RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 30 August 2007 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20060017824 I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in the case of the above-named individual. Ms. Catherine C. Mitrano Director Mr. Michael J. Fowler Analyst The following members, a quorum, were present: Mr. Bernard P. Ingold Chairperson Mr. Thomas H. Ray Member Mr. Gerald J. Purcell Member The Board considered the following evidence: Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records. Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion, if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests, in effect, that his DD Form 2656 (Data for Payment of Retired Personnel), dated 7 December 2006, be corrected to show he elected not to participate in the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) in a timely manner. 2. The applicant states, in effect, that he is currently having spouse-only SBP deductions taken from his retired pay and that he should not have deductions taken. When he divorced, he had less than 10 years of military service and his former spouse waived all temporary and permanent spouse support. His former spouse has since remarried and he understands that he is no longer required to maintain SBP coverage. 3. The applicant provides his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) for the period ending 31 October 2006; an 6-page e-mail, dated 3 January 2007; a DD Form 2656, dated 7 December 2006; and a 9-page San Bernardino County Superior Court, California, Judgment for Dissolution of Marriage, dated 8 June 1995. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant had prior enlisted service. On 30 January 1992, he was appointed as a Reserve Commissioned Officer of the Army and entered active duty on that day. 2. The applicant married on an unknown date. On 29 June 1995, he divorced. The divorce decree stated in pertinent part that the applicant's former spouse waived any and all right or entitlement that she may have had to participate in and be elected as beneficiary under that applicant's SBP. 3. The applicant retired on 1 November 2006. 4. The applicant provided e-mail correspondence indicating his retirement services office failed to initiate a DD Form 2656 prior to his retirement. 5. The applicant's DD Form 2656, dated 7 December 2006, shows he is not married. Section IX (Survivor Benefit Plan Election) shows he elected not to participate in the SBP. 6. Public Law 92-425, the SBP, enacted 21 September 1972, provided that military members could elect to have their retired pay reduced to provide for an annuity after death to surviving dependents. An election must be made before the effective date of retirement, or coverage automatically defaults to spouse coverage (if applicable). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. Evidence of record shows that the applicant retired on 1 November 2006. It appears that the retirement services office did not submit or lost the applicant's DD Form 2656. He had to re-submit his application on 7 December 2006, well after his retirement date. By then, DFAS had automatically enrolled him in the SBP for spouse coverage. 2. It would be equitable to correct his DD Form 2656 to show he completed the form and elected not to participate in the SBP on 25 October 2006 and to correct his applicable records to show his DD Form 2656 was accepted and processed by the appropriate office in a timely manner. BOARD VOTE: ___BPI _ __THR __ __GJP __ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by correcting his DD Form 2656 to show that he completed the form on 25 October 2006 and elected not to participate in the SBP, that the DD Form 2656 was accepted and processed by the appropriate office in a timely manner, and that he be refunded the SBP premiums deducted based on the above correction. ___Bernard P. Ingold _ CHAIRPERSON INDEX CASE ID AR20060017824 SUFFIX RECON DATE BOARDED 30 AUGUST 2007 TYPE OF DISCHARGE DATE OF DISCHARGE DISCHARGE AUTHORITY DISCHARGE REASON BOARD DECISION GRANT REVIEW AUTHORITY MR. SHATZER ISSUES 1. 137.0300.0000 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.