10.916—How is the amount of the death gratuity calculated?
The death gratuity payment under this subpart equals $100,000 minus the amount of any death gratuity payments that have been paid under any other law of the United States based on the same death. A death gratuity payment is a payment in the nature of a gift, beyond reimbursement for death and funeral expenses, relocation costs, or other similar death benefits. Only other death gratuity payments will reduce the amount of the death gratuity provided in this subpart. For this reason, death benefits provided to the same employee's survivors such as those under 5 U.S.C. 8133 as well as benefits paid under 5 U.S.C. 8134 are not death gratuity payments, and therefore have no effect on the amount of the death gratuity provided under this subpart.
(a)
A payment provided under section 413 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 3973 ), is a death gratuity payment, and if a deceased employee's survivors received that payment for the employee's death, the amount of the death gratuity paid to the survivors under this subpart would be reduced by the amount of the Foreign Service Act death gratuity. Other death gratuities that would affect the calculation of the amount payable include but are not limited to: the gratuity provision in section 1603 of the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Hurricane Recovery, 2006 (Pub. L. 109-234, June 15, 2006); the $10,000 death gratuity to the personal representative of civilian employees, at Title VI, Section 651 of the Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-208, September 30, 1996); the death gratuity for members of the Armed Forces or any employee of the Department of Defense dying outside the United States while assigned to intelligence duties, at 10 U.S.C. 1489; and the death gratuity for employees of the Central Intelligence Agency, at 50 U.S.C. 403k.
(b)
The amount of the death gratuity under this section will be calculated before it is disbursed to the employee's survivors or alternate beneficiaries, by taking into account any death gratuities paid by the time of disbursement. Therefore, any designations made by the employee under § 10.909 are only applicable to the amount of the death gratuity as described in paragraph (a) of this section. The following examples are intended to provide guidance in this administration of this subpart.
(1) Example One.
An employee's survivors are entitled to the Foreign Service Act death gratuity; the employee's spouse received payment in the amount of $80,000 under that Act. A death gratuity is also payable under FECA; the amount of the FECA death gratuity that is payable is a total of $20,000. That employee, using Form CA-40 had designated 50% of the death gratuity under this subpart to be paid to his neighbor John Smith who is still living. So, 50% of the death gratuity will be paid to his spouse and the remaining 50% of the death gratuity paid under this subpart would be paid to John Smith. This means the surviving spouse will receive $10,000 and John Smith will receive $10,000.
(2) Example Two.
Employee dies in circumstances that would qualify her for payment of the gratuity under this subpart; her agency has paid the $10,000 death gratuity pursuant to Public Law 104-208. The employee had not completed any designation form. The FECA death gratuity is reduced by the $10,000 death gratuity and employee's spouse receives $90,000.
(3) Example Three.
An employee of the Foreign Service whose annual salary is $75,000 dies in circumstances that would qualify for payment of both the Foreign Service Act death gratuity and the death gratuity under this subpart. Before his death, the employee designated that 40% of the death gratuity under this subpart be paid to his cousin Jane Smith, pursuant to the alternate beneficiary designation provision at section 10.908 and that 10% be paid to his uncle John Doe who has since died. At the time of his death, the employee had no surviving spouse, children, parents, or siblings. Therefore, the Foreign Service Act death gratuity will not be paid, because no eligible survivors according to the Foreign Service Act provision exist. The death gratuity under this subpart would equal $100,000, because no other death gratuity has been paid, and Jane would receive $40,000 according to the employee's designation. As John Doe is deceased, no death gratuity may be paid pursuant to the designation of a share of the death gratuity to him.