AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-01351
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: YES
IN THE MATTER OF:
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
Her ex-spouse’s record be corrected to show he elected “former
spouse” coverage under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
Her ex-husband kept her as the SBP beneficiary after their
divorce, as reflected by his hand-written note on his 2 January
2002 Retiree Account Statement (RAS) upon which her date of
birth, monthly SBP premium and annuity amount are shown,
confirming the decedent intended for her to be his SBP
beneficiary.
In support of her appeal, the applicant provides copies of her
late husband’s Certificate of Death, their Divorce Decree, an SBP
Election change, and their Certificate of Marriage.
The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The decedent is a former member of the Regular Air Force who
retired effective 1 August 1962 in the grade of major (O-4).
The remaining relevant facts are contained in the letter prepared
by the Air Force office of primary responsibility (OPR) at
Exhibit B.
_________________________________________________________________
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
ARPC/DPSIAR recommends approval. DPSIAR states that it appears
the decedent was previously married, and then retired effective
1 August 1962. He declined SBP coverage during the Plan’s
1
initial open enrollment. The Defense Enrollment Eligibility
Reporting System (DEERS) reflects the applicant and the member
married on 8 April 1982, and the member elected spouse and child
coverage based on full retired pay during the one-year open
enrollment (1 October 1981 to 30 September 1982) authorized by
Public Law 97-35 (13 August 1981). The parties divorced on
10 October 2005, and the qualified domestic relations order,
incorporated by the divorce decree, awarded SBP to the applicant.
There is no evidence either party submitted an election to change
spouse coverage to former spouse coverage within the first year
following their divorce. The information maintained in the
retired pay system reflected the applicant’s date of birth
(15 June 1936) as the eligible spouse beneficiary. Monthly
premiums continued to be deducted from the member’s retired pay
until his death on 1 November 2011. There is no indication
either party remarried.
DPSIDAR states that there is no evidence of Air Force error in
this case; however, in the absence of a competing claimant and to
prevent a possible injustice, they recommend the decedent’s
record be corrected to reflect he elected former spouse coverage
based on full retired pay, naming APPLICANT as the former spouse
beneficiary, effective 11 January 2005. Approval should be
contingent upon recovery of appropriate retroactive costs.
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 19 June 2012, for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit
C). As of this date, this office has received no response.
_________________________________________________________________
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. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to
demonstrate the existence of error or injustice. After
thoroughly reviewing the evidence in this case, we are persuaded
it was the applicant’s intent to provide his ex-spouse with an
SBP annuity. In this respect, we note the decedent elected
spouse and child coverage based on full retired pay during the
SBP open season enrollment authorized by Public Law 97-35.
2
Although the decedent and applicant divorced on 10 October 2005,
the qualified domestic order, incorporated by the divorce decree,
awarded SBP to the applicant. We believe that since SBP premiums
continued to be deducted from the member’s retired pay until his
death on 1 November 2011 it would be an injustice for the
applicant to be denied the SBP benefits. Therefore, we recommend
the member’s records be corrected to the extent indicated below.
_________________________________________________________________
THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:
The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force
relating to the DECEASED FORMER MEMBER be corrected to show that
on 11 January 2006, he elected former spouse coverage based on
full retired pay under the Survivor Benefit Program, naming
APPLICANT as the former spouse beneficiary.
_________________________________________________________________
The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket
Number BC-2012-01351 in Executive Session on 27 November 2012,
under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:
Panel Chair
Member
Member
All members voted to correct the record as recommended. The
following documentary evidence for AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2012-
01351 was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 4 Aug 10, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIAR, dated 22 May 12.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 19 Jun 12.
Panel Chair
3
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