[Claims for Increased Basic Allowance for Quarters]

In response to requests from Air Force accounting and finance officers, GAO rendered an advance decision on two separate but similar cases, each concerning allowance for quarters for an Air Force member and his or her dependents. In both cases, the questions were: (1) whether the parents, who occupied private quarters with children in their custody incident to separation agreements, were entitled to an increased quarters allowance at the with-dependents rate; and (2) whether the rate in question would be payable to spouses, who were also military members, if they also moved to private quarters with the children in their custody. GAO determined that, in these cases, the parents no longer have common dependents for the purposes of entitlement to increased basic allowances for quarters; therefore, either or both of the parents may be paid the increased allowance, provided that the dependents reside in private, non-Government housing. Accordingly, payment was authorized in both cases and will begin in the second case when the parent and child assume residence in non-Government quarters, if that date is subsequent to the date of the separation agreement. If either of the spouses moves to private quarters, neither member's entitlement will be affected. GAO noted that both members' entitlements should be reassessed following court actions regarding custody and support.