RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2008-03963 INDEX CODE: 137.00 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: Her deceased husband’s records be corrected to show he elected coverage for her under the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP). _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: Her husband reassured her that she would receive his pension and, until the time of his death, she was not aware she would not receive his military benefits. In support of her request, applicant provided her husband’s death certificate and a letter from her husband’s attending physician. The applicant's complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. _________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: The former member and the applicant were married on 14 Feb 53. The member did not enroll in the Retired Serviceman’s Family Protection Plan (RSFPP) prior to his 1 Aug 71 retirement and there is no evidence he returned an election form during any of the five SBP open enrollment periods conducted prior to his 2 Nov 07 death. _________________________________________________________________ AIR FORCE EVALUATION: HQ AFPC/DPSIAR recommends denial, stating there is no evidence of an Air Force error or any basis in law to grant relief in this case. The member had five opportunities to elect survivor protection for the applicant, but failed to do so. SBP is similar to commercial life insurance in that an individual must elect to participate and pay the associated premiums in order to have coverage. It would be inequitable to those members, who chose to participate when eligible and subsequently received reduced retired pay, and to other widows whose sponsors chose not to participate, to provide entitlement to this widow on the basis of the evidence presented. The complete DPSIAR evaluation is at Exhibit B. _________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: On 23 Dec 08, a copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant for review and comment within 30 days. To date, a response has not been received. _________________________________________________________________ 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. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of error or injustice. We took notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of primary responsibility and adopt its rationale as the basis for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no compelling basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application. _________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The applicant be notified that the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; that the application was denied without a personal appearance; and that the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application. _________________________________________________________________ The following members of the Board considered Docket Number BC-2008-03963 in Executive Session on 5 February 2009, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence pertaining to Docket Number BC-2008-03963 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 28 Sep 08, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Letter, AFPC/DPSIAR, dated 3 Dec 08. Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 23 Dec 08.