(b) A member may change or revoke his election as often as he desires prior to the completion of 19 years of service. Such a change or revocation must be dated, signed, witnessed, and delivered to appropriate service officials, or postmarked not later than midnight on the day in which the member completes 19 years of service. The latest election, change, or revocation which is submitted in accordance with this subsection will be effective at retirement.

(c) A member who desires to make an election or change or revoke his election after he has completed 19 years of service may do so prior to his retirement. However, such an election, change or revocation will be effective only if at least 2 years elapse between the date of the election, change, or revocation and the date of eligibility to receive retired pay.

(d) A revocation will not prohibit the filing of a new election at a later date which will become valid under applicable validation provisions.

(e) A member may, on or after November 1, 1968, at any time prior to his retirement, change or revoke his election (provided the change does not increase the amount of the annuity elected) to reflect a change in the marital or dependency status of the member or his family caused by death, divorce, annulment, remarriage, or acquisition of a child, if such change or revocation is made within 2 years of such change in status.

(f) Notification of a change in family status is not a change of election.

(g) All changes and revocations on file on August 13, 1968, for members not entitled to retired pay shall be subject to the provisions of this section unless the member makes the application specified in § 48.604(d).

The form for making election after October 31, 1968, is prescribed as Election of Options, Retired Serviceman's Family Protection Plan, DD Form 1688.1 It will be submitted as directed herein. All copies will be signed, and any otherwise complete, signed copy, when properly submitted, may be used to substantiate the fact of election, modification, revocation, or change in family status. § 48.206 Information regarding elections.

(a) All members of the Reserve component who will have accumulated sufficient service to be eligible for retired pay

at age 60, will be counseled on the Plan before reaching their 57th birth dates in order to insure that valid elections can be made prior to their 58th birth dates. An election, modification, or revocation submitted subsequent to attaining age 58 will be valid only if it is made and submitted at least 2 years prior to the first date for which retired pay is granted.

(b) It is the responsibility of the department concerned to provide election forms and to promulgate information concerning the benefits of the Plan to all members so as to allow a timely election.

(c) Members retiring for physical disability prior to the completion of 19 years of service will, prior to retirement, be counseled and furnished information concerning the operation of the Plan. Subpart C-Designation of Beneficiaries

(a) All legal beneficiaries described in § 48.102 must be named at the date of the retirement pursuant to option elected. Although a member without dependents may make an election, it will not be effective unless he has eligible dependents at the time of his retirement.

(b) When a change in family status occurs prior to retirement which would effect a change as provided in § 48.204 (e), new DD Form 1688,' Election of Options, Retired Serviceman's Family Protection Plan, should be filed to evidence such change.

§ 48.302

Substantiating evidence regarding dependency and age of dependents.

At the time of submitting the election, or prior to retirement, the member must indicate his wife's and youngest child birth date as applicable to the option elected. At or before the time of his retirement, he must submit proof of final dissolution of prior marriages, if any, both for himself and his spouse. The age of the dependents must be substantiated by a birth certificate or other competen evidence. The birth date of a member must be verified by his service record. All required substantiating evidence must be at the disbursing office which would normally pay the member retired pay or retainer pay immediately following re

1 Filed as part of the original document. Copies may be obtained from Military Personnel Officer.

tirement so as to permit the establishment of accurate pay accounts and to prevent the creation of indebtedness or overpayments.

§ 48.303 Condition affecting entitlement of widow or widower.

A member may have a different lawful spouse at the time of retirement from the lawful spouse he had at the time of election. The lawful spouse at the time of retirement is the spouse eligible for an annuity at the time of member's death. Divorce of the member will remove the former spouse as a prospective annuitant. Subpart D-Reduction of Retired Pay § 48.401 Computation of reduction.

(a) The reduction to be made in the retired pay of a member who has made an election shall be computed by the uniformed service concerned in each individual case, based upon tables of factors prepared by the Board of Actuaries. The computation shall be based upon the applicable table in effect on the date of retirement.

(b) An adjustment may be made in the reduction of retired pay upon the finding of an administrative error or a mistake of fact (see § 48.603).

(c) If a member elects to be covered by option 3, and on the date he is awarded retired pay has no children eligible to receive the annuity, or has only a child or children aged 18-22 (other than a child described in § 48.102 (e) (4) and elects, at retirement, that such child or children shall not be considered to be eligible beneficiaries, he shall have his costs computed as though he had elected option 1. If he elects option 3, and on the date he is awarded retired pay has no wife eligible for the annuity, he shall have his costs computed as though he had elected option 2.

(d) If a member elects option 3, and after he becomes entitled to retired pay, there is no eligible spouse because of death or divorce, upon the retired member's application, no deductions from his retired pay shall be made after the last day of the month in which there ceases to be an eligible spouse. Children otherwise eligible will continue to be eligible for the annuity in event of the member's death. No amounts by which the member's retired pay is reduced before that date may be refunded to or credited on behalf of that person.

(e) The amount of reduction in retired pay and the annuity payable estab

lished for each individual at the time of his retirement shall remain unaltered except as provided in §§ 48.203 (g), 48.401(b), 48.401(d), and 48.406, regardless of future pay increases or decreases. § 48.402 Effective date of reduction.

The effective date of reduction in retired pay will be the effective date of retirement with pay. The reduction in retired pay will be terminated on the date the member ceases to be entitled to retired pay or on the first day of the month following that in which there is no eligible beneficiary (for exception to this rule see § 48.604).

§ 48.403 Payment of nonwithheld reduction of retired pay.

(a) A member of a uniformed service who is entitled to retired pay and has made an election shall, during any period in which he is not receiving retired pay (including periods of active duty), deposit the amount which would have been withheld from his retired pay had he been receiving that pay.

(b) Such deposit will be payable to Treasurer of the United States and shall be forwarded monthly to the disbursing office which would normally pay the member his retired pay.

(c) The disbursing office will in all cases inform the member of the amount to be deposited and when such deposits are to be made.

(d) In the event deposits are not made within 30 days of the due date, the disbursing office will inform the member concerned that he is delinquent from such due date and thereafter his designated beneficiaries will not be eligible for the annuity provided under the Plan until the arrears have been paid. The notification of delinquency will advise the member that 15 additional days have been granted to him in which to remit his deposit, and that if the arrears are not deposited within that period, the member will be charged interest to include the first day of delinquency. In no case will the expiration date of the 15 days exceed a date later than 45 days from the date the deposit was due. The interest will be computed monthly and the rate will be that used in computing the cost tables in effect on the date of the member's retirement. If such member later becomes in receipt of retired pay, any arrears with compound interest will be withheld.

§ 48.404 Ages to be used.

Ages to be used for calculating reductions of retired pay will be the ages of the member and his eligible dependents on their nearest birth dates as of the date of the member's retirement.

§ 48.405 Action upon removal from temporary disability retired list.

(a) Any member on the temporary disability retired list established pursuant to title 10, United States Code, Chapter 61, who has elected to receive reduced retired pay in order to provide one or more of the annuities specified in the Plan, and who is subsequently removed from the list due to any reason other than permanent retirement, shall have refunded to him a sum which represents the difference between the amount by which his retired pay has been reduced and the cost of an amount of term insurance which is equal to the protection provided his dependents during the period he was on the temporary disability retired list.

(b) If the member concerned is returned to active duty, his election as previously made will continue or he may change or revoke the election as provided in § 48.204.

(c) Time creditable for the purpose of the two year interval required to make a change, revocation or new election valid includes service before, during, and after temporary disability retirement. (See 48.203 and 48.204 and Comptroller Decision B-144158, Dec. 23, 1960.) Active duty after removal from a temporary disability retired list is a necessity in such a case.

§ 48.406 Withdrawal and reduction of percentage or amount of participation.

A retired member who is participating in the Plan may revoke his election and withdraw from participation, or he may reduce the amount of the survivor annuity; however, an approved withdrawal or reduction will not be effective earlier than the first day of the seventh month beginning after the date his application is received by the Finance Center controlling his pay record. (For special rules covering participating members retired before Aug. 13, 1968, without option 4, see § 48.604.) No application for reduction will be approved which requests a change in options. A request to reduce an annuity or to withdraw from the Plan is irrevocable, and a retired member who withdraws may never again participate

in the Plan. Approval of a request for a reduction will not be made when such reduction results in an annuity of less than 122 per centum of the member's retired pay or less than a $25 monthly annuity. The new cost, after such reduction in survivor annuity, will be computed from the applicable cost table at the time of retirement. No amounts by which a member's retired pay is reduced may be refunded to, or credited on behalf of, the member by virtue of an application made by him under this section.

Except as provided in § 48.506(a), no annuity payable under the Plan shall be assignable, or subject to execution, levy, attachment, garnishment, or other legal process. Annuities payable under this Plan shall be in addition to any pensions or other payments to which the beneficiaries may now or hereafter be entitled under other provisions of law (except as provided in § 48.507), and may not be considered as income under any law administered by the Veterans Administration, except for the purpose of title 38, United States Code, section 415(g) and chapter 15.

§ 48.502 Effective date of annuity.

All annuities payable under this Plan except those payable to beneficiaries described in § 48.102(e) (5) shall accrue from the first day of the month in which the retired member dies and shall be due and payable not later than the 15th day of each month following that month and in equal monthly installments thereafter, except that no annuity shall accrue or be paid for the month in which entitlement to that annuity terminates. § 48.503 Claims for annuity payments.

Upon official notification of the death of a retired member who has elected under the Plan, the department concerned shall forward to the eligible surviving beneficiaries the necessary information and forms (DD Form 768. Application for Annuity Under Retired Serviceman's Family Protection Plan) for making application for annuity payments. Such information shall include the place to which the application should be forwarded and to which questions regarding annuity payments should be addressed.

§ 48.504 Payment to children.

(a) Annuities for a child or children will be paid to the child's guardian, or if there is no guardian, to the person(s) who has care, custody, and control of the child or children.

(b) Annuities payable to or on behalf of an eligible child as defined in § 48.102 (e) (5) accrue as of the first day of the month in which

(1) The member (upon whose retired pay the annuity is based) dies if the eligible child's 18th birthday occurs in the same or a preceding month, or

(2) The 18th birthday of an eligible child occurs if the member (upon whose retired pay the annuity is based) died in a preceding month, or

(3) A child first becomes (or again becomes) eligible, if that eligible child's 18th birthday and the death of the member (upon whose retired pay the annuity is based) both occurred in a preceding month or months. An eligible child under this subparagraph might become ineligible at age 18 and again become eligible by furnishing proof of pursuit of a full time course of study or training as enumerated in § 48.102(e) (5).

§ 48.505 Establishing eligibility of an

nuitants.

(a) Eligibility for the annuity will be established by such evidence as may be required by the department concerned.

(b) If a child as defined in § 48.102(e) (4) is a designated annuitant, the department concerned shall require proof that the incapacity for self-support existed prior to the child's reaching age 18. Proof that continued incapacitation exists will be required every 2 years after the child passes the age of 18 years, except in a case where medical prognosis Indicates recovery is impossible.

(c) If a child as defined in § 48.102 (e) (5) is a designated annuitant, as specified in § 48.504(b), the department concerned shall require proof from the institution at least semiannually that the child is pursuing a full-time course of training as prescribed. For the purpose of proving eligibility, a child is considered to be pursuing a full-time course of study or training during an interval between school periods that does not exceed 150 days if he has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the department concerned that he has a bona fide intention of commencing, resuming, or continuing to pursue a full-time course of study or training in a recognized edu

cational institution immediately after that interval.

§ 48.506 Recovery of erroneous annuity

payments.

(a) The Secretary of the Department concerned is empowered to use any means provided by law to recover amounts of annuities erroneously paid to any individual under the Plan. He may authorize such recovery by adjustment in subsequent payments to which the individual is entitled.

(b) There need be no recovery when in the judgment of the Secretary of the Department concerned and the Comptroller General of the United States, the individual to whom the erroneous payment was made is without fault and recovery would be contrary to the purpose of the Plan or would be against equity and good conscience.

§ 48.507 Restriction on participation.

(a) If a person who has made an election under the Plan retires with a physical disability before the completion of 19 years of service and then dies in retirement, his widow and eligible children can receive monthly survivor annuities only if they are not eligible for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation payments from the Veterans Administration. If either the widow or children are eligible for dependency and indemnity compensation payments, then payment of annuities under the Plan may not be made to any member of the family. If the retired member's death was not service connected and his widow or children are not eligible for payments from the Veterans Administration, they may receive the provided annuity payments under the Plan.

(b) If the beneficiaries on whose behalf the election was made are restricted as in § 48.507(a), from receiving annuities, the amounts withheld from the elector's retired pay as a result of the election will be refunded to the beneficlaries, less the amount of any annuity paid, and without interest.

(c) Upon notification of the death of the member in such a case, the department concerned will take the following actions:

(1) Notify the Central Office of the Veterans Administration of the death of the member and request that the department concerned be advised if an award is made under chapter 11 or 13, title 38, United States Code.

An election filed on or after August 13, 1968 is not effective if the member dies within 30 days following retirement from a disability of 100 per centum (under the standard schedule of rating disabilities in use by the Veterans Administration) for which he was retired under chapter 61, title 10, United States Code, unless

(a) Such disability was the result of injury or disease received in line of duty as a direct result of armed conflict, or (b) His widow or children are not entitled to dependency and indemnity compensation under chapter 13, title 38, United States Code.

Subpart F-Miscellaneous

§ 48.601 Annual report.

Information and data for the preparation of the annual report of the Board of Actuaries will be compiled by the Office of the Secretary of Defense after promulgation of appropriate instructions to each of the uniformed services. These instructions will be in consonance with Executive Order 10499 directing the Secretary of Defense to administer the provisions of the law.

§ 48.602 Organization.

(a) The Joint Board for the Retired Serviceman's Family Protection Plan shall consist of a principal and alternate member for each of the uniformed services appointed by the Department Secretary concerned. Alternate members will be auhorized to act in the absence of the principal. The Board shall meet on call of the Chairman. A quorum shall consist of representatives of at least four of the participating services.

(b) The Board shall establish procedures for the orderly conduct of business to be approved by the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Reserve Affairs).

(c) The duties of the Board will include but not be limited to the following: (1) Making recommendations to the Secretary of Defense for:

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(1) Changes to the Executive order delegating to him functions conferred on the President by law,

(ii) Changes to these regulations,

(iii) Changes to the law, and

(iv) Measures to insure uniform operating policies.

(2) Promulgating tables of annuity costs as prescribed by the Board of Actuaries.

(3) Promulgating cost of term insurance as required in § 48.405.

(d) The Chairmanship of the Joint Board will be designated by the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Reserve Affairs).

§ 48.603 Correction of administrative

deficiencies.

(a) The Secretary of the Department concerned may correct any election or any change or revocation of an election when he considers it necessary to correct an administrative error. Information on such corrections shall be compiled by each department for inclusion in the report prescribed by § 48.601.

(b) Except when procured by fraud, a correction under the section is final and conclusive on all officers of the United States.

(c) Information on all corrections to elections under this Plan which are made under title 10, section 1552, United States Code, shall be compiled and this information forwarded to the Board of Actuaries for an actuarial analysis.

§ 48.604 Transition and protective clauses.

(a) A retired member who is participating in the Plan without inclusion of former option 4, which provided for restoration of retired pay when no eligible beneficiary remained in his election, may before September 1, 1969, elect to have that option included in his election. The election to include such option 4 becomes effective on the first day of the month following the month in which that election was made. The retired member must on or before the effective date agree to pay to the Treasury both the total additional amount to cover the option had it been effective when he retired, and the interest which would have accrued on the additional amount up to the effective date of the new option 4. No such additional amount (except interest) shall accrue for months after the first month for which the individual had no eligible beneficiary. However, if undue hardship or financial burden would result, payments