IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 23 January 2014 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20130006372 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests: a. item 14 (Marital Status) of her DD Form 2656 (Data for Payment of Retired Personnel) be corrected to show an "X" in the "Married but Withhold at Higher Single Rate" box; and b. her DD Form 2656 be corrected to show her spouse concurred with her election not to participate in the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP). 2. The applicant states she: * mistakenly checked the "Single" block on her DD Form 2656 because she wanted the single tax rate * failed to notice the "Married But Withhold at Higher Single Rate" box * her husband does not wish to participate in the SBP 3. The applicant provides: * DD Form 2656 * Letter, dated 15 March 2013, from the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) * Notarized statement from her spouse, dated 27 December 2013 CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Having prior active service in the Regular Army, the applicant enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve in the rank of staff sergeant on 27 August 1985. 2. She provides a DD Form 2656, dated 23 March 2012, which shows: * an "X" in the "Single" box in item 14 * she was married * she elected not to participate in the SBP * in Section XII (SBP Spouse Concurrence) the entry "N/A" (not applicable) 3. On 7 January 2013, she was placed on the retired list in the rank of staff sergeant. 4. She provides a letter, dated 15 March 2013, from DFAS which states her DD Form 2656 contains the following discrepancies: a. Section V (Designation of Beneficiaries for Unpaid Retired Pay) – she named her spouse, David. b. Section VI (Federal Income Tax Withholding Information) – item 14 shows her marital status is single. c. Section IX (SBP Election) – she elected not to participate and indicated she did not have eligible dependents. d. Section XII – she entered the entry "N/A." 5. The DFAS letter informed the applicant that her spouse (David) is an eligible beneficiary for SBP purposes. An election of "no eligible beneficiaries" means that she is unmarried and has no children under the age of 18, or 22 and attending school. In order to elect not to participate, her spouse would have to consent to this election in Section XII. She was also informed if she wished to have her Federal Income Tax Withholding Information deducted at the higher rate, the correct box would have been "Married but withhold at a higher single rate." She was provided two options: (1) apply for a change to this board; or (2) terminate coverage. 6. She provides a notarized statement, dated 27 December 2013, from her spouse which states: * my spouse elected not to participate in the SBP * he concurs with the SBP election made by his spouse 7. Public Law 92-425, the SBP, enacted 21 September 1972, provided that military members could elect to have their retired pay reduced to provide for an annuity after death to surviving dependents. 8. Public Law 105-85, enacted 18 November 1997, established the option to terminate SBP participation. Retirees have a 1-year period beginning on the second anniversary of the date on which their retired pay started to withdraw from SBP. The spouse's concurrence is required. No premiums will be refunded to those who opt to disenroll. The effective date of termination is the first day of the first calendar month following the month in which the election is received by the Secretary concerned. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The applicant contends she mistakenly checked the "Single" box in item 14 of her DD Form 2656 because she failed to notice the "Married but Withhold at Higher Single Rate" box. Per her request, it would be appropriate to correct item 14 of her DD Form 2656 to show her marital status as "Married but Withhold at Higher Single Rate." 2. Since her spouse concurred with her election not to participate in the SBP, it would be equitable to correct her record to show her spouse concurred with the SBP election shown on her DD Form 2656, dated 23 March 2012. BOARD VOTE: ____x___ ___x___ ___x_____ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by: a. deleting the "X" in the "Single" box item 14 of her DD Form 2656 and placing an "X" in the "Married but Withhold at Higher Single Rate" box; and b. showing her spouse gave his notarized concurrence with her election not to participate in the SBP on her DD Form 2656, dated 23 March 2012. _______ _ _x______ ___ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130006372 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20130006372 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1