§20241 Removal of Officers From a List of Officers Recommended for Promotion

Summary

The President can take an officer’s name off a promotion list at any time before the officer is actually promoted. If the Senate does not approve an officer’s appointment to the next higher grade, the officer’s name is removed from the list, except when the President can make the appointment without Senate approval. For lists approved under section 20238(a) for grades that need Senate approval under section 20201(a), an officer’s name is removed if the officer is not appointed during the “promotion eligibility period” (which starts when the list is approved and ends on the first day of the 18th month after that month), unless the Senate approves before the period ends. The President can extend that period by 12 months before it ends. Under Air Force/Space Force rules, if an officer is discharged, dropped, or put on retired status after being recommended but before promotion, the officer’s name is removed. A removed officer can still be considered again. If the next selection board recommends and the officer is promoted, the Secretary of the Air Force may give the same rank date, pay date, and list position the officer would have had earlier. If an officer below colonel is not chosen next time, is removed again, or is again denied Senate approval, the officer is treated as having failed selection. Existing Executive orders about the President’s related functions under sections 629 or 14310 apply here too, unless changed by a new Executive order.