RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:		DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2013-03261
	XXXXXXXXXX	 	(DECEASED)	COUNSEL: NONE
	XXXXXXXXXX	 	(APPLICANT)	HEARING DESIRED: NO


APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

Her husband’s (decedent) records be corrected to show he made a 
timely election for spouse coverage under the Reserve Component 
Survivor Benefit Plan (RCSBP).

________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

She was not properly informed of the decedent’s non-election.  He 
was recovering from a left hemisphere aneurysm and lacked the 
capacity to comprehend the importance and time constraints of his 
retirement documents.

The applicant provides no rationale as to why her failure to 
timely file should be waived in the interest of justice.

In support of her request, the applicant provides copies of the 
decedent’s medical records, marriage certificate, death 
certificate and various other items related to her request.

Her complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A.


STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant was transferred to the Retired Reserve List 
effective 15 September 1996.  He was eligible for Reserve retired 
pay at age 60 under the provisions of Title 10, United States 
Code, § 1331.

The applicant would have turned 60 on 4 October 2014.

On 15 February 2013, at age 58, the applicant died from acute 
myocardial infraction.


AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

ARPC/DPTT recommends denial.  On 4 December 1996, the decedent 
signed for the RCSBP election package that was mailed to his 
residence.  He had 90 calendar days from the date of notification 
to make a RCSBP election by returning an ARPC Form 123, RCSBP 
Election Certificate.  He did not respond during the 90-day period 
and as prescribed by Title 10 USC Subsection 1448, he was 
automatically covered under Option A, "Defer to make election 
until age 60."  At the time of this election the decedent was 
married with dependent children.  The decedent was afforded two 
opportunities to upgrade his election after his automatic election 
was updated.  Congress declared two RCSBP Open Enrollment Seasons 
from 1 March 1999 through 29 February 2000 and 1 October 
2005 through 30 September 2006.  Members who had previously 
elected less than full coverage, or no coverage for their 
spouse/children, were afforded the opportunity to change their 
election to cover their families.  The applicant did not elect to 
participate during the aforementioned time frames.

The complete DPTT evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit C.


APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

On 21 March 2014, 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 (Exhibit D).


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 to warrant adding 
his spouse to his RCSBP.  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 the applicant has not been the victim of an error 
or injustice.  In view of the above and in the absence of evidence 
to the contrary, we find no 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 this application in 
Executive Session on 9 October 2014, under the provisions of AFI 
36-2603:

      , Vice Chair
      , Member
      , Member

The following documentary evidence was considered in AFBCMR BC-
2013-03261:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 19 June 2013, w/atch.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant’s Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, ARPC/DPTT, dated 8 March 2014, w/atchs.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 21 March 2014.




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