[Entitlement to Survivor Benefit Plan Annuity]

The Navy requested an advance decision on whether the current or former spouse of a deceased Navy officer was entitled to the officer's Survivor Benefit Plan annuity. GAO noted that: (1) the former spouse's claim for survivor benefits was based on a separation agreement which provided that the officer would continue to maintain his military benefits for his entire family; (2) after the final divorce decree was rendered, the officer remarried and then died 2 years later; and (3) under the original plan, there was no general authority for a retiree to elect coverage for a former spouse, but after the plan was amended, a retiree could voluntarily elect coverage for a former spouse to the exclusion of a current spouse. GAO found that: (1) the officer never agreed in writing to designate his former spouse as a plan beneficiary; (2) the officer's general agreement to continue to maintain his military benefits for his family upon separation did not include a stipulation to provide an annuity for his former wife after their divorce; and (3) after the plan was amended to permit designation of a former spouse as a beneficiary, the officer did not elect to provide annuity coverage for his former spouse within the 1-year election period. Accordingly, the current spouse was entitled to the annuity.