```

[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1115 Introduced in House (IH)]

110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1115

   To amend section 1477 of title 10, United States Code, to provide 
 additional options regarding the designation of the person to receive 
 the death gratuity paid with respect to a member of the Armed Forces 
  who dies without a surviving spouse, but who is survived by a minor 
                                 child.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 16, 2007

 Mr. Latham (for himself, Mr. King of Iowa, Mr. Boswell, Mr. Braley of 
  Iowa, Mr. Loebsack, and Mr. Saxton) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To amend section 1477 of title 10, United States Code, to provide 
 additional options regarding the designation of the person to receive 
 the death gratuity paid with respect to a member of the Armed Forces 
  who dies without a surviving spouse, but who is survived by a minor 
                                 child.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. PAYMENT OF DEATH GRATUITY WITH RESPECT TO MEMBERS OF THE 
              ARMED FORCES WITHOUT A SURVIVING SPOUSE WHO ARE SURVIVED 
              BY A MINOR CHILD.

    (a) Designation of Intended Recipient.--Section 1477 of title 10, 
United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ``, subject to 
        subsection (d),'' after ``shall be paid'';
            (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
            (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new 
        subsection (d):
    ``(d)(1) In the case of a person covered by section 1475 or 1476 of 
this title who has no surviving spouse, but who has one or more 
surviving children (as prescribed by subsection (b)) under the age of 
18 years who, after the death of the person, will be in the custody of 
a parent (as prescribed by subsection (c)) or brother or sister (as 
prescribed by subsection (a)) of the person, the death gratuity shall 
be paid to such parent, brother, or sister as designated by the person, 
whether in the full amount payable under section 1478 of this title or 
in such portion of such amount as the person shall specify.
    ``(2) If the amount of the death gratuity specified for payment 
under paragraph (1) is less than the full amount of the death gratuity 
payable under section 1478 of this title, the balance of the amount of 
the death gratuity shall be paid to or for the living survivors of the 
person concerned in accordance with paragraphs (2) through (5) of 
subsection (a).
    ``(3) An individual designated for the payment of death gratuity 
under paragraph (1) shall be treated as an eligible survivor for 
purposes of subsection (e).''.
    (b) Treatment of Earlier Deaths and Death Gratuity Payments.--With 
respect to the death of a person covered by section 1475 or 1476 of 
title 10, United States Code, that occurred before the date of the 
enactment of this Act, if the person had no surviving spouse, but had 
one or more surviving children, and left a clear expression of intent 
regarding payment of the death gratuity to another person on behalf of 
the surviving child or children in the manner authorized by subsection 
(d) of section 1477 of such title, as added by subsection (a)(3), it is 
the sense of Congress that the death gratuity should be distributed 
consistent with that expression of intent.
                                 <all>
```