AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-00130
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
IN THE MATTER OF:
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
Her former spouse’s records be corrected to reflect he made a
timely election for former spouse coverage under the Survivor
Benefit Plan (SBP).
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
She nor her former spouse’s attorneys were aware of or informed
them of the requirement to submit an election for former spouse
coverage within one year following their divorce.
In support of her request, the applicant provides a copy of her
divorce decree.
The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The service member and applicant were married. On 5 Jan 09, the
service member with the assistance of a personnelist at the Air
National Guard (ANG) unit completed an election for SBP spouse
coverage. The parties divorced on 26 Jan 09. The service member
failed to change the SBP spouse coverage to former spouse
coverage prior to his 1 Feb 09 retirement. There is no evidence
the Defense Finance and Accounting Service – Cleveland (DFAS-CL)
was notified of the change in service member’s marital status and
honored his election to establish spouse coverage. There is no
evidence the applicant submitted an election for former spouse
coverage within a year following the divorce.
On 19 Sep 12, the Board staff requested the applicant provide
documentary evidence of her current marital status. The
applicant provided a notarized statement indicating she has not
remarried and is unaware of her former spouse’s current marital
status.
On 1 Oct 12, the Board staff requested the former service member
provide documentary evidence of his current marital status. As
of this date, no response has been received by this office.
The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are
contained in the letter prepared by the appropriate office of the
Air Force, which is attached at Exhibit B.
_________________________________________________________________
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
AFPC/DPSIAR notes there is no evidence of an Air Force error and
absent evidence of a competing spouse recommends the election for
spouse coverage be voided and former spouse coverage be
established on the applicant’s behalf.
The complete AFPC/DPSIAR evaluation is at Exhibit B.
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to applicant on
29 Feb 12 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit C). As
of this date, no response has been received by this office.
_________________________________________________________________
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 an error or injustice. We note, the
Air Force office of primary responsibility recommended that
relief be granted absent evidence of a competing spouse.
Although, the applicant has provided evidence in the form of a
notarized statement indicating she has not remarried, we have not
received evidence of whether the former service member has
remarried. As such, at this time, we must deny the requested
relief as the potential exists for there to be a competing
spouse. This Board has long been advised by legal counsel that
it should not, except in the most extraordinary of circumstances,
award a benefit to an applicant when it involves taking or
depriving another of the benefit. Should the applicant be able
to provide conclusive evidence there is no competing spouse, we
would be willing to review her request again. However, based on
2
the above, we find no basis to recommend granting the relief
sought in this application.
_________________________________________________________________
THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:
The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not
demonstrate the existence of a material error or injustice; the
application was denied without a personal appearance; and 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 AFBCMR Docket
Number BC-2012-00130 in Executive Session on 25 Oct 12, under the
provisions of AFI 36-2603:
The following documentary evidence was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 9 Jan 12, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIAR, dated 9 Feb 12.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 29 Feb 12.
Exhibit D. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 19 Sep 12, w/atch.
Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 27 Sep 12.
Exhibit F. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 1 Oct 12.
Panel Chair
Member
Member
Panel Chair
3
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AF | BCMR | CY2012 | BC-2012-01800
On 12 Oct 90, the parties divorced and the applicant was ordered to elect SBP on behalf of his former spouse. Neither party submitted an election for former spouse coverage within the first year of the divorce; however, the member did not request his former spouse be removed as the SBP beneficiary. The complete DPSIAR evaluation is at Exhibit B.
AF | BCMR | CY2010 | BC-2010-02160
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AF | BCMR | CY2011 | BC-2011-01647
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