AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-01917
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
IN THE MATTER OF:
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
His record be corrected to reflect he elected former spouse and
child coverage under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
1. In Jan 01, he went to the personnel and finance offices at
Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado to inquire about what he
needed to do to ensure his former spouse received her court
ordered portion of his retired pay. He was informed she would
receive her portion of his retirement pay once she completed the
required forms.
2. He provided a copy of his divorce decree and pointed-out that
he needed to maintain SBP coverage for his former spouse;
however, he was never informed he needed to submit a valid
election to voluntarily change spouse to former spouse coverage
within one year of the divorce. He has made over 185 of the
360 monthly SBP premiums since he retired in Aug 96.
On 17 Apr 12, during a call to the DFAS Call Center, he
discovered that his former spouse was not covered under former
spouse SBP, even though he had made all the required monthly SBP
premiums for spouse and child coverage.
In support of his request, the applicant provides a personal
statement, a copy of his divorce decree and DFAS-CL 7220/148,
Retiree Account Statement.
The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
On 18 Feb 82, the applicant and his former spouse were married,
and he elected spouse and child SBP coverage based on full
retired pay prior to his August 96 retirement. On 9 Jan 01, the
parties
agreement,
contained the
incorporated
applicant’s agreement to maintain former spouse SBP coverage.
divorced.
into
The
their
martial
divorce
settlement
decree,
The applicant’s youngest child remains an eligible contingent
beneficiary.
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 recommends approval. DPSIAR states there is no
evidence of error in this case and absent a competing spouse,
they recommend approval. Approval should be contingent upon
recovery of appropriate retroactive costs.
The complete DPSIAR evaluation is at Exhibit B.
_________________________________________________________________
APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the
applicant on 7 Aug 12 for review and comment. 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 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 an error or injustice. After a
thorough review of the facts and circumstances of this case, we
agree with recommendation of the Air Force office of primary
responsibility that the applicant’s records should be corrected
to reflect that he elected former spouse and child coverage
under the SBP. Therefore, in the interest of justice, we
recommend his records be corrected as indicated below.
________________________________________________________________
2
THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:
The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air
Force relating APPLICANT be corrected to show that on 10 January
2001, he submitted an election for former spouse and child
coverage based on full retired pay naming as the eligible former
spouse beneficiary.
________________________________________________________________
The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket
Number BC-2012-01917 in Executive Session on 19 December 2012,
under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:
Panel Chair
Member
Member
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 27 Apr 12, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIAR, dated 19 Jun 12.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 7 Aug 12.
All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The
following documentary evidence was considered:
Panel Chair
3
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