RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2004-03149
INDEX NUMBER: 137.01
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
___________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
Her deceased husband’s records be corrected to show he elected
coverage for her under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
___________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
She and her husband were provided erroneous information on the SBP
at her husband’s pre-retirement briefing. They were told the cost
for SBP would be 50 percent of her husband’s retired pay.
In support of her request, applicant provided a copy of her
husband’s certificate of death.
Applicant’s complete submission, with attachment, is at Exhibit A.
___________________________________________________________________
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The Air Force states the former member and the applicant were
married and that Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS)
records indicate the member declined SBP coverage prior to his
1 Oct 84 retirement. DFAS could not locate the member’s election
form; however, an entry in the finance center’s transaction history
made at the time of the member’s retirement states the petitioner
was notified of the decedent’s SBP election. The member died on
13 Sep 04.
___________________________________________________________________
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
HQ AFPC/DPPTR recommends denial. There was only one formula to
determine the cost of spouse coverage until 1 Mar 90 (2.5 percent
of the first $300 and 10 percent of the remaining base amount above
$300); therefore, it is unreasonable that an SBP counselor would
have advised the applicant or her late husband that the cost would
be 50 percent of his retired pay. The SBP literature produced by
the Department of Defense and widely available during the time of
the decedent’s retirement provided factual, correct information
about the Plan and its associated costs. There is a strong
presumption that the administrators of the SBP and trained Air
Force counselors discharged their duties correctly, lawfully, and
in good faith. SBP is similar to commercial life insurance in that
an individual must elect to participate and pay the associated
premiums in order to provide coverage. It would be inequitable to
those members, who chose to participate when eligible and
subsequently received reduced retired pay, and to other widows,
whose sponsors chose not to participate, to provide entitlement to
this widow on the basis of the evidence presented.
There is no evidence of error or injustice in this case.
The DPPTR evaluation is at Exhibit B.
___________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
The applicant states they were not told specifically that the cost
of the SBP coverage was 50 percent. The person explaining things
quoted a figure of 400 plus dollars a month for the coverage, which
sounded way too high. That is why they declined the coverage.
Thinking back on it now, she thinks the person figuring the amount
may have put a decimal point in the wrong place or made some other
mathematical error.
Applicant’s complete submission, is at Exhibit D.
___________________________________________________________________
THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:
1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing
law or regulations.
2. The application was not timely filed; however, it is in the
interest of justice to excuse the failure to timely file.
3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to
demonstrate the existence of error or injustice. Applicant
contends that she and her husband were provided erroneous
information at her husband’s pre-retirement briefing concerning the
costs of Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) coverage. However, we do not
find her argument, in and of itself, sufficiently persuasive to
override the rationale expressed by the Air Force. We therefore
agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office
of primary responsibility and adopt their rationale as the basis
for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the victim of an
error or injustice. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the
contrary, we find no compelling basis to recommend granting the
relief sought in this application.
___________________________________________________________________
THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:
The applicant be notified that the evidence presented did not
demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; that the
application was denied without a personal appearance; and that the
application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly
discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application.
___________________________________________________________________
The following members of the Board considered Docket Number BC-2004-
03149 in Executive Session on 2 December 2004, under the provisions
of AFI 36-2603:
Mr. Roscoe Hinton Jr., Panel Chair
Mr. Michael J. Novel, Member
Mr. Michael K. Gallogly, Member
The following documentary evidence was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 4 Oct 04, w/atch.
Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPPTR, dated 21 Oct 04.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 29 Oct 04.
Exhibit D. Letter, Applicant, dated 7 Nov 04.
ROSCOE HINTON JR.
Panel Chair
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