
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
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[Laws in effect as of January 2, 2001]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 2, 2001 and January 28, 2002]
[CITE: 10USC615]

 
                         TITLE 10--ARMED FORCES
 
                    Subtitle A--General Military Law
 
                           PART II--PERSONNEL
 
    CHAPTER 36--PROMOTION, SEPARATION, AND INVOLUNTARY RETIREMENT OF 
                    OFFICERS ON THE ACTIVE-DUTY LIST
 
                     SUBCHAPTER I--SELECTION BOARDS
 
Sec. 615. Information furnished to selection boards

    (a)(1) The Secretary of Defense shall prescribe regulations 
governing information furnished to selection boards convened under 
section 611(a) of this title. Those regulations shall apply uniformly 
among the military departments. Any regulations prescribed by the 
Secretary of a military department to supplement those regulations may 
not take effect without the approval of the Secretary of Defense in 
writing.
    (2) No information concerning a particular eligible officer may be 
furnished to a selection board except for the following:
        (A) Information that is in the officer's official military 
    personnel file and that is provided to the selection board in 
    accordance with the regulations prescribed by the Secretary of 
    Defense pursuant to paragraph (1).
        (B) Other information that is determined by the Secretary of the 
    military department concerned, after review by that Secretary in 
    accordance with standards and procedures set out in the regulations 
    prescribed by the Secretary of Defense pursuant to paragraph (1), to 
    be substantiated, relevant information that could reasonably and 
    materially affect the deliberations of the selection board.
        (C) Subject to such limitations as may be prescribed in those 
    regulations, information communicated to the board by the officer in 
    accordance with this section, section 614(b) of this title 
    (including any comment on information referred to in subparagraph 
    (A) regarding that officer), or other applicable law.
        (D) A factual summary of the information described in 
    subparagraphs (A), (B), and (C) that, in accordance with the 
    regulations prescribed pursuant to paragraph (1), is prepared by 
    administrative personnel for the purpose of facilitating the work of 
    the selection board.

    (3) Information provided to a selection board in accordance with 
paragraph (2) shall be made available to all members of the board and 
shall be made a part of the record of the board. Communication of such 
information shall be in a written form or in the form of an audio or 
video recording. If a communication is in the form of an audio or video 
recording, a written transcription of the recording shall also be made a 
part of the record of the selection board.
    (4) Paragraphs (2) and (3) do not apply to the furnishing of 
appropriate administrative processing information to the selection board 
by administrative staff designated to assist the board, but only to the 
extent that oral communications are necessary to facilitate the work of 
the board.
    (5) Information furnished to a selection board that is described in 
subparagraph (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (2) may not be furnished to a 
later selection board unless--
        (A) the information has been properly placed in the official 
    military personnel file of the officer concerned; or
        (B) the information is provided to the later selection board in 
    accordance with paragraph (2).

    (6)(A) Before information described in paragraph (2)(B) regarding an 
eligible officer is furnished to a selection board, the Secretary of the 
military department concerned shall ensure--
        (i) that such information is made available to such officer; and
        (ii) that the officer is afforded a reasonable opportunity to 
    submit comments on that information to the selection board.

    (B) If an officer cannot be given access to the information referred 
to in subparagraph (A) because of its classification status, the officer 
shall, to the maximum extent practicable, be furnished with an 
appropriate summary of the information.
    (b) The Secretary of the military department concerned shall furnish 
each selection board convened under section 611(a) of this title with--
        (1) the maximum number, as determined in accordance with section 
    622 of this title, of officers in each competitive category under 
    consideration that the board may recommend for promotion to the next 
    higher grade;
        (2) the names of all officers in each competitive category to be 
    considered by the board for promotion;
        (3) the pertinent records (as determined by the Secretary) of 
    each officer whose name is furnished to the board;
        (4) information or guidelines relating to the needs of the armed 
    force concerned for officers having particular skills, including 
    guidelines or information relating to the need for either a minimum 
    number or a maximum number of officers with particular skills within 
    a competitive category;
        (5) guidelines, based upon guidelines received by the Secretary 
    from the Secretary of Defense under subsection (c), for the purpose 
    of ensuring that the board gives appropriate consideration to the 
    performance in joint duty assignments of officers who are serving, 
    or have served, in such assignments; and
        (6) such other information and guidelines as may be necessary to 
    enable the board to properly perform its functions.

    (c) The Secretary of Defense, with the advice and assistance of the 
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shall furnish to the Secretaries 
of the military departments guidelines for the purpose of ensuring that 
each selection board convened under section 611(a) of this title gives 
appropriate consideration to the performance in joint duty assignments 
of officers who are serving, or have served, in such assignments.
    (d) Information or guidelines furnished to a selection board under 
subsection (b) may not be modified, withdrawn, or supplemented after the 
board submits the report to the Secretary of the military department 
concerned pursuant to section 617(a) of this title, except that, in the 
case of a report returned to a board pursuant to section 618(a)(2) of 
this title for further proceedings because of a determination by the 
Secretary of the military department concerned that the board acted 
contrary to law, regulation, or guidelines, the Secretary may modify, 
withdraw, or supplement such information or guidelines as part of a 
written explanation to the board as provided in that section.
    (e) The Secretary of each military department, under uniform 
regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense, shall include in 
guidelines furnished to a selection board convened under section 611(a) 
of this title that is considering officers in a health-professions 
competitive category for promotion to a grade below colonel or, in the 
case of the Navy, captain, a direction that the board give consideration 
to an officer's clinical proficiency and skill as a health professional 
to at least as great an extent as the board gives to the officer's 
administrative and management skills.

(Added Pub. L. 96-513, title I, Sec. 105, Dec. 12, 1980, 94 Stat. 2852; 
amended Pub. L. 99-433, title IV, Sec. 402(b), Oct. 1, 1986, 100 Stat. 
1030; Pub. L. 100-456, div. A, title V, Sec. 501(a), Sept. 29, 1988, 102 
Stat. 1965; Pub. L. 101-189, div. A, title V, Sec. 519, Nov. 29, 1989, 
103 Stat. 1444; Pub. L. 102-190, div. A, title V, Sec. 504(a)(1), Dec. 
5, 1991, 105 Stat. 1355; Pub. L. 102-484, div. A, title X, Sec. 1052(7), 
Oct. 23, 1992, 106 Stat. 2499.)


                               Amendments

    1992--Subsec. (b)(5). Pub. L. 102-484, Sec. 1052(7)(A), substituted 
``subsection (c)'' for ``subsection (b)''.
    Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 102-484, Sec. 1052(7)(B), substituted 
``subsection (b)'' for ``subsection (a)''.
    1991--Pub. L. 102-190 added subsec. (a) and redesignated former 
subsecs. (a) to (d) as (b) to (e), respectively.
    1989--Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 101-189 added subsec. (d).
    1988--Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 100-456, Sec. 501(a)(1), added cl. (4) 
and struck out former cl. (4) which read as follows: ``information 
relating to the needs of the armed force concerned for officers having 
particular skills;''.
    Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 100-456, Sec. 501(a)(2), added subsec. (c).
    1986--Pub. L. 99-433 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a), 
added par. (5), redesignated former par. (5) as (6), and added subsec. 
(b).


                    Effective Date of 1991 Amendment

    Section 504(e) of Pub. L. 102-190 provided that: ``The amendments 
made by this section [amending this section and sections 614, 616, 618, 
and 619 of this title] shall apply to selection boards convened under 
section 611(a) of title 10, United States Code, after the end of the 60-
day period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act [Dec. 5, 
1991].''


                    Effective Date of 1988 Amendment

    Section 501(e) of Pub. L. 100-456 provided that: ``The amendments 
made by this section [amending this section and sections 616 to 618 of 
this title] shall take effect 60 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act [Sept. 29, 1988] and shall apply with respect to selection 
boards convened under section 611(a) of title 10, United States Code, on 
or after that effective date.''


                    Effective Date of 1986 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 99-433 effective with respect to selection 
boards convened under section 611(a) of this title after end of 120-day 
period beginning on Oct. 1, 1986, see section 406(f) of Pub. L. 99-433, 
set out as a note under section 612 of this title.

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 616, 617, 618 of this title.
