I 
107TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5403
To amend title 10, United States Code, to increase the minimum Survivor 
Benefit Plan basic annuity for surviving spouses age 62 and older, 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 18, 2002
Mr. JEFF MILLER of Florida (for himself, Mr. WELDON of Florida, Mr. 
PETRI, Mr. SHOWS, Mr. MCINTYRE, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, 
Mr. FOLEY, Mr. SAXTON, Mr. PICKERING, Mr. ADERHOLT, Mr. ALLEN, 
Mr. BACA, Mr. BAKER, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BARR of Georgia, Ms. BERK-
LEY, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Mr. BLUNT, Mr. BONILLA, Mr. 
BOSWELL, Ms. BROWN of Florida, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Mr. CALVERT, 
Mr. CANTOR, Mrs. CHRISTENSEN, Mrs. CLAYTON, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. 
COMBEST, Mr. COYNE, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mr. DAVIS of Florida, Mrs. 
DAVIS of California, Mr. DEAL of Georgia, Mr. AKIN, Mr. ANDREWS, Mr. 
BAIRD, Mr. BALDACCI, Mr. BARCIA, Mr. BENTSEN, Mr. BERRY, Mr. 
BISHOP, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. BOEHNER, Mr. BONIOR, Mr. BOYD, Mr. 
BROWN of South Carolina, Mr. BRYANT, Mr. CANNON, Mr. CARSON of 
Oklahoma, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CLEMENT, Mr. COLLINS, Mr. COOKSEY, Mr. 
CRAMER, Mr. CUNNINGHAM, Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. TOM 
DAVIS of Virginia, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DEUTSCH, Mr. 
DOYLE, Ms. DUNN of Washington, Mr. EHRLICH, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. 
FLETCHER, Mr. FORBES, Mr. FROST, Mr. GILLMOR, Mr. GOODE, Mr. 
GORDON, Mr. GREEN of Texas, Mr. HALL of Texas, Ms. HARMAN, Mr. 
HAYES, Mr. HEFLEY, Mr. HOEFFEL, Mr. HOLT, Mr. HORN, Mr. INSLEE, 
Mr. ISRAEL, Mr. JEFFERSON, Mr. JOHN, Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas, 
Mr. KELLER, Mr. KERNS, Mr. KING, Mr. KIRK, Mr. LAHOOD, Mr. 
LANGEVIN, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky, Mr. 
MALONEY of Connecticut, Mrs. MCCARTHY of New York, Mr. MCCRERY, 
Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. DEMINT, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr. DUNCAN, Mr. ED-
WARDS, Mrs. EMERSON, Mr. FILNER, Mr. FRANK, Mr. GIBBONS, Mr. 
GONZALEZ, Mr. GOODLATTE, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. GRUCCI, Mr. HANSEN, 
Ms. HART, Mr. HAYWORTH, Mr. HILLEARY, Mr. HOLDEN, Ms. HOOLEY 
of Oregon, Mr. ISAKSON, Mr. ISTOOK, Mr. JENKINS, Mrs. JOHNSON of 
Connecticut, Mr. JONES of North Carolina, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. KILDEE, 
Mr. KINGSTON, Mr. KUCINICH, Mr. LAMPSON, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. LEWIS 
of Georgia, Mr. LUCAS of Kentucky, Mr. MASCARA, Ms. MCCARTHY of 
Missouri, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCINNIS, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr. MCNUL-
TY, Mr. DAN MILLER of Florida, Mrs. MINK of Hawaii, Mr. MOORE, 
Mrs. MORELLA, Mr. OSE, Mr. PASTOR, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. PLATTS, Mr. 
PUTNAM, Mr. REHBERG, Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky, Mr. ROSS, Ms. ROY-
BAL-ALLARD, Mr. SANDERS, Mr. SCHAFFER, Mr. SCHROCK, Mr. SKEEN, 
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. STEARNS, Mr. TANCREDO, Mr. TERRY, 
Mr. TIBERI, Mr. TURNER, Mr. UDALL of New Mexico, Mr. WALDEN, Mr. 
WAXMAN, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. WICKER, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, 
Ms. WOOLSEY, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. MANZULLO, Mr. KENNEDY of 
Rhode Island, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. MICA, Mr. MOLLOHAN, Mr. MORAN of 
Virginia, Mr. OLVER, Mr. OTTER, Mr. PAUL, Mr. PETERSON of Min-
nesota, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. RODRIGUEZ, Ms. 
ROS-LEHTINEN, Mrs. ROUKEMA, Mr. RUSH, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. 
SMITH of Washington, Mr. SOUDER, Mr. SPRATT, Mr. STUPAK, Mr. TAY-
LOR of North Carolina, Mrs. THURMAN, Mr. TIERNEY, Mr. UDALL of 
Colorado, Mr. VITTER, Mr. WATTS of Oklahoma, Mr. WHITFIELD, Mrs. 
WILSON of New Mexico, Mr. WOLF, and Mr. WU) introduced the fol-
lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 
A BILL 
To amend title 10, United States Code, to increase the 
minimum Survivor Benefit Plan basic annuity for sur-
viving spouses age 62 and older, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Military Survivor Ben-
efits Improvement Act of 2002’’. 
SEC. 2. COMPUTATION OF SURVIVOR BENEFITS. 
(a) INCREASED BASIC ANNUITY.—(1) Subsection 
(a)(1)(B)(i) of section 1451 of title 10, United States 
Code, is amended by striking ‘‘35 percent of the base 
amount.’’ and inserting ‘‘the product of the base amount 
and the percent applicable for the month. The percent ap-
plicable for a month is 35 percent for months beginning 
on or before the date of the enactment of the Military Sur-
vivor Benefits Improvement Act of 2002, 40 percent for 
months beginning after such date and before October 
2005, 45 percent for months after September 2005 and 
before October 2012, and 55 percent for months after 
September 2012.’’. 
(2) Subsection (a)(2)(B)(i)(I) of such section is 
amended by striking ‘‘35 percent’’ and inserting ‘‘the per-
cent specified under subsection (a)(1)(B)(i) as being appli-
cable for the month’’. 
(3) Subsection (c)(1)(B)(i) of such section is amend-
ed—
(A) by striking ‘‘35 percent’’ and inserting ‘‘the 
applicable percent’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The 
percent applicable for a month under the preceding 
sentence is the percent specified under subsection 
(a)(1)(B)(i) as being applicable for that month.’’. 
(4) The heading for subsection (d)(2)(A) of such sec-
tion is amended to read as follows: ‘‘COMPUTATION OF AN-
NUITY.—’’. 
(b) ADJUSTED SUPPLEMENTAL ANNUITY.—Section 
1457(b) of title 10, United States Code, is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘5, 10, 15, or 20 percent’’ and 
inserting ‘‘the applicable percent’’; and 
(2) by inserting after the first sentence the fol-
lowing: ‘‘The percent used for the computation shall 
be an even multiple of 5 percent and, whatever the 
percent specified in the election, may not exceed 20 
percent for months beginning on or before the date 
of the enactment of the Military Survivor Benefits 
Improvement Act of 2002, 15 percent for months 
beginning after that date and before October 2005, 
and 10 percent for months after September 2005 
and before October 2012. For months after Sep-
tember 2012, the percent used for the computation 
shall be zero.’’. 
(c) RECOMPUTATION OF ANNUITIES.—(1) Effective 
on the first day of each month referred to in paragraph 
(2)—
(A) each annuity under section 1450 of title 10, 
United States Code, that commenced before that 
month, is computed under a provision of section 
1451 of that title amended by subsection (a), and is 
payable for that month shall be recomputed so as to 
be equal to the amount that would be in effect if the 
percent applicable for that month under that provi-
sion, as so amended, had been used for the initial 
computation of the annuity; and 
(B) each supplemental survivor annuity under 
section 1457 of such title that commenced before 
that month and is payable for that month shall be 
recomputed so as to be equal to the amount that 
would be in effect if the percent applicable for that 
month under that section, as amended by this sec-
tion, had been used for the initial computation of 
the supplemental survivor annuity. 
(2) The requirements for recomputation of annuities 
under paragraph (1) apply with respect to the following 
months: 
(A) The first month that begins after the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
(B) October 2005. 
(C) October 2012. 
(d) RECOMPUTATION OF RETIRED PAY REDUCTIONS 
FOR SUPPLEMENTAL SURVIVOR ANNUITIES.—(1) Effec-
tive on the first day of each month referred to in para-
graph (2), the Secretary of Defense shall take such actions 
as are required by the amendments made by subsection 
(b) and the provisions of subsection (c)(1)(B) to ensure 
that the reductions in retired pay under section 1460 of 
title 10, United States Code, are adjusted to achieve the
objectives set forth in subsection (b) of that section. Such 
adjustments shall be applied to retired pay reductions ap-
plicable to every person who has elected to provide a sup-
plemental spouse annuity under the provisions of section 
1457 of title 10, United States Code, regardless of the 
date of such election. 
(2) The requirements for recomputation of retired 
pay reductions under paragraph (1) apply with respect to 
the following months: 
(A) The first month that begins after the date 
of the enactment of this Act. 
(B) October 2005. 
(C) October 2012.
Æ