RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS
IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-00389
COUNSEL: NONE
(DECEASED SERVICE MEMBER)
HEARING DESIRED: NO
(APPLICANT)
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:
Her deceased former spouses records be corrected to reflect he
made a timely election for former spouse coverage under the
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP), naming her as the former spouse
beneficiary.
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:
The former service member was not aware of the one year
requirement to list the applicant as the former spouse
beneficiary, and she should not be penalized for this oversight.
The applicants complete submission, with attachments, is at
Exhibit A.
STATEMENT OF FACTS:
On 31 Jan 73, the deceased former service member was released from
active duty and retired, effective 1 Feb 73, and was credited with
21 years, 2 months, and 20 days of total active service.
On 6 Jan 14, according to documentation provided by the applicant,
the deceased former member passed away.
On 5 May 14, the applicant was sent a request for documentation
regarding her marital status (Exhibit D). In response, the
applicant provided a notarized marital status affidavit (Exhibit
F) indicating that her former spouse had not remarried.
The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are
described in the memorandum prepared by the Air Force office of
primary responsibility (OPR), which is included at Exhibit C.
AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
AFPC/DPFFF indicates the applicant and her former spouse married
on 28 Jan 57 and he elected spouse only SBP coverage based on full
retired pay prior to his 1 Feb 73 retirement. The parties
divorced on 3 Mar 95 and, according to the Marital Settlement
Agreement (MSA), incorporated in the divorce decree, the applicant
was awarded survivor benefits from the former service members Air
Force retirement benefits. There is no evidence the applicant or
the former service member submitted an election to change spouse
coverage to former spouse coverage within the first year following
their divorce. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service-
Cleveland (DFAS-CL) suspended the SBP premiums effective the date
of their divorce. The applicant remarried on 6 Mar 95; however,
since she was over age 55 at that time, her marriage does not
impact her eligibility as an SBP beneficiary. There is no
evidence the former service member remarried and, accordingly,
there is no competing claimant. Furthermore, there is no evidence
of an Air Force error in the applicants case and absent a
competing claimant, DPFFF recommends granting the requested
relief. Approval should be contingent upon recovery of any
applicable premiums.
A complete copy of the AFPC/DPFFF evaluation is at Exhibit C.
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:
A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant
on 28 Jul 14 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit E).
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 timely filed.
3. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate
the existence of an injustice. We took notice of the applicant's
complete submission in judging the merits of the case and agree
with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of
primary responsibility (OPR) and adopt its rationale as the basis
for our conclusion the applicant has been the victim of an error
or injustice. Therefore, while there is no evidence of an error
on the part of the Air Force, and there is no evidence of a
competing beneficiary, we believe it would be in the interest of
justice to recommend the applicant's records be corrected as
indicated below. Since SBP premiums were suspended effective the
date of the applicants divorce, our recommended correction should
be contingent upon the payment of any premiums that would have
been paid after the former spouse election.
THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:
The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force
relating to the DECEASED FORMER SERVICE MEMBER be corrected to
show that on 4 Mar 95, he elected former spouse coverage under the
Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP), naming the APPLICANT as the former
spouse beneficiary based on full retired pay. Approval should be
contingent upon recovery of any applicable premiums.
The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number
BC-2014-00389 in Executive Session on 17 Feb 15 under the
provisions of AFI 36-2603:
, Vice Chair
, Member
, Member
All members voted to correct the records as recommended. The
following documentary evidence was considered:
Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 21 Jan 14, w/atchs.
Exhibit B. Applicants Master Personnel Records.
Exhibit C. Memorandum, AFPC/DPFFF, dated 3 Apr 14.
Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 5 May 14.
Exhibit E. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 28 Jul 14.
Exhibit F. Marital Status Affidavit, Applicant,
dated, 31 Jul 14.
1
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