We need to protect the families
of those who gave all. — Traci Voelke
Now the future of that al-
lowance is at risk too, since it’s set to expire at the end of May 2018. Losing SSIA would leave families like Brodeur’s down $3,720 annually. MOAA urges lawmakers to
The family of Maj. David Brodeur loses about $15,000 each year due to the SBP/DIC offset.
annuity payments if their service- member opted into the voluntary program at retirement, and spouses whose servicemember died while on active duty automatically receive SBP annuity payments. But current law requires every dol- lar spouses receive in DIC benefi ts be deducted from their SBP annu- ity payment. That off set leaves most surviving spouses losing out on about $15,000 annually, in what’s often re- ferred to as the “widows tax.” “The fact that the government is withholding that from us is really sad,” Brodeur says. “It really surprises me that they’re not taking care of all fami- lies as well as they possibly can.” After several years of advocacy
from MOAA and The Military Coali- tion, Congress agreed and authorized a special allowance in 2008, which helps survivors recoup a portion of the off set. That Special Survivor In- demnity Allowance (SSIA) serves as a rebate, giving spouses of the fallen an additional $310 per month — equal to about 25 percent of what they lose from the SBP/DIC off set.
60 MILITARY OFFICER APRIL 2017
take another look at the wid- ows tax. Congress should end the SBP/DIC off set entirely — or at least extend and increase the SSIA to help make up the diff erence, says Col. Phil Odom, USAF (Ret), MOAA’s director of Survivor, Tax, and Social Security Issues. “The SBP/DIC off set is
grossly unfair and should be
repealed,” Odom says. “When military service causes the death of the ser- vicemember, VA indemnity pay [DIC] should be paid in addition to the SBP annuity — not subtracted from it.”
An unfair burden Like Brodeur, Traci Voelke is one of more than 60,000 military spouses who lose a portion of their SBP annu- ity each month. When Voelke’s hus- band, Army Maj. Paul Voelke, died in a 2012 vehicle accident in Af- ghanistan, her family lost not only a spouse and a father, but also their fi nancial security. “I lost my husband in the middle of his career, along with his income and earning potential,” she says. “Without the addi- tional SBP, my month- ly payments aren’t even half of what he was earning.”
The VA created DIC in the 1950s so surviving spouses would be com- pensated for economic losses they suff ered as a result of a veteran’s death. About two decades later, DoD established SBP to ensure surviving dependents of military personnel who died in retirement would continue to have a reasonable income level. Retirees can purchase SBP so their spouses continue getting a portion of their retirement after their death. But the payment often is canceled out by DIC, says Mary Craven, the wife of an Air Force offi cer who died from a service-connected illness in 1978. “Why have two programs if one wipes out the other?” she asks. “The service caused his death. The service should pay extra for that, rather than cancelling part of the insurance he bought for me.” On the active duty side, SBP serves as an income supplement for surviv- ing spouses. That’s important, says Voelke, because military spouses often are on the move, and many don’t have steady careers.
Army Maj. Paul Voelke was killed during a 2012 deployment to Afghanistan. His wife, Traci, would like Congress to repeal the SBP/DIC offset.
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