RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2008-03740
INDEX CODE: 137.01, 137.04
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
His record be corrected to show he elected spouse coverage under the
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
He remarried on 6 Sep 96, and when he obtained a military
identification card for his wife he was not counseled on the SBP
program. The personnel advising him at the time he secured a military
identification for his wife should have informed him of benefits
available under the SBP.
In support of the request, the applicant provides a personal
statement, and a copy of his Certificate of Marriage.
The applicant's complete submission, with attachment, is at Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The applicant was not married and elected child only SBP coverage
based on full retired pay prior to his 1 Aug 88 retirement. He
remarried on 7 Sep 96, but did not notify the Defense Finance and
Accounting Service (DFAS) of the change to his marital status to
request SBP coverage be established on his wife’s behalf.
A member, who is unmarried at retirement, may elect coverage for the
first spouse acquired after retiring. However, the election must be
made before the first anniversary of the marriage. If a member fails
to make an election before then, SBP coverage for that person or
another person of that category may be elected only if Congress
authorizes an open enrollment period.
Under the SBP program, the law authorized enrollment periods 1 Mar 99
to 29 Feb 00 and 1 Oct 05 to 30 Sep 06, for retired member to elect
SBP coverage. These open enrollments required higher monthly premiums
or a lump-sum buy-in and both required the member to live for two full
years from the effective date of the election. Members were advised
by direct mail of their eligibility to make an election.
The enrollment packets, as well as the Afterburner, news for Air Force
Retired Personnel, published during those timeframes, were sent to the
correspondence address each member had provided to DFAS and contained
points of contact for them to use to gain additional information.
_________________________________________________________________
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
HQ AFPC/DPSIAR recommends denial. DPSIAR indicates the Afterburner
routinely contained articles to advise retirees of their SBP options
when marrying after retirement, and these newsletters were mailed to
the applicant.
Neither of the open enrollments contained provisions for waiving or
extending the one-year period authorized to participate.
SBP is similar to commercial life insurance in that an individual must
elect to participate during the opportunities provided by the law and
pay the associated premiums in order to have coverage. Providing the
applicant additional time to elect SBP coverage would be inequitable
to other retirees in similar situations, and is not justified by the
facts.
The complete DPSIAR evaluation is at Exhibit B.
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on
12 Dec 08, for review and comment within 30 days. As of this date, no
response has been received by this office (Exhibit C).
_________________________________________________________________
THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:
1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing
law or regulations.
2. The application was timely filed.
3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate
the existence of error or injustice. We took notice of the
applicant’s complete submission in judging the merits of the case,
however; we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force
office of primary responsibility and adopt its 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. In view of the above and in the absence
of persuasive 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-2008-
03740 in Executive Session on 23 Jun 09, under the provisions of AFI
36-2603:
Mr. Thomas s. Markiewicz, Chair
Ms. Debra M. Czajkowski, Member
Mr. Joseph D. Yount, Member
The following documentary evidence was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 7 Oct 08, w/atch.
Exhibit B. Letter, HQ AFPC/DPSIAR, dated 7 Nov 08.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 12 Dec 08.
THOMAS S. MARKIEWICZ
Chair
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