[Request for Advance Decision Concerning Basic Allowance Quarters Entitlement of Divorced Military Member]

The Air Force requested an advance decision concerning the basic allowance for quarters entitlement of a military member whose former husband, also a military member, was under court order to pay child support to the claimant for one of their two children, both of whom were in her legal custody. GAO noted that children are an undivided class of common dependents when residing together. Therefore, since the claimant's former husband was paying child support in an amount sufficient to qualify for the quarters allowance at the with-dependent rate, he was entitled to the allowance at that rate. Accordingly, the claimant was entitled to the allowance at the without-dependent rate.