Printing - FECA-PT2 - National Association of Letter Carriers

. Dependency Criteria. The test of dependency under the FECA is not whether the claimant is
capable of self-support without the amount which was previously provided by the deceased. "It is
only necessary to show that the person claiming as a dependent. . .looked to and relied upon the
contributions. . .in whole or in part, as a means of maintaining or helping to maintain a customary
standard of living" (see Viola Davidson, 4 ECAB 263).
c. Percentage of Entitlement. The amount of entitlement for parents is stated at 5 U.S.C.
8133(a)(4) as follows:
(1) If there is no widow, widower, or child:
(a) 25% if one parent was wholly dependent on the employee at the time of
death and the other was not dependent at all.
(b) 20% to each if both were wholly dependent.
(c) A proportionate amount in the discretion of the Secretary of Labor if one or
both were partly dependent.
(2) If there is a widow, widower, or child, a portion of these percentages may be paid
such that the total amount paid to the widow or widower, children and parents will not
exceed 75%.
d. Minimum Payable. The minimum amount to which partially dependent parents are entitled
was established by the decision in the case of Minnie Ballard, 8 ECAB 716:
To establish the minimum parental compensation entitlement, ...first determine the
percentage that the decedent's contribution [during the 12 months immediately preceding
death]. . .bears to the total moneys the parent received from all sources during the same
period of time. Multiply the resulting percentage by the 25% [to one parent partially
dependent or 20% to each if there are two parents partially dependent] and the result thus
obtained is the payable percentage of dependency.
e. Change in Employee's Financial Status. Where the employee's earnings and/or
contributions changed significantly over time, the controlling factors are those present at the time
of death. In the case of an employee whose Federal earnings represented his or her first full-time
employment, the most important factor in determining the amount of compensation payable is the
amount the employee was earning and contributing at the time of death, not the amount earned
and contributed during the preceding year (see Robert C. Boyd (Roger D. Boyd), 18 ECAB 639).
f. Criteria for Continued Payments. Survivor's compensation is payable from the day after
death until the parent dies, marries, or ceases to be dependent. A parent whose entitlement is
based on financial dependency should be removed from the rolls when the current income
received, less compensation, equals or exceeds the total income from all sources at the time of
death. CPI adjustments should be included when making this determination. OWCP has the
burden of proving under this formula that the parents are no longer dependent.
FECA-PT2 Printed: 06/08/2010 109