61,000 Military Widows Await Equity

Some 61,000 military widows whose husbands paid into the Survivor Benefit Plan and died of service-connected causes are waiting to see if Congress will end the current dollar-for-dollar reduction of their SBP annuity by the amount of the Dependency and Indemnity Compensation they draw. They, and veterans’ associations, assert that the payments are for separate purposes; one is an annuity and the other is compensation for service to country that led to the spouse’s death. The Senate version of the fiscal 2007 defense authorization act would eliminate the inequity, but the House version fails to address the issue. The widows are waiting to see if a conference committee will resolve their problem. The Department of Veterans Affairs pays DIC. The Defense Department, which would pay the additional SBP, claims a widow shouldn’t receive two payments for the spouses’ death.