DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Defense Contract Management Agency
INSTRUCTION
Military Decorations Program
Chief of Staff DCMA-INST 1027
DCMA-DCM June 19, 2013
1. PURPOSE. This Instruction:
a. Reissues DCMA Instruction (DCMA-INST) 1027, “Military Decorations Policy”
(Reference (a)).
b. Outlines policies and procedures that are meant to ensure successful recognition and
rewarding of outstanding achievement, acts, or meritorious service for military personnel
assigned and/or attached to DCMA.
c. Ensures procedures are in accordance with governing military service regulations.
d. Is established in compliance with DoD Directive 5105.64 (Reference (b)).
2. APPLICABILITY. This Instruction applies to all DCMA activities with assigned active
duty and reserve military personnel.
3. MANAGERS’ INTERNAL CONTROL PROGRAM. In accordance with DCMA-INST
710, “Managers’ Internal Control Program” (Reference (c)), this Instruction is subject to
evaluation and testing. The process flow is not applicable for this policy.
4. RELEASABILITY. This Instruction is approved for public release.
5. PLAS CODE. 223B – Personnel Management
6. POLICY RESOURCE WEB PAGE. https://home.dcma.mil/policy/1027r
7. EFFECTIVE DATE. By order of the Director, DCMA this Instruction is effective
immediately.
Steven C. Buetow, Colonel, USAF
Chief of Staff
DCMA-INST 1027
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................. 3
CHAPTER 1 – POLICY
1.1. Policy ............................................................................................................................... 4
CHAPTER 2 – ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
2.1. Award Approval............................................................................................................... 5
2.2. DCMA Military Personnel Division (DCM) ................................................................... 5
2.3. Contract Management Office and Component Heads ..................................................... 6
CHAPTER 3 – PROCEDURES
3.1. Recommendation Process ................................................................................................ 7
3.2. Deployment Awards ........................................................................................................ 8
3.3. Approval Process ............................................................................................................. 8
3.4. Approved Awards ............................................................................................................ 9
CHAPTER 4 – AWARDS
4.1. Defense Medals ...............................................................................................................10
4.2. Service Medals ................................................................................................................11
APPENDIX
Appendix A. Award Submission Timeline ........................................................................... 12
GLOSSARY
Acronyms .................................................................................................................................13
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REFERENCES
(a) DCMA-INST 1027, “Military Decorations Program,” June 18, 2012 (hereby canceled)
(b) DoD Directive 5105.64, “Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA),”
January 10, 2013
(c) DCMA-INST 710, “Managers’ Internal Control Program,” September 12, 2011
(d) DoD Manual 1348.33M, “Manual of Military Decorations and Awards: General
Information, Medal of Honor, and Defense/Joint Decorations and Awards,”
November 23, 2010
(e) Air Force Memorandum, “HQ 11
th
Wing Criteria for the award of the Aerial Achievement
Medal” August 20, 2009
(f) SECNAVINST 1650.1H, “Navy and Marine Corps Awards Manual,” August 22, 2006
(g) Army Regulation (AR) 600-8-22, “Military Awards,” December 11, 2006
(h) “USAFCENT Evaluation, Decoration, and Performance Recommendation Form Processing
Guide and UDPU Decorations Guide,” October 1, 2012
(i) Air Force Instruction (AFI) 36-2803, “The Air Force Awards and Decorations Program,”
June 15, 2001
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CHAPTER 1
POLICY
1.1. POLICY. It is DCMA policy that:
1.1.1. All decorations will be processed through DCMA, Military Personnel Division
(DCM).
1.1.2. Recommenders/commanders should be consistent and judicious in considering military
personnel for awards. Judicious use of decorations and awards provides incentive for greater
effort and improves morale; injudicious use destroys their basic value.
1.1.3. Recommenders must associate the level of award being recommended with the level
of responsibility, the manner of performance, and the impact to the organization.
1.1.4. Decorations will not be awarded to any service member who did not serve their entire
tour of duty honorably.
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CHAPTER 2
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
2.1. AWARD APPROVAL.
2.1.1. Approval Authority for the Defense Meritorious Service Medal (DMSM), Joint
Service Commendation Medal (JSCM), and below rests with the Director, DCMA, unless
otherwise delegated in writing.
2.1.2. Joint Service Achievement Medal (JSAM) approval authority has been delegated to
senior executive service (SES), flag officers, and chief operations officer. Where an SES or flag
officer component head does not exist, JSAM will be forwarded to the DCMA Director for
approval.
2.1.3. Approval authority for Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) or higher rests with
the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD).
2.1.4. Approval authority for Service medals (Bronze Star Medal (BSM), Legion of Merit
(LOM), and Aerial Achievement Medal (AAM)) rests with the military services.
2.2. DCMA, MILITARY PERSONNEL DIVISION (DCM).
2.2.1. DCM program managers will maintain oversight of the decorations program to ensure
proper recognition and rewarding of outstanding achievement, acts, or meritorious service for
military personnel assigned and/or attached to DCMA.
2.2.2. DCM will review award recommendation packets, prepare the certificate, and
assemble and staff the recommendation packet for the DCMA Director’s approval or
recommendation to OSD.
2.2.3. DCM will make minor corrections to award citations and narratives. Major
corrections will be returned to the Operations Directorate or International Directorate for
corrections.
2.2.4. For awards approved at headquarters (HQ) DCMA, DCM will publish the award
order, print the award citation on resume paper, package the award in the certificate binder, mail
the award to the address in the requesting memorandum, provide a copy to member, and provide
a copy of the award to the appropriate Service for the member’s file to be updated. Awards are
sent via FEDEX for tracking purposes. For all Army post office (APO) or post office box
addresses, the award will be sent via United States Postal Service.
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2.3. CONTRACT MANAGEMENT OFFICE AND COMPONENT HEADS.
2.3.1. Commanders, component heads, or their designated representative will recommend
awards based on outstanding achievement, acts, or meritorious service for their military
personnel.
2.3.2. Award recommendations must be submitted with sufficient time for processing and
preparation of the award packet before the desired presentation date. Commanders, component
heads, or their designated representatives will complete the award recommendation packet and
submit it to DCM in accordance to Award Submission Timelines Table (Appendix A).
2.3.3. All awards will be processed through the chain of command to DCMA DCM.
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CHAPTER 3
PROCEDURES
3.1. RECOMMENDATION PROCESS.
3.1.1. Commanders, component heads, or their designated representative will recommend
awards based on outstanding achievement, acts, or meritorious service for their military
personnel.
3.1.2. Commanders, component heads, or their designated representative, will complete an
awards recommendation packet. All award recommendations require a recommendation
memorandum, signed by the recommender and endorsed by the chain of command, and a citation
(format depends on type of award being recommended). DMSMs or higher and service awards
require a narrative justification or summary of action. Exact recommendation packet for each
award is listed below:
3.1.2.1. JSAM and JSCM require a recommendation memorandum with endorsements
and citation.
3.1.2.2. DMSM, DSSM, and Defense Distinguished Service Medal (DDSM) require a
recommendation memorandum with endorsements, citation (DSSM and DDSM citations do not
have a seal), and narrative justification.
3.1.2.3. BSM and LOM require a recommendation memorandum with endorsements,
citation, narrative justification, and service specific form. The Air Force requires the BSM
recommendation to also include DECOR 6, AF Form 3994, and Form C25. The only additional
information the Air Force needs for a LOM recommendation is DECOR 6. The Army requires
DA Form 638. The Navy requires OPNAV Form 1650/3.
3.1.2.4. AAM requires a recommendation memorandum with endorsements, citation,
DECOR 6, and flight record.
3.1.2.5. Any award recommendation packet that is not submitted within the allotted
timeframe outlined in Appendix A must have a Letter of Lateness.
3.1.2.6. Templates, examples, and instructions can be found on the policy resource page.
3.1.3. Once an award recommendation packet is complete, the commanders, component
heads, or their designated representative will forward the packet to their designated liaison
officer (LNO) for review and endorsement.
3.1.4. Awards will be submitted electronically, in an encrypted e-mail. All awards will be
submitted as:
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3.1.4.1. A “.pdf” file containing the entire recommendation packet with required
signatures.
3.1.4.2. Editable Word, “.doc” or “.docx” files for efficiency in preparing the forwarding
memorandum or endorsement (if applicable) and making minor corrections to citations and
narratives.
3.1.5. Military Personnel LNOs will then forward complete award recommendation packets
to the Operations Directorate or International Directorate for review and endorsement.
3.1.6. Finally, DCM will review award recommendation packets, prepare the certificate, and
assemble and staff the recommendation packet for the DCMA Director’s approval.
3.2. DEPLOYMENT AWARDS. Award recommendations for deployments will be prepared,
as outlined above, and forwarded through the commander, DCMA International Directorate to
DCM, for processing. Deployment awards approved by HQ DCMA normally take 60 days to
process. Service-level awards normally require a minimum of 90 days to process. Processing
times for Bronze Star Medals vary by service.
3.3. APPROVAL PROCESS.
3.3.1. Approval of awards is considered on a case-by-case basis. Ultimately,
recommendations should be based on the merit of the individual’s achievements and/or
service. Only one award or decoration is authorized for the same act, achievement, or period of
service for any individual or unit. However, a personal performance award for valor, heroism, or
specific achievement within a longer period of meritorious service is not considered duplication,
provided the citation for the meritorious service or the accompanying documentation justifying
the award does not cite any of the actions for which the valorous or specific achievement award
was given. The presentation of multiple outstanding achievement decorations to service
members during their tour leaves little justification for a meritorious service decoration, since
any achievement used to justify an achievement decoration cannot be used to justify a
meritorious service decoration.
3.3.2. For awards approved at the Operations Directorate or International Directorate level,
LNOs will publish the award order, print the award citation on resume paper, and package the
award in the certificate binder.
3.3.3. For awards approved at HQ DCMA, DCM will publish the award order, print the
award citation on resume paper, and package the award in the certificate binder.
3.3.4. For awards approved at OSD, DCM will review the entire recommendation packet,
prepare DCMA Director’s endorsement memorandum, and obtain DCMA Director’s
endorsement. The awards packet will be forwarded electronically in “.pdf” and MS Word
formats.
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3.3.5. For awards approved by the services, DCM will review the entire recommendation
packet and obtain DCMA Director’s endorsement on service specific forms. The awards packet
will be forwarded electronically in “.pdf” and MS Word formats.
3.4. APPROVED AWARDS.
3.4.1. For awards approved at the Operations Directorate or International Directorate level,
LNOs will mail the award to the address in the requesting memorandum. A medal set will be
provided if this is the first award received for that particular type of award. If a service member
has received the same medal previously, it is the service member’s responsibility to purchase an
oak leaf cluster (OLC).
3.4.2. For awards approved at HQ DCMA, DCM will mail the award to the address in the
requesting memorandum. A medal set will be provided if this is the first award received for that
particular type of award. If a service member has received the same medal previously, it is the
service member’s responsibility to purchase an OLC.
3.4.3. DCM will provide a copy of the award to the appropriate service for the member’s file
to be updated.
3.4.4. For awards approved at OSD, OSD will notify DCM of status and mail the award to
DCM. DCM will then mail the award to the address provided in the requesting memorandum.
3.4.5. For awards approved by the services, DCM will contact the service periodically for an
update and request copies of any approved awards. If the award was mailed to DCM, DCM will
forward the approved award to the address provided on the requesting memorandum.
3.4.6. DCM will electronically file copies of all award packages and approved awards.
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CHAPTER 4
AWARDS
4.1. DEFENSE MEDALS.
4.1.1. Joint Service Achievement Medal (JSAM). The JSAM is awarded in the name of the
Secretary of Defense to members of the United States armed forces below the grade of O-6 who
distinguish themselves by outstanding performance of duty, meritorious achievement, or service.
Service members assigned and/or attached to a joint task force (JTF) as individual augmentees
(not as members of a service unit) may also be eligible for the JSAM.
4.1.2. Joint Service Commendation Medal (JSCM). The JSCM is awarded for meritorious
service and is generally for a period of time greater than 12 months and encompassing an
individual’s entire joint assignment, including any extensions. Service members assigned and/or
attached to a JTF as individual augmentees (not as members of a Service unit) may also be
eligible for the JSCM. Augmentees of service-unique units assigned and/or attached to a JTF
retain eligibility for award of personal decorations from their parent services. They may not be
awarded defense/joint decorations.
4.1.3. Defense Meritorious Service Medal (DMSM). The DMSM is awarded in the name of
the Secretary of Defense to any active duty member who, while serving in a joint activity,
distinguishes himself or herself by non-combat meritorious achievement or service. The
meritorious service is generally for a period of time greater than 12 months and encompassing an
individual’s entire joint assignment, including any extensions. The required achievement or
service, while of a lesser degree than that required for award of the DSSM, must have been
accomplished with distinction. Service members assigned and/or attached to a JTF as
individuals (not as members of a service unit) may also be eligible for the DMSM. Members of
service-unique units assigned and/or attached to a JTF retain eligibility for award of personal
decorations from their parent services. They may not be awarded defense/joint decorations.
Only under the most unusual circumstances will the DMSM be awarded as an impact award for
outstanding temporary duty (TDY) or deployment achievement.
4.1.4. Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM). Awarded by the Secretary of Defense to
any service member who has rendered superior meritorious service in a position of significant
responsibility while assigned to a joint activity and whose performance cannot be recognized
properly by any other defense/joint decoration. Award for meritorious service is generally for a
period of time greater than 12 months and encompassing an individual’s entire joint assignment,
including any extensions. Only under the most unusual circumstances will the DSSM be
awarded as an impact award for outstanding TDY or deployment achievement.
4.1.5. Defense Distinguished Service Medal (DDSM). Awarded by the Secretary of Defense
to any officer who, while assigned to a joint staff or activity, distinguishes himself or herself by
exceptionally meritorious service in a position of unique and great responsibility. Award for
exceptionally meritorious service is generally for a period of time greater than 12 months and
encompassing an individual’s entire joint assignment, including any extensions. The DDSM
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shall not be awarded to any officer for a period of service for which a military department’s
Distinguished Service Medal, or similar decoration, has been awarded. Only under the most
unusual circumstances will the DDSM be awarded as an impact award for outstanding TDY or
deployment achievement. For more details, refer to eligibility requirements in DoD 1348.33-M
(Reference (d)).
4.1.6. A Defense decoration will not be awarded for acts, achievements, or services that only
contribute to the individual’s service and do not meet the definition of “joint activity.”
4.1.7. Defense decorations have a higher stature than their service counterparts. A service
medal may be more appropriate for recognizing an award other than those listed; please refer to
service regulations for eligibility criteria and additional information. Each military service has
an extensive list of service-specific awards and decorations.
4.2. SERVICE MEDALS.
4.2.1. Bronze Star Medal (BSM). The BSM is awarded only while serving under combat
conditions (deployed). For comprehensive guidelines for eligibility criteria, refer to service (Air
Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps) regulations for criteria for award of the BSM.
4.2.2. Legion of Merit (LOM). For comprehensive guidelines for eligibility criteria, refer to
service regulations.
4.2.3. Aerial Achievement Medal (AAM). For comprehensive guidelines for eligibility
criteria, refer to “HQ 11
th
Wing Criteria for the award of the Aerial Achievement” memorandum
(Reference (e)) and service regulation.
4.2.4. Marine Corps. Marine Corps service awards should be processed the same as Navy
awards. For comprehensive guidelines for eligibility criteria, refer to SECNAVINST 1650.1H
(Reference (f)).
4.2.5. Other Awards and Campaign Medals. For information on other awards, contact the
appropriate human resources specialist at the regional command, Operations Directorate, or HQ
DCMA, DCM for service-specific processes, samples, and additional information.
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APPENDIX A
AWARD SUBMISSION TIMELINES
Award
Date Due to DCM
Guideline for Submission into
Approval Channels
Bronze Star Medal (BSM)
120 days
prior to presentation
date
150 days prior to presentation date
Legion of Merit (LOM)
120 days
prior to presentation
date
150 days prior to presentation date
Defense Distinguished Service
Medal (DDSM)
120 days
prior to presentation
date
150 days prior to presentation date
Defense Superior Service Medal
(DSSM)
120 days
prior to presentation
date
150 days prior to presentation date
Aerial Achievement Medal
(AAM) - Air Force Only
120 days
prior to presentation
date
150 days prior to presentation date
Defense Meritorious Service
Medal (DMSM)
60 days
prior to presentation
date
90 days prior to presentation date
Joint Service Commendation
Medal (JSCM)
60 days
prior to presentation
date
90 days prior to presentation date
Joint Service Achievement
Medal (JSAM)
60 days
prior to presentation
date
90 days prior to presentation date
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GLOSSARY
ACRONYMS
AAM Aerial Achievement Medal
AFI Air Force instruction
APO Army post office
AR Army regulation
BSM Bronze Star Medal
DCM military personnel division
DCMA-INST DCMA Instruction
DDSM Defense Distinguished Service Medal
DMSM Defense Meritorious Service Medal
DSSM Defense Superior Service Medal
HQ headquarters
JSAM Joint Service Achievement Medal
JSCM Joint Service Commendation Medal
JTF joint task force
LNO liaison officer
LOM Legion of Merit
OLC oak leaf cluster
OSD Office of the Secretary of Defense
PLAS Performance Labor Accounting System
SECNAVINST Secretary of the Navy instruction
SES senior executive service
TDY temporary duty
USAF United States Air Force
