37 U.S.C. § 319 — Special pay: surface warfare officer continuation pay

This section pays continuation bonuses to Navy surface warfare officers who agree to serve as department heads. (a) Who qualifies. An "eligible surface warfare officer" is an officer of the Regular Navy or Navy Reserve on active duty who (1) is qualified and serving as a surface warfare officer, (2) has been selected to be a department head on a surface vessel, and (3) has already finished any service commitment from their original commissioning program, or is within one year of finishing it. (b) The bonus. An eligible officer who signs a written agreement to stay on active duty and complete one or more tours as a department head on a surface vessel can be paid up to $50,000, once the Secretary of the Navy accepts the agreement. (c) Prorating. Both the length of the agreement and the amount paid under it can be prorated — adjusted proportionally for a shorter commitment. (d) How it's paid. Once the Secretary of the Navy accepts the agreement, the total amount owed is locked in. The Secretary must prepare a plan setting out each installment amount and when it will be paid. (e) On top of normal pay. This bonus is in addition to whatever other pay and allowances the officer already gets. (f) Repayment. If an officer signs the agreement, receives all or part of the bonus, but doesn't complete the promised active-duty period as a department head, the officer must repay it under the rules in section 303a(e) of this title. (g) Regulations. The Secretary of the Navy must write regulations to carry out this section.