PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:           12 April 2000                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AR1999033026

	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.  

	Mrs. Nancy Amos		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. Robert G. Hinkle		Chairperson	
	Ms. Barbara J. Ellis		Member	
	Mr. James P. Stueve		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
                records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests, in effect, that the records of her deceased spouse, a former service member (FSM), be corrected to show he elected to participate in the Reserve Component Survivor Benefit Plan (RCSBP), spouse coverage and in the Serviceman’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program.  

3.  The applicant states that she married the FSM in September 1988.  The same week of their marriage she accompanied him to his assignment at Fort Gordon, GA where they filled out paperwork making her his sole beneficiary.  For most of the remainder of their marriage he was in and out of the VA Medical Center.  She did not even know that she was supposed to notify the military of his death, much less did she know what benefits she may have been entitled to.  She received his 20-year letter 5 years after he died and she did not know what to do with the paperwork enclosed with it.  

4.  The FSM’s military records are not available.  The information contained herein was obtained from documents provided by the applicant.

5.  The FSM was born on 1 April 1946.  He initially entered active duty as a second lieutenant on 3 July 1968 and was released from active duty on             21 August 1979.  He immediately entered the Selected Reserve and completed 20 qualifying years for retirement on 24 May 1988.  It is unknown how long the FSM continued in the Selected Reserve after this date.  The FSM and the applicant married on 15 September 1988. 

6.  The FSM died on 18 April 1993.

7.  On 6 August 1998, the U. S. Army Reserve Personnel Command forwarded the FSM’s notification of eligibility for retired pay at age 60 (his 20-year letter) to the FSM.

8.  Public Law 95-397, the RCSBP, enacted 30 September 1978, provided a way for those who had qualified for reserve retirement but were not yet age 60 to provide an annuity for their survivors should they die before reaching age 60.  Three options are available:  (A)  elect to decline enrollment and choose at age 60 whether to start SBP participation; (B)  elect that a beneficiary receive an annuity if they die before age 60 but delay payment of it until the date of the member’s 60th birthday; (C)  elect that a beneficiary receive an annuity immediately upon their death if before age 60.  A member must make the election within 90 days of receiving the notification of eligibility to receive retired pay at age 60 or else wait until he/she applies for retired pay and elect to participate in the standard SBP.  If death does occur before age 60, the RCSBP costs for options B and C are deducted from the annuity.

CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The Board concludes that a gross Government error occurred in this case.  

2.  Although the Board cannot determine from the documents available when, or if, the FSM was removed from the Selected Reserve, his statement of retirement points shows that he completed 20 qualifying years for retirement in May 1988.  The FSM should have received his 20-year letter not long thereafter and at that time he would have had the opportunity to elect to participate in the RCSBP.  However, the 20-year letter was not prepared until 1998, 10 years later and        5 years after he died.

3.  The FSM and the applicant married in September 1988.  The Board concludes that if the FSM’s 20-year letter had been forwarded to him within a reasonable time, (e. g., within 12 months after he completed his 20 qualifying years for retirement), he would have elected to participate in the RCSBP to provide for his newly-married spouse.

4.  There is no evidence of record to show that the FSM changed or initiated an SGLI policy to provide for the applicant.  This action could have been accomplished immediately upon marriage.  Although the applicant states they filled out paperwork making her his sole beneficiary, she provides no supporting evidence such as the FSM’s copy of the SGLI election certificate.

5.  In view of the foregoing, it would be in the interest of justice to correct the applicant’s records as recommended below.

RECOMMENDATION:

1.  That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing that the FSM received his 20-year letter on 24 May 1989.

2.  That the FSM’s records be corrected to show that he elected to participate in the RCSBP, full base amount, spouse coverage, option C on 1 August 1989.

3.  That the applicant be advised that the Defense Finance and Accounting Service will be instructed to collect any RCSBP costs due.

4.  That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing be denied.

BOARD VOTE:  

__rgh___  __bje___  __jps___  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

			Robert G. Hinkle
		______________________
		        CHAIRPERSON

INDEX

CASE ID	AR1999033026	
SUFFIX		
RECON		
DATE BOARDED	20000412	
TYPE OF DISCHARGE		
DATE OF DISCHARGE		
DISCHARGE AUTHORITY		
DISCHARGE REASON		
BOARD DECISION	(GRANT)	
REVIEW AUTHORITY		
ISSUES         1.	137.02	
2.		
3.		
4.		
5.		
6.