[Claim for Death Gratuity]

A question arose as to which of two women claiming to be the surviving spouse of a deceased naval serviceman was in fact the legal surviving spouse for the purpose of entitlement to death benefits. The Chief of Naval Personnel stated that there exists an inability to resolve the validity of the various marriages involved in the case. Therefore, he proposed to certify payment of the death gratuity to the decedent's three children. GAO held that: (1) the gratuity that is payable upon the death of a service member may be paid to survivors only according to the priority list contained in the statute and, since surviving children are lower in priority on that list than a surviving spouse, the children may not be paid when there is an eligible spouse; and (2) where neither of two claimants to a death gratuity can clearly establish entitlement to payment as the surviving spouse of the decedent, the gratuity may not be paid to anyone unless and until more conclusive evidence is submitted or a certified copy of a decree of a court of competent jurisdiction establishing entitlement is presented. Accordingly, in the absence of more conclusive evidence or a judicial determination of entitlement, payment was withheld.