Muscatine

Initial investigation...

shows that the laws governing this kind of thing should be covered under Title 37 of the United States Code. That codification outlines the role of Pay and Allowances of the Uniformed Services in the United States Code. U.S. ''codes'' are the result of an effort to make finding relevant and effective statutes simpler by reorganizing them by subject matter, and eliminating expired and amended sections. The Code is maintained by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel (LRC) of the U.S. House of Representatives (CONGRESS). The LRC determines which STATUTES should be codified, and which existing laws are affected by amendments or repeals, or have simply expired by their own terms. The LRC updates the Code accordingly.

In effect, the stuff determining what is to be legally done in administering re-enlistment bonuses is determined by Congress.
I'm still investigating.

Thank you bobsdad for

trying to clear this up and get to the real answer without the b.s. I would bet that there is some provision in the law that allows for this and some congerssperson is going to attempt to make hay of it. Some burecrat in some office is justifying their job and sent out whatever paperwork they were required to send out however wrong it might be.

Herman

Try this

United States Code
TITLE 37 - PAY AND ALLOWANCES OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES
CHAPTER 5 - SPECIAL AND INCENTIVE PAYS
Section 309
Section 309. Special pay: enlistment bonus

(a) Bonus Authorized; Bonus Amount. - A person who enlists in an armed force for a period of at least 2 years may be paid a bonus in an amount not to exceed $20,000. The bonus may be paid in a single lump sum or in periodic installments. (b) Repayment of Bonus. - (1) A member of the armed forces who voluntarily, or because of the member's misconduct, does not complete the term of enlistment for which a bonus was paid under this section, or a member who is not technically qualified in the skill for which the bonus was paid, if any (other than a member who is not qualified because of injury, illness, or other impairment not the result of the member's misconduct), shall refund to the United States that percentage of the bonus that the unexpired part of member's enlistment is of the total enlistment period for which the bonus was paid. (2) An obligation to reimburse the United States imposed under paragraph (1) is for all purposes a debt owed to the United States. (3) A discharge in bankruptcy under title 11 that is entered less than 5 years after the termination of an enlistment for which a bonus was paid under this section does not discharge the person receiving the bonus from the debt arising under paragraph (1). (c) Relation to Prohibition on Bounties. - The enlistment bonus authorized by this section is not a bounty for purposes of section 514(a) of title 10. (d) Regulations. - This section shall be administered under regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense for the armed forces under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Defense and by the Secretary of Transportation for the Coast Guard when the Coast Guard is not operating as a service in the Navy. (e) Duration of Authority. - No bonus shall be paid under this section with respect to any enlistment in the armed forces made after December 31, 2001.

Looks like the Pentagon screwed up.

For the record,

legislation has been introduced to make sure this doesn't happen again.