Disbursing Clerk (DK) — Discontinued

RATING EVOLUTION

1. // Decommissioned · 2005
   DK
   Disbursing Clerk
   1948–2005
2. // Active Today · Successor
   PS
   Personnel Specialist
   View active rating →
3. // Active Today · Successor
   LS
   Logistics Specialist
   View active rating →

WHY THE RATING WAS DISCONTINUED

Merged with Personnelman (PN) into the new Personnel Specialist (PS) rating in 2005; some pay-and-supply work also flowed to the Logistics Specialist (LS) rating.

OVERVIEW

Disbursing Clerk (DK) was the U.S. Navy's enlisted pay-administration rating. DKs operated the Disbursing Office aboard every ship and at every Personnel Support Detachment, paying Sailors and officers their basic pay, allowances, travel claims, and special pays. The DK was the custodian of public funds — bonded by the Disbursing Officer to handle cash, checks, and electronic pay transactions for the entire crew.

The rating was disestablished on 1 October 2005 when the Navy converged its administrative-records (PN) and pay (DK) pipelines into a single Personnel Specialist (PS) rating. A portion of the DK skill set — particularly the supply-and-funds management work — also flowed into the Logistics Specialist (LS) rating during the SK/PC/AK consolidation in 2009.

WHAT THEY DID

Disbursing Clerks operated the ship's or PSD's Disbursing Office: paying Sailors and officers, processing travel claims and allowance changes, maintaining bonded cash and check stocks, supporting payroll audits, processing Servicemen's Group Life Insurance allotments, and serving as the Disbursing Officer's enlisted assistant. Senior DKs supervised the disbursing watch and trained junior pay clerks.

NOTABLE FOR

• Operated the Navy's afloat and ashore disbursing offices for over fifty years
• Custodian of public funds aboard every ship and at every PSD
• Source rating for the modern PS and LS pay-administration pipelines

HISTORY

Disbursing Clerk was established in 1948 alongside the broader specialist-to-rating conversion. Throughout the Cold War, DKs ran the Navy's afloat disbursing offices and the Personnel Support Detachments ashore — the only enlisted rating bonded to handle public funds in cash form. DKs deployed with every operational unit, drew payroll cash from the Federal Reserve, and disbursed bi-monthly pay to crews via cash, check, or — beginning in the 1980s — direct deposit through the Defense Joint Military Pay System (DJMS).

By the early 2000s the rollout of MyPay self-service and consolidated DJMS-AC pay processing reduced the need for a separate disbursing pipeline. The Navy disestablished DK on 1 October 2005, converting active-duty DKs to PS and routing some supply-funds work into LS during the 2009 LS consolidation.

TYPICAL PLATFORMS & UNITS

• Ship's Disbursing Office aboard every Navy combatant
• Personnel Support Detachments (PSDs) ashore
• Joint disbursing offices in overseas regions

HISTORICAL CAREER PATH

1. E-1/E-3
   Apprentice DK
   Recruit Training followed by DK A-school at Naval Technical Training Center, Meridian, MS; first tour with a fleet unit.
2. E-4/E-6
   Petty Officer DK
   Lead a DK work-center, qualify in core watchstations, and serve as the rating's section leader.
3. E-7+
   Chief Disbursing Clerk
   Senior DK leader — Leading Chief Petty Officer of a DK division, instructor at the rating's A-school, or detailer at BUPERS until rating disestablishment in 2005.

SUCCESSOR RATINGS (ACTIVE TODAY)

• PS · Admin & Logistics
  Personnel Specialist
• LS · Admin & Logistics
  Logistics Specialist

FOR VETERANS & FAMILIES

If a DD-214, retirement order, or family-history document lists the rating DK (Disbursing Clerk), that is a legitimate U.S. Navy enlisted rating that was disestablished in 2005. Sailors who held this rating served in the admin & logistics community during 1948–2005.

The mission of DK is performed today by Personnel Specialist (PS) and Logistics Specialist (LS). For VA benefits, MOS/rating-translator services, or transcript-of-service requests, reference both the historical DK rating code and the modern successor.

Official records: National Personnel Records Center (St. Louis, MO) holds U.S. Navy enlisted service records for veterans separated more than 62 years ago; later records are held by Navy Personnel Command in Millington, TN.

RELATED HISTORICAL RATINGS

Other decommissioned ratings whose mission was absorbed by the same active rating(s) as DK:

• PN · Decom 2005
  Personnelman
• SK · Decom 2009
  Storekeeper
• AK · Decom 2009
  Aviation Storekeeper
• PC · Decom 2009
  Postal Clerk

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• When was the Disbursing Clerk (DK) rating disestablished?
  The DK rating was disestablished in 2005. Merged with Personnelman (PN) into the new Personnel Specialist (PS) rating in 2005; some pay-and-supply work also flowed to the Logistics Specialist (LS) rating.
• What rating did Disbursing Clerk (DK) become?
  The successor ratings are personnel specialist, logistics specialist. Active-duty DKs converted to the new rating(s) at disestablishment.
• What did a Navy Disbursing Clerk (DK) do?
  Disbursing Clerks operated the ship's or PSD's Disbursing Office: paying Sailors and officers, processing travel claims and allowance changes, maintaining bonded cash and check stocks, supporting payroll audits, processing Servicemen's Group Life Insurance allotments, and serving as the Disbursing Officer's enlisted assistant. Senior DKs supervised the disbursing watch and trained junior pay clerks.
• Can I still claim the DK rating on my record?
  Yes — your DD-214 and Navy service record reflect the rating you held. The DK rating was a valid U.S. Navy enlisted rating from 1948 until 2005, and veterans who served in DK continue to use the rating designation in records, reunions, and veteran-affairs paperwork.

SOURCES

• Naval History and Heritage Command — U.S. Navy Ratings History
• NAVADMIN / OPNAV historical-rating disestablishment notices
• U.S. Navy Enlisted Career Path Reference — Disbursing Clerk