RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2013-05477
COUNSEL: NONE
HEARING DESIRED: NO
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
His record be changed to show he elected spouse coverage under
the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
When he retired he declined SBP coverage for his spouse;
however, he was still charged for coverage. Therefore, he filed
to keep the plan and it was cancelled.
The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
The applicant was originally provided automatic SBP coverage
when his retired pay account was established. On 6 September
2013, DFAS received the applicants DD Form 2656, Survivor
Benefit Plan Election Change Certificate, requesting to decline
SBP coverage. At that time, his SBP election was changed from
automatic coverage for spouse only to declination and he was
provided a refund of SBP costs deducted for the period 1 August
2013 through 31 October 2013 in the gross amount of
$469.77 ($156.59 per month).
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
DFAS recommends approval. DFAS states according to law, they
cannot change the applicants SBP election from declined
coverage to spouse coverage since his declination is a valid
election. The applicant states that he cancelled the plan that
he was paying for his spouse when he thought he had SBP
coverage. Since it is within one year of the applicants
retirement, DFAS recommends that an administrative change be
granted and that the Board approve the applicants request to
change his SBP declination to spouse coverage. They will be
required to recoup the costs for the SBP coverage from the date
of his retirement to current if his claim should be approved.
The complete DFAS evaluation is at Exhibit B.
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
On 12 September 2014, a copy of the DFAS evaluation was
forwarded to the applicant for review and response 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. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to
demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. After a
thorough review of the evidence in this case, we are persuaded
that the applicants records should reflect he elected spouse
coverage under the SBP. Since his requested change is within
one year of the applicants retirement, we believe a change in
record is warranted. Therefore, we agree with the opinion and
recommendation of the Defense and Finance Accounting Service,
Policy and Legislation Branch that the applicants record should
be corrected to reflect spouse coverage under SBP. Therefore,
we recommend his records be corrected as indicated below.
THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:
The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air
Force relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that on
31 July 2013, he elected spouse coverage under the Survivor
Benefit Plan (SBP), based on full retired pay, naming SPOUSE as
spouse beneficiary.
The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket
Number BC-2013-05477 in Executive Session on 30 October 2014,
under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:
All members voted to correct the records, as recommended. The
following documentary was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 14 November 2013, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Letter, DFAS, dated 2 April 2014.
Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 12 September 2014.
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