND DESIGNATED ENDORSERS. DESPITE THE EFFORT TO IDENTIFY PARTICIPATING INDIVIDUALS IN ADVANCE, SOME MARINES MAY BE OVERLOOKED. CMC (MMMA) CANNOT MAKE AN ELIGIBILITY DETERMINATION WITHOUT THE ENDORSEMENT OF COMMANDERS DIRECTLY IN CHARGE OF PERSONNEL CONDUCTING HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE OPERATIONS. FREQUENTLY, THE MARINE CORPS COMPONENT TO THE OPERATION IS A SPECIAL PURPOSE MAGTF (SPMAGTF) UNIQUE TO A SPECIFIC HUMANITARIAN ASSISTANCE OPERATION. ADDITIONALLY, MARINES MAY PCS OR EXIT THE MARINE CORPS IN THE TIME BETWEEN THE OPERATION AND THE ULTIMATE APPROVAL OF AN AWARD. IN MANY CASES, CMC (MMMA) MUST DETERMINE HSM ELIGIBILITY YEARS AFTER THE OPERATION HAS CONCLUDED.
4.B.1. FOR THESE REASONS, THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT HEADQUARTERS PARTICIPATING IN THE OPERATION MUST CAPTURE THE TASK ORGANIZATION TO A LEVEL OF DETAIL SUFFICIENT FOR A JUNIOR MARINE TO DETERMINE HIS OR HER PLACE IN THE ORGANIZATION YEARS AFTER THE FACT.
4.B.2. WITHIN THE TASK ORGANIZATION, THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER MUST DESIGNATE APPROPRIATE SUBORDINATE COMMANDERS BY NAME TO SERVE AS DESIGNATED ENDORSERS FOR VALIDATING AN INDIVIDUAL MARINES PARTICIPATION IN THE OPERATION. IN A TYPICAL MAGTF ORGANIZATION, THESE DESIGNATED ENDORSERS WOULD BE THE O6-LEVEL COMMANDERS OF THE GROUND COMBAT ELEMENT, THE AVIATION COMBAT ELEMENT, AND THE LOGISTICS COMBAT ELEMENT AS WELL AS EQUIVALENT SUPPORTING MARINE COMMANDERS FROM OUTSIDE THE MAGTF. IF THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER IS A GENERAL OFFICER, HE OR SHE MAY DESIGNATE AN OFFICER IN THE GRADE OF O-6, USUALLY THE CHIEF OF STAFF, AS THEIR DESIGNATED ENDORSER TO VALIDATE THE PARTICIPATION OF MARINES ASSIGNED DIRECTLY TO THE COMMAND ELEMENT AND OTHER MARINES NOT AFFILIATED WITH ANY SUBORDINATE ELEMENT.
4.C. CMC (MMMA) MUST PROCESS ALL HSMS THROUGH IAPS TO ENSURE PROPER RECORDING OF EACH INDIVIDUALS AWARD. MARINES MAY PERFORM QUALIFYING SERVICE WHILE ASSIGNED OUTSIDE THE MARINE COMPONENT (E.G. A MARINE ASSIGNED TO PACOM MAY DEPLOY INTO THE AREA OF ELIGIBILITY (AOE) AND PROVIDE DIRECT, HANDS-ON ASSISTANCE). TO IMPROVE THE ACCURACY OF REPORTING, BOTH THE ROSTER OF INDIVIDUAL MARINES AND THE LIST OF DESIGNATED ENDORSERS SHOULD INCLUDE APPROPRIATE MARINES ASSIGNED OUTSIDE THE MARINE COMPONENT AND THEIR PARENT COMMAND.
5. ACTIONS DURING STAFFING. CMC (MMMA) AND THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT STAFF MUST COORDINATE EARLY IN STAFFING TO ENSURE HQMC IS PREPARED TO QUICKLY PROCESS AWARDS FOR INDIVIDUAL RECIPIENTS IF THE AWARDING AUTHORITY ULTIMATELY APPROVES AN AWARD.
5.A. APPROVAL AUTHORITY. THE CHAIRMAN OF THE JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF APPROVES THE HSM FOR OPERATIONS UNDER THE AUSPICES OF A COMBATANT COMMANDER. THE SECRETARY OF THE NAVY APPROVES THE HSM FOR OTHER OPERATIONS INVOLVING ONLY NAVAL PERSONNEL. VARYING COMMAND RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE MARINE COMPONENT AND THE SENIOR PARTICIPATING HEADQUARTERS WILL DICTATE APPROPRIATE ROUTING OF HSM RECOMMENDATIONS.
5.B. IN MOST CASES, CMC (MMMA) IS NOT INCLUDED IN THE FORMAL ROUTING OF HSM RECOMMENDATIONS; HOWEVER CMC (MMMA) RETAINS ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR RECORDING INDIVIDUAL ELIGIBILITY FOR THE HSM. MARINE STAFFS SHOULD COORDINATE WITH CMC (MMMA) WHEN AN HSM RECOMMENDATION, OR INFORMATION COLLECTED IN SUPPORT OF AN HSM RECOMMENDATION, HAS BEEN ENDORSED AND FORWARDED TO AN ORGANIZATION OUTSIDE THE MARINE CORPS FOR FURTHER ROUTING.
5.C. THIS COORDINATION WILL ALLOW CMC (MMMA) TO DRAFT THE INITIAL ADMINISTRATIVE INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE AWARD AND WILL ALLOW THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT STAFF TO PREPARE ROSTERS THAT SUPPORT ALL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
5.D. FOLLOWING EMAIL - PHONE COORDINATION, THIS STAFF SHOULD COLLECT AND FORWARD THE INFORMATION COLLECTED IN PARAGRAPH 4 TO CMC (MMMA) VIA IAPS. THIS ACTION SHOULD BE COMPLETED AS SOON AS PRACTICAL AND WELL IN ADVANCE OF THE AWARDS FINAL ADJUDICATION.
6. ACTIONS FOLLOWING AWARD APPROVAL. REGARDLESS OF APPROVAL AUTHORITY, CMC (MMMA) NORMALLY RECEIVES NOTIFICATION THAT AN HSM HAS BEEN APPROVED PRIOR TO ITS PUBLIC RELEASE. COMMANDERS DETERMINE WHEN A MARINE'S LEVEL OF SERVICE MEETS THE REQUIREMENTS OF THE REFERENCES AND THE ANNOUNCING MEMORANDUM. UNFORTUNATELY, THE EXTENDED TIMELINE FOR APPROVAL OF THE HSM FREQUENTLY CREATES SITUATIONS WHERE THE COMMANDER AT THE TIME OF THE OPERATION NO LONGER SERVES WITH THE UNIT. NORMALLY, AN AWARD FOR A MARINE IDENTIFIED AFTER THE FACT WOULD BE ROUTED THROUGH THE COMMANDER AT THE TIME OF ACTION FOR ENDORSEMENT. HISTORICALLY, THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF AN HSM INITIALLY CREATES A LARGE NUMBER OF ADDITIONAL POTENTIAL PARTICIPANTS FOR ADJUDICATION. THE COMMANDER AT THE TIME OF ACTION MAY NOW SERVE IN A BILLET WITHOUT IAPS ENDORSEMENT RIGHTS AND WITHOUT THE SUPPORTING STAFF NEEDED TO COLLECT AND VERIFY ADDITIONAL PARTICIPANTS ELIGIBILITY. FOR THESE REASONS, CMC (MMMA) WILL COORDINATE WITH THE CURRENT STAFFS AND COMMANDERS OF ORGANIZATIONS LISTED AS DESIGNATED ENDORSERS FOR A PERIOD OF 1 YEAR FOLLOWING THE RELEASE OF THE ANNOUNCEMENT MARADMIN FOR AN OPERATION. THE CURRENT STAFFS AND COMMANDERS SHOULD COORDINATE WITH THE FORMER COMMANDER AS NEEDED TO CONFIRM PARTICIPANTS ELIGIBILITY. THE ANNOUNCEMENT MARADMIN WILL LIST THE COMMANDER AT THE TIME OF ACTION AND THE CURRENT POINT OF CONTACT FOR EACH DESIGNATED ENDORSER.
6.A. IMMEDIATE ACTIONS
6.A.1 CMC (MMMA) WILL NOTIFY THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT AND REQUEST THE CURRENT POINTS OF CONTACT FOR THE SUBORDINATE ELEMENTS OF THE MARINE COMPONENT TASKED WITH SUPPORTING DESIGNATED ENDORSERS IN PARAGRAPH 4.B.
6.A.2. CMC (MMMA) WILL DRAFT AN ANNOUNCEMENT MARADMIN WITH OPERATION-SPECIFIC COORDINATING INSTRUCTIONS AND STAFF IT TO THE SENIOR MARINE COMPONENT COMMANDER.
6.A.3. CMC (MMMA) WILL PROCESS THE IAPS RECOMMENDATION FORWARDED IN PARAGRAPH 5.D.
6.A.4. CMC (MMMA) WILL RELEASE THE OPERATION-SPECIFIC MARADMIN ANNOUNCING THE APPROVED HSM AFTER ALLOWING TIME FOR HSMS FROM THE INITIAL ROSTER TO POST TO MARINE ONLINE (MOL). USING THIS SEQUENCE, THE MAJORITY OF ELIGIBLE MARINES SHOULD BE ABLE TO READ THE MARADMIN, IMMEDIATELY REFER TO MOL, AND SEE THEIR AWARD ALREADY POSTED.
6.A.5. DESIGNATED ENDORSERS IDENTIFIED IN THE ANNOUNCING MARADMIN WILL PUBLISH COORDINATING INSTRUCTIONS TO THEIR SUBORDINATE ORGANIZATIONS FOR COLLECTING AND ENDORSING HSMS FOR DESERVING MARINES INADVERTENTLY OMITTED FROM THE ORIGINAL ROSTER.
6.B. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES WITHIN 1 YEAR OF RELEASE OF MARADMIN ANNOUNCING A SPECIFIC HSM.
6.B.1 DESIGNATED ENDORSERS MAY SUBMIT MULTIPLE ROSTERS (E.G. ONE OR MORE FROM EACH OF THEIR SUBORDINATE BATTALIONS) OR CONSOLIDATE THE LIST INTO A SINGLE IAPS RECORD. COMMANDS MAY SUBMIT ADDITIONALROSTERS AS NEEDED IF THEY IDENTIFY ADDITIONAL ELIGIBLE PARTICIPANTS. CMC (MMMA) REQUIRES ONLY THE ENDORSEMENT OF A DESIGNATED COMMAND AND A PROPERLY FORMATTED IAPS RECORD TO PROCESS ADDITIONS EFFICIENTLY.
6.B.2 DURING THIS TIME, CURRENT UNIT COMMANDERS WILL ENDORSE ROSTERS AFTER COORDINATING WITH THE COMMANDER AT THE TIME OF ACTION AS NEEDED.
6.C. ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES AFTER 1 YEAR.
6.C.1. AFTER 1 YEAR, CMC (MMMA) EXPECTS THE INITIALLY HIGH VOLUME OF REQUESTS TO RECOGNIZE ADDITIONAL PARTICIPANTS TO TAPER TO A LEVEL SUPPORTABLE BY THE COMMANDERS AT THE TIME OF ACTION.
6.C.2. RECOMMENDATIONS FOR INDIVIDUAL PARTICIPANTS IDENTIFIED MORE THAN 1 YEAR AFTER THE RELEASE OF THE ANNOUNCING MARADMIN WILL REQUIRE ENDORSEMENTS FROM COMMANDERS AT THE TIME OF ACTION, UP TO AND INCLUDING THE APPROPRIATE DESIGNATED ENDORSER, PRIOR TO PROCESSING THE RECOMMENDATION. ORIGINATORS OF THESE AWARDS MUST SUBMIT A LETTER TO MMMA-2 AT SMB(UNDERSCORE)HQMC(UNDERSCORE)PERS (UNDERSCORE)AWARDS(AT)USMC.MIL. THE LETTER MUST CONTAIN ALL ENDORSEMENTS FROM THE CHAIN OF COMMAND AND MUST INCLUDE ALL THE ADMINISTRATIVE DETAILS REQUIRED BY THE ANNOUNCEMENT MARADMIN.
7. INDIVIDUAL MARINES WHO BELIEVE THEY MET THE ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE HSM SHOULD CONTACT THEIR IMMEDIATE COMMANDER. CONTACTED COMMANDERS MAY, AT THEIR OPTION, INITIATE A RECOMMENDATION AND ROUTE IT THROUGH THE OPERATIONAL CHAIN OF COMMAND TO THE APPROPRIATE DESIGNATED ENDORSER FOR CONSIDERATION. CMC (MMMA) WILL NOT ACT UPON REQUESTS FOR DETERMINATION NOT ROUTED THROUGH A DESIGNATED ENDORSER.
8. ANY QUESTIONS ON THE GUIDANCE CONTAINED IN THIS MARADMIN SHOULD BE DIRECTED TO THE POC LISTED ABOVE.
9. RELEASE AUTHORIZED BY BGEN M.J. MONAHAN, DIRECTOR, MANPOWER MANAGEMENT DIVISION.//