Powers of Attorney & Public Private Venture (PPV) Housing
Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, and a private commercial company have entered into an agreement that affects the manner in which base housing is run. Quarters will still be available to service members and their families. However, the landlord will be with the private company, not the United States government.

Leases and rent payment - In order to obtain privately run base housing, tenants will be required to sign a lease. In most cases, rent payment will be made by allotment or electronic funds transfer of the basic allowance for housing (BAH) from the service member to the private company. That’s where the power of attorney comes in.

The service member can sign a power of attorney that allows another person (typically a spouse) to sign the lease on his/her behalf, accept quarters, and take any actions that may be necessary to initiate the appropriate allotment for rental payment. But not any power of attorney will do.

General and Special Powers of Attorney - A General Power of Attorney (GPOA) is a broad grant of authority from its maker, often called the Principal, to the maker’s agent, often called the attorney-in-fact. Historically, this power of attorney has been very popular with service member, especially those about to deploy. The GPOA authorizes the agent to take a wide variety of actions on behalf of the Principal, at least in theory. While there is a North Carolina statute that prohibits the unreasonable failure to honor a power of attorney [NC Gen Stat 32A-41], it may e difficult to enforce in practice. Many businesses and government agencies routinely accept a GPOA for transaction of business on the Principal’s behalf. Some don’t. Some bureaucratically require you to use their form. Some require a special POA. Sometimes you can get you POA honored by going to someone higher up in the agency’s hierarchy.

You can obtain a GPOA from the Camp Lejeune legal assistance office that includes all the language necessary to authorize another person to accept base quarters on your behalf and to handle any required allotment process. This language appears in bold face type in the GPOA that you will obtain from the legal assistance office, located in bldg 66 on Holcomb Blvd, just across from the parade deck.

A special power of attorney (SPOA) grants only the authority specifically listed. It is therefore less likely to be abused by the agent, but is less flexible and covers a narrower range of contingencies. SPOAs specifically designed for the purpose of accepting base housing and taking necessary action to pay the rent are available at the legal assistance office.

Filling out the POA/ Duration - The power of attorney is easy to fill out. In the blanks provided near the top of the instrument, the Principal and agent must be identified. Towards the end of the document will be blanks to fill out indicating the date the document was signed and the date it is to expire. The expiration date should be far enough in the future to cover the period of time when the Principal is expected to be unavailable. Regardless of the indicated expiration date, all POAs have no effect upon the death of their maker.

Execution of the POA - The POA must be executed; that is, signed, by the Principal, front of a notary. The Principal must be personally known to the notary or must prove his/her identity through some documentation, such as a military identification card.

Notarization - After the Principal proves his/her identity and signs the POA, the notary signs the POA as well. Services of Public Notaries are available for members, retirees, and their dependents at the Camp Lejeune Consolidated Legal Assistance Office free of charge, Monday through Friday 0800-1130; 1300-1600. In accordance with North Carolina General Statute 47-2, any Commissioned Officer may also notarize such documents.

Special Power of Attorney Forms - Two SPOA options are provided herein that can be used to authorize someone else to initiate base housing for you :

--SPOA for base housing; Notarization by notary public
--SPOA for base housing; Notarization before commissioned officer

Pre-deployment Legal Briefs - Pre-deployment legal briefs are provided at the legal assistance office every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10:00 as well as Tuesday afternoons at the Base Theater at 1:00 p.m. Attendees will receive information concerning many common legal issues related to deployment. Those who wish to do so will be able to obtain and execute POAs at the conclusion of these briefs. You may call to confirm these dates/ times, as they sometimes change due to other commitments. Units can schedule such briefs with the legal assistance office for a mutually convenient time and place, and deploying units are particularly encouraged to do so.


Rev 11 April 2011