TO AMEND THE ACT RELATIVE TO RETIREMENT OF CAPTAINS, COMMANDERS, AND LIEUTENANT COMMANDERS OF THE LINE OF THE NAVY JANUARY 26, 1931.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. BRITTEN, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 16519] The Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Representatives, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 16519) to amend the act approved June 22, 1926, entitled "An act to amend that part of the act approved August 29, 1916, relative to retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy," as amended by the act of March 4, 1929, having had the same under consideration, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to continue in force and effect until March 5, 1933, the act approved June 22, 1926 (44 Stat. 761), as amended by the act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1557; U. S. C., Supp. III, title 34, sec. 311). In compliance with clause 2a of Rule XIII there is herewith printed the statute sought to be amended, the language sought to be repealed appearing in brackets and the amendatory language appearing in italics: That the act approved June 22, 1926 [Forty-fourth Statutes at Large, page 781, chapter 649; United States Code Appendix, title 34, section 311a] 44 Stat. L. 761 entitled "An act to amend that part of the act approved August 29, 1916, relative to retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy" as amended by the act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. L. 1557, U. S. C. Supp. III, title 34, Sec. 311) is hereby further amended by striking out the figures [1929] 1931 appearing in the first sentence of the said act, and in lieu thereof inserting the figures [1931] 1933 so that as amended said act shall read as follows: "That until March 5, [1931] 1933, the provisions contained in the act approved August 29, 1916, [Thirty-ninth Statutes at Large, page 579] 39 Stat. L. 579, which provide for the retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy who are more than fifty-six, fifty, and forty-five years of age, respectively, and who have become ineligible for promotion on TO AMEND THE ACT RELATIVE TO RETIREMENT OF CAPTAINS, COMMANDERS, AND LIEUTENANT COMMANDERS OF THE LINE OF THE NAVY JANUARY 26, 1931.-Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the state of the Union and ordered to be printed Mr. BRITTEN, from the Committee on Naval Affairs, submitted the following REPORT [To accompany H. R. 16519] The Committee on Naval Affairs of the House of Representatives, to whom was referred the bill (H. R. 16519) to amend the act approved June 22, 1926, entitled "An act to amend that part of the act approved August 29, 1916, relative to retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy," as amended by the act of March 4, 1929, having had the same under consideration, report favorably thereon without amendment and recommend that the bill do pass. The purpose of the proposed legislation is to continue in force and effect until March 5, 1933, the act approved June 22, 1926 (44 Stat. 761), as amended by the act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1557; U. S. C., Supp. III, title 34, sec. 311). In compliance with clause 2a of Rule XIII there is herewith printed the statute sought to be amended, the language sought to be repealed appearing in brackets and the amendatory language appearing in italics: That the act approved June 22, 1926 [Forty-fourth Statutes at Large, page 781, chapter 649; United States Code Appendix, title 34, section 311a] 44 Stat. L. 761 entitled "An act to amend that part of the act approved August 29, 1916, relative to retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy" as amended by the act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. L. 1557, U. S. C. Supp. III, title 34, Sec. 311) is hereby further amended by striking out the figures [1929] 1931 appearing in the first sentence of the said act, and in lieu thereof inserting the figures [1931] 1933 so that as amended said act shall read as follows: "That until March 5, [1931] 1933, the provisions contained in the act approved August 29, 191, [Thirty-ninth Statutes at Large, page 579] 39 Stat. L. 579, which provide for the retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy who are more than fifty-six, fifty, and forty-five years of age, respectively, and who have become ineligible for promotion on account of such age, be, and the same are hereby, modified to the extent that captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders shall not become ineligible for promotion and shall not be retired until they have completed thirty-five, twenty-eight, and twenty-one years, respectively, of commissioned service in the Navy, and upon the completion of such service, if not recommended for promotion, they shall be retired without regard to age under the conditions specified in said act: Provided, That the commissioned service of Naval Academy graduates, for the purpose of this act only, shall be computed from June 30 of the calendar year in which the class with which they graduated completed its academic course, or, if its academic course was more or less than four years, from June 30 of the calendar year in which it would have completed an academic course of four years." Under the act of August 29, 1916 (39 Stat. 579; U. S. C., title 34, sec. 311), officers who were not selected for promotion remained in their existing grades until they reached certain ages at which they became ineligible for selection and were automatically retired. These ages were captains 56, commanders 50, lieutenant commanders 45. This age in grade retirement law was temporarily replaced by the act of June 22, 1926 (44 Stat. 761; U. S. C., Appendix 111, title 34, sec. 311a), which provided for the retirement of lieutenant commanders, commanders, and captains upon the completion of 21, 28, and 35 years of commissioned service, respectively, if they have not been selected for promotion. This change was made because of the injustice done the older members of the Naval Academy classes. Thus an officer, who for no other reason than entering the Naval Academy relatively old, is older than his contemporaries on the Navy list might well, under the age limit, be forced to retire for age in grade before he has reached the top group of his grade and thereby become prominently considered for selection. Of course it is within the province of the selection board to dip way down the list and select men in this position, but unless they have unusual outstanding qualities the board would not be inclined to do this, and the officer would be forced to retire without a fair chance at selection. If this legislation is not enacted by the end of the present session of the Congress, involuntary retirement will be again made by reason of age ineligibility for promotion. An identical bill was passed in the last days of the Seventieth Congress which extended the law to March 5, 1931. The following letter from the Secretary of the Navy, addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, sets forth the views and recommendations of the Navy Department and is hereby made a part of this report: NAVY DEPARTMENT, Washington, December 17, 1980. Washington, D. C. The SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, MY DEAR MR. SPEAKER. I have the honor to transmit herewith a draft of a proposed bill "To amend the act approved June 22, 1926, entitled 'An act to amend that part of the act approved August 29, 1916, relative to retirement of captains, commanders, and lieutenant commanders of the line of the Navy,' as amended by the act of March 4, 1929." The purpose of the proposed legislation is to continue in force and effect until March 5, 1933, the act approved June 22, 1926 (44 Stat. 761), as amended by the act of March 4, 1929 (45 Stat. 1557; U. S. C., Supp. III, title 34, sec. 311). Under the act of August 29, 1916 (39 Stat. 579; U. S. C., title 34, sec. 311), officers who were not selected for promotion remained in their existing grade until they reached certain ages, at which they became ineligible for selection and were automatically retired. These ages were captains 56, commanders 50, lieutenant commanders 45. This age in grade retirement law was temporarily replaced by the act of June 22, 1926 (44 Stat. 761; U. S. C., Appendix III, title 34, sec. 311a), which provided for the retirement of lieutenant commanders, commanders, and captains upon the completion of 21, 28, and 35 years of commissioned service, respectively, if they have not been selected for promotion. This change was made because of the injustice done the older members of the Naval Academy classes. Thus an officer who, for no other reason than entering the Naval Academy relatively old, is older than his contemporaries on the Navy list might well under the age limit be forced to retire for age in grade before he has reached the top group of his grade and thereby become prominently considered for selection. Of course it is within the province of the selection board to dip way down the list and select men in this position, but unless they have unusual outstanding qualities the board would not be inclined to do this, and the officer would be forced to retire without a fair chance at selection. The act of June 22, 1926, cited above, was made temporary in duration partly in order that its success might be adjudged and partly because it was expected that an entire bill relating to personnel legislation of the Navy and making permanent this temporary law would be introduced and passed before the limiting date named, i. e., March 5, 1929. As the bill relating to personnel of the Navy was still pending without prospect of immediate enactment upon the approach of the limiting date, further legislation was enacted amending the act of August 29, 1916, as amended by the.act of June 22, 1926, by extending the limiting date to March 5, 1931. (Act of March 4, 1929; 45 Stat. 1557; U. S. C., Sup. III, title 34, sec. 311.) Similar bills relating to personnel of the Navy, in which are incorporated the provisions of the act of June 22, 1926, are still pending, namely, H. R. 1190 and S. 550, which latter passed the Senate on April 1, 1930. If this legislation is not enacted (nor the proposed personnel bill of the Interdepartmental Pay-Personnel Board) by the end of the present session of the Congress, involuntary retirement will be again made by reason of age ineligibility for promotion. The Navy Department desires to retain the temporary provision of law regarding length of service retirement until such time as a personnel bill shall have been enacted. The inclosed draft extends the limiting date from March 5, 1931, to March 5, 1933. There will be no increase in ultimate cost to the Government if this proposed legislation is enacted. Inasmuch as the legislative measures above referred to, embracing this and other proposed provisions of law, may not be enacted, and in order to continue in force and effect the present temporary law, the Navy Department recommends that the proposed legislation be enacted. Sincerely yours, O C. F. ADAMS, Secretary of the Navy. |