Citation Nr: 21005418
Decision Date: 02/01/21	Archive Date: 02/01/21

DOCKET NO. 15-40 507
 DATE: February 1, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to survivors’ pension benefits is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from January 1946 to March 1947.  His decorations included the Victory Medal.  Unfortunately, he died in September 2010.  The appellant is his surviving spouse. 

This matter comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a June 2013 determination by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Pension Management Center (PMC) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  The PMC found that the appellant’s income and net worth was a bar to the receipt of VA non-service-connected death pension benefits.

Entitlement to survivors’ pension benefits is remanded.

As noted, the PMC denied payment of death pension benefits based on the appellant’s income and net worth.  A July 2015 VA Form 21-5427 (Corpus of Estate Determination) noted that the appellant had a total net worth of $354,673.19, which consisted of a checking account with a balance of $4,673.19 as of a December 2012 VA Form 21-0518-1, and a trust account with a balance of $350,000 as of April 30, 2011.  The Corpus of Estate Determination further noted that the appellant’s monthly expenses exceeded her monthly income by $4,260.25, that she had a life expectancy of 8.4 years at the time of her original application in July 2011, and that it would take 6.94 years to deplete her net worth.  

The Board finds that additional development is required prior to adjudicating the appeal.  Because the net worth depletion determination of 6.94 years was made as of July 2011 (date of original claim), which is more than 9 years ago, development is required in order to obtain updated information with regard to the appellant’s income, expenses, and net worth information, to include the updated balances of her bank account and the trust account at issue.

This matter is REMANDED for the following action:

1. Contact the appellant and ask her (or her fiduciary) to submit updated income and net worth information, to include the updated balances of her checking account and the trust account at issue, as well as any unreimbursed medical expenses.  Any appropriate forms which would allow the appellant to report the needed information should be provided.

2. Thereafter, prepare an updated Corpus of Estate Determination form.  This form must clearly detail and explain how all monthly assets, income, and expenses (as well as annualized assets, income, and expenses) were calculated.

3. After completing the above, and any other development as may be indicated by any response received as a consequence of the actions taken in the preceding paragraphs, the issue on appeal should be readjudicated based on the entirety of the evidence.  If any benefit sought remains denied, the appellant and her representative should be issued a supplemental statement of the case.  An appropriate period of time should be allowed for response.

 

DAVID A. BRENNINGMEYER

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	Ragheb, Johnny

The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.