§ 2501. Grade on retirement

• (a) Any commissioned officer, other than a commissioned warrant officer, who is retired under any provision of this title, shall be retired from active service with the highest grade held by him for not less than six months while on active duty in which, as determined by the Secretary, his performance of duty was satisfactory.
• (b) Any warrant officer who is retired under any provision of section 580, 1263, 1293, or 1305 of title 10, shall be retired from active service with the highest commissioned grade above chief warrant officer, W–4, held by him for not less than six months on active duty in which, as determined by the Secretary, his performance of duty was satisfactory.

§ 2502. Retirement

• (a) Every commissioned officer, warrant officer, or enlisted member who is retired under any provisions of this title shall be retired with the permanent grade or rate held at the time of retirement, unless entitled to retire with a higher grade or rate under any provision of this title or any other law.
• (b) Where an officer is entitled, under any provision of law, to retire with one grade higher than the grade in which serving at the time of retirement, the next higher grade in the case of captain shall be rear admiral (lower half), and the next higher grade in the case of commissioned warrant officer shall be lieutenant (junior grade).

§ 2503. Status of recalled personnel

All retired personnel when recalled to active duty shall serve in the grade or rate in which they were serving at the time of retirement.

§ 2504. Computation of retired pay

• (a)
  • (1) The retired pay of a member who first became a member of a uniformed service (as defined in section 101 of title 10 ) before September 8, 1980 , is determined by multiplying—
    • (A) the sum of—
      • (i) the basic pay of the member’s retired grade or rate, and
      • (ii) all permanent additions thereto including longevity credit to which the member was entitled at the time of retirement; by
    • (B) the retired pay multiplier determined under section 1409 of title 10 for the number of years of service that may be credited to the member under section 1405 of such title.
  • (2) In the case of an officer who served as Commandant, retired pay under paragraph (1) shall be computed at the highest rate of basic pay applicable to the officer while so serving.
  • (3) In the case of an enlisted member who served as the master chief petty officer of the Coast Guard, retired pay under paragraph (1) shall be computed at the highest rate of basic pay to which the member was entitled while so serving, if that basic pay is greater than the basic pay of the grade or rate to which the member is otherwise entitled at the time of retirement.
  • (4) In the case of an officer whose retired pay is computed on the pay of a grade for which basic pay is not based upon years of service, retired pay under paragraph (1) shall be computed on the basis of the number of years of service for which the officer would be entitled to credit in the computation of pay on the active list had the officer been serving in the grade of captain at the time of retirement.
• (b) The retired pay of a member who first became a member of a uniformed service (as defined in section 101 of title 10 ) on or after September 8, 1980 , is determined by multiplying—
  • (1) the retired pay base determined under section 1407 of title 10 ; by
  • (2) the retired pay multiplier determined under section 1409 of title 10 for the number of years of service that may be credited to the member under section 1405 of such title.
• (c)
  • (1) In computing for the purpose of subsection (a) or (b) the number of years of service that may be credited to a member under section 1405 of title 10 —
    • (A) each full month of service that is in addition to the number of full years of service creditable to the member shall be counted as 1 ⁄ 12 of a year; and
    • (B) any remaining fractional part of a month shall be disregarded.
  • (2) Retired pay computed under this section, if not a multiple of $1, shall be rounded to the next lower multiple of $1.
• (d) In addition to amounts computed pursuant to subsections (a) through (c) of this section, a full TSP member (as defined in section 8440e(a) of title 5 ) of the Coast Guard is entitled to continuation pay pursuant to section 356 of title 37 .

§ 2505. Limitations on retirement and retired pay

• (a) The provisions of any section of this title shall not be construed so as to prevent any member from being placed on the retired list with the highest grade or rate and the highest retired pay to which the member may be entitled under the provisions of any other section of this title or under any other law.
• (b) In no case may the retired pay of a member exceed 75 percent of (1) the sum of the active-duty pay and all permanent additions thereto (including longevity credit to which the member is entitled) of the grade or rate on which the member’s pay is computed, or (2) the retired pay base determined under section 1407 of title 10 , as appropriate.

§ 2506. Suspension of payment of retired pay of members who are absent from the United States to avoid prosecution

Under procedures prescribed by the Secretary, the Secretary may suspend the payment of the retired pay of a member or former member during periods in which the member willfully remains outside the United States to avoid criminal prosecution or civil liability. The procedures shall address the types of criminal offenses and civil proceedings for which the procedures may be used, including the offenses specified in section 8312 of title 5 , and the manner by which a member, upon the return of the member to the United States, may obtain retired pay withheld during the member’s absence.

§ 2507. Board for Correction of Military Records deadline

• (a) The Secretary shall complete processing of an application for correction of military records under section 1552 of title 10 by not later than 10 months after the date the Secretary receives the completed application.
• (b) Ten months after a complete application for correction of military records is received by the Board for Correction of Military Records of the Coast Guard, administrative remedies are deemed to have been exhausted, and—
  • (1) if the Board has rendered a recommended decision, its recommendation shall be final agency action and not subject to further review or approval within the department in which the Coast Guard is operating; or
  • (2) if the Board has not rendered a recommended decision, agency action is deemed to have been unreasonably delayed or withheld and the applicant is entitled to—
    • (A) an order under section 706(1) of title 5 , directing final action be taken within 30 days from the date the order is entered; and
    • (B) from amounts appropriated to the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, the costs of obtaining the order, including a reasonable attorney’s fee.

§ 2508. Emergency leave retention authority

• (a) A duty assignment for an active duty member of the Coast Guard in support of a declaration of a major disaster or emergency by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act ( 42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.) or in response to a spill of national significance shall be treated, for the purpose of section 701(f)(2) of title 10 , as a duty assignment in support of a contingency operation.
• (b) In this section:
  • (1) The term “spill of national significance” means a discharge of oil or a hazardous substance that is declared by the Commandant to be a spill of national significance.
  • (2) The term “discharge” has the meaning given that term in section 1001 of the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 ( 33 U.S.C. 2701 ).

§ 2509. Prohibition of certain involuntary administrative separations

• (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), the Secretary may not authorize the involuntary administrative separation of a covered individual based on a determination that the covered individual is unsuitable for deployment or other assignment due to a medical condition of the covered individual considered by a Physical Evaluation Board during an evaluation of the covered individual that resulted in the covered individual being determined to be fit for duty.
• (b)
  • (1) The Secretary may require a Physical Evaluation Board to reevaluate any covered individual if the Secretary determines there is reason to believe that a medical condition of the covered individual considered by a Physical Evaluation Board during an evaluation of the covered individual renders the covered individual unsuitable for continued duty.
  • (2) A covered individual who is determined, based on a reevaluation under paragraph (1), to be unfit to perform the duties of the covered individual’s office, grade, rank, or rating may be retired or separated for physical disability under chapter 61 of title 10.
• (c) In this section, the term “covered individual” means any member of the Coast Guard who has been determined by a Physical Evaluation Board, pursuant to a physical evaluation by that board, to be fit for duty.

§ 2510. Sea service letters

• (a) The Secretary shall provide a sea service letter to a member or former member of the Coast Guard who—
  • (1) accumulated sea service on a vessel of the Armed Forces (as such term is defined in section 527(e)); and
  • (2) requests such letter.
• (b) Not later than 30 days after receiving a request for a sea service letter from a member or former member of the Coast Guard under subsection (a), the Secretary shall provide such letter to such member or former member if such member or former member satisfies the requirement under subsection (a)(1).

§ 2511. Investigations of flag officers and Senior Executive Service employees

In conducting an investigation into an allegation of misconduct by a flag officer or member of the Senior Executive Service serving in the Coast Guard, the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security shall—

• (1) conduct the investigation in a manner consistent with Department of Defense policies for such an investigation; and
• (2) consult with the Inspector General of the Department of Defense.

§ 2512. Leave policies for the Coast Guard

• (a) Except as provided in subsection (b), not later than 1 year after the date on which the Secretary of the Navy promulgates a new rule, policy, or memorandum pursuant to section 704 of title 10 , United States Code, with respect to leave associated with the birth or adoption of a child, the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall promulgate a similar rule, policy, or memorandum that provides leave to officers and enlisted members of the Coast Guard that is equal in duration and compensation to that provided by the Secretary of the Navy.
• (b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), sections 701 and 704 of title 10, or any other provision of law, all officers and enlisted members of the Coast Guard shall be authorized leave associated with the birth or adoption of a child during the 1-year period immediately following such birth or adoption and, at the discretion of the Commanding Officer, such officer or enlisted member shall be permitted—
  • (1) to take such leave in increments; and
  • (2) to use flexible work schedules (pursuant to a program established by the Secretary in accordance with chapter 61 of title 5).

§ 2513. Computation of length of service

In computing length of service of officers and enlisted personnel for any purpose all creditable service in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, Revenue Cutter Service, and Life Saving Service shall be included in addition to any other creditable service authorized by any other law.

§ 2531. Personnel of former Lighthouse Service

• (a) Any person of the former Lighthouse Service commissioned as an officer in the Coast Guard shall be an extra number in his grade and in the grades to which he may be promoted. He shall take precedence (1) with other officers commissioned in his grade from the former Lighthouse Service as the Secretary of the Treasury may determine, and (2) with other line officers in his grade in accordance with the respective dates of their commissions in such grade. He shall be eligible for promotion, if otherwise qualified, at such time as the officer in a regular number in line of promotion next above him on the seniority list becomes eligible for promotion; or if there be no such officer in his grade, he shall be eligible for promotion, if otherwise qualified, when a vacancy occurs in the next higher grade. An officer so commissioned shall be assigned to duty for which he is specially qualified, and professional examinations for promotion given to such officer shall embrace only subjects which pertain to the duty to which he is assigned.
• (b) Each vacancy (1) hereafter occurring in the extra numbers of such officers; (2) existing on August 5, 1939 , in positions in the Lighthouse Service formerly held by personnel eligible for such commissions; and (3) created by the retirement, resignation, death, or separation from the service for any other cause, of such personnel who do not possess the qualifications prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury or who, being qualified, do not accept a commission thereunder, shall operate to increase by one the total authorized number of line officers of the Coast Guard.
• (c) All persons of the former Lighthouse Service commissioned, appointed, or enlisted in the Coast Guard shall be subject to all laws and regulations for the government of the Coast Guard, and nothing contained in this title shall be construed to prevent the application to any of such persons of laws and regulations concerning the military discipline of commissioned and warrant officers and enlisted members of the Coast Guard.
• (d) In computing length of service, for the purpose of retirement in the Coast Guard, of any person of the former Lighthouse Service commissioned, appointed, or enlisted in the Coast Guard, there shall be included all service computable for retirement under the provisions of section 763 of title 33 ; and after July 1, 1948 , in computing longevity for the purpose of pay of such person there shall be included all service of such person in the Lighthouse Service.
• (e) No person so commissioned, appointed, or enlisted in the Coast Guard shall suffer any reduction in the total of the annual compensation and allowances which he was receiving on the date of his commission, appointment, or enlistment. Upon his retirement from active duty in the Coast Guard, the retired pay of any person so commissioned, appointed, or enlisted, shall not be less than an annuity computed in accordance with the provisions of section 763 of title 33 , substituting, however, for purposes of such computation, the annual compensation which he was receiving on the date of his commission, appointment, or enlistment in the Coast Guard for the average annual pay received by him for the last five years of service.
• (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, chapter 51, subchapter III of chapter 53, and sections 5542–5546 of title 5 shall not apply to civilian keepers of lighthouses and to civilians employed on lightships and other vessels of the Coast Guard.
• (g)
  • (1) The head of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating under regulations prescribed by him, may regulate the hours of duty and the pay of civilian keepers of lighthouses and civilians employed on lightships and other vessels of the Coast Guard, but such personnel may be called upon for duty in emergency circumstances or otherwise at any time or all times. The existing system governing the pay of such employees may be continued or changed except that overtime compensation, night differential, and extra pay for duty on holidays shall not be paid to such employees. In lieu thereof additional annual compensation may be authorized, which may be prescribed either as a fixed differential or as a percentage of the basic compensation otherwise applicable to such employees. In no case shall basic compensation exceed $15,000 per annum, except that nothing contained in this subsection shall operate to decrease the basic compensation of any person employed by the Coast Guard on the date of enactment of this subsection, and in no case shall additions thereto exceed 25 percent of such basic compensation. Provision may be made for compensatory absence from duty when conditions of employment result in confinement because of isolation or in long periods of continuous duty; and provisions may likewise be made for extra allowance for service outside of the continental limits of the United States.
  • (2) The additional compensation authorized by this subsection shall be included in any computation of compensation under section 6 of the Act of June 20, 1918 ( 33 U.S.C. 763 ).