
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document affected by Public Law 106-419 Section 313(a)]
[Document affected by Public Law 107-14 Section 4(a)(1)]
[CITE: 38USC1965]

 
                      TITLE 38--VETERANS' BENEFITS
 
                        PART II--GENERAL BENEFITS
 
                          CHAPTER 19--INSURANCE
 
          SUBCHAPTER III--SERVICEMEMBERS' GROUP LIFE INSURANCE
 
Sec. 1965. Definitions

    For the purpose of this subchapter--
        (1) The term ``active duty'' means--
            (A) full-time duty in the Armed Forces, other than active 
        duty for training;
            (B) full-time duty (other than for training purposes) as a 
        commissioned officer of the Regular or Reserve Corps of the 
        Public Health Service;
            (C) full-time duty as a commissioned officer of the National 
        Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; and
            (D) full-time duty as a cadet or midshipman at the United 
        States Military Academy, United States Naval Academy, United 
        States Air Force Academy, or the United States Coast Guard 
        Academy.

        (2) The term ``active duty for training'' means--
            (A) full-time duty in the Armed Forces performed by Reserves 
        for training purposes;
            (B) full-time duty for training purposes performed as a 
        commissioned officer of the Reserve Corps of the Public Health 
        Service;
            (C) full-time duty as a member, cadet, or midshipman of the 
        Reserve Officers Training Corps while attending field training 
        or practice cruises; and
            (D) in the case of members of the National Guard or Air 
        National Guard of any State, full-time duty under sections 316, 
        502, 503, 504, or 505 of title 32, United States Code.

        (3) The term ``inactive duty training'' means--
            (A) duty (other than full-time duty) prescribed or 
        authorized for Reserves (including commissioned officers of the 
        Reserve Corps of the Public Health Service) which duty is 
        scheduled in advance by competent authority to begin at a 
        specific time and place; and
            (B) in the case of a member of the National Guard or Air 
        National Guard of any State, such term means duty (other than 
        full-time duty) which is scheduled in advance by competent 
        authority to begin at a specific time and place under sections 
        316, 502, 503, 504, or 505 of title 32, United States Code.

        (4) The terms ``active duty for training'' and ``inactive duty 
    training'' do not include duty performed as a temporary member of 
    the Coast Guard Reserve, and the term ``inactive duty training'' 
    does not include (A) work or study performed in connection with 
    correspondence courses, or (B) attendance at an educational 
    institution in an inactive status.
        (5) The term ``member'' means--
            (A) a person on active duty, active duty for training, or 
        inactive duty training in the uniformed services in a 
        commissioned, warrant, or enlisted rank, or grade, or as a cadet 
        or midshipman of the United States Military Academy, United 
        States Naval Academy, United States Air Force Academy, or the 
        United States Coast Guard Academy;
            (B) a person who volunteers for assignment to the Ready 
        Reserve of a uniformed service and is assigned to a unit or 
        position in which such person may be required to perform active 
        duty, or active duty for training, and each year will be 
        scheduled to perform at least twelve periods of inactive duty 
        training that is creditable for retirement purposes under 
        chapter 1223 of title 10 (or under chapter 67 of that title as 
        in effect before the effective date of the Reserve Officer 
        Personnel Management Act); and
            (C) a member, cadet, or midshipman of the Reserve Officers 
        Training Corps while attending field training or practice 
        cruises.

        (6) The term ``uniformed services'' means the Army, Navy, Air 
    Force, Marine Corps, Coast Guard, the commissioned corps of the 
    Public Health Service, and the commissioned corps of the National 
    Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
        (7) The terms ``widow'' or ``widower'' means a person who is the 
    lawful spouse of the insured member at the time of his death.
        (8) The term ``child'' means a legitimate child, a legally 
    adopted child, an illegitimate child as to the mother, or an 
    illegitimate child as to the alleged father, only if (A) he 
    acknowledged the child in writing signed by him; or (B) he has been 
    judicially ordered to contribute to the child's support; or (C) he 
    has been, before his death, judicially decreed to be the father of 
    such child; or (D) proof of paternity is established by a certified 
    copy of the public record of birth or church record of baptism 
    showing that the insured was the informant and was named as father 
    of the child; or (E) proof of paternity is established from service 
    department or other public records, such as school or welfare 
    agencies, which show that with his knowledge the insured was named 
    as the father of the child.
        (9) The term ``parent'' means a father of a legitimate child, 
    mother of a legitimate child, father through adoption, mother 
    through adoption, mother of an illegitimate child, and father of an 
    illegitimate child but only if (A) he acknowledged paternity of the 
    child in writing signed by him before the child's death; or (B) he 
    has been judicially ordered to contribute to the child's support; or 
    (C) he has been judicially decreed to be the father of such child; 
    or (D) proof of paternity is established by a certified copy of the 
    public record of birth or church record of baptism showing that the 
    claimant was the informant and was named as father of the child; or 
    (E) proof of paternity is established from service department or 
    other public records, such as school or welfare agencies, which show 
    that with his knowledge the claimant was named as father of the 
    child. No person who abandoned or willfully failed to support a 
    child during the child's minority, or consented to the child's 
    adoption may be recognized as a parent for the purpose of this 
    subchapter. However, the immediately preceding sentence shall not be 
    applied so as to require duplicate payments in any case in which 
    insurance benefits have been paid prior to receipt in the 
    administrative office established under subsection 1966(b) of this 
    title of sufficient evidence to clearly establish that the person so 
    paid could not qualify as a parent solely by reason of such 
    sentence.

(Added Pub. L. 89-214, Sec. 1(a), Sept. 29, 1965, 79 Stat. 880, 
Sec. 765; amended Pub. L. 91-291, Sec. 1, June 25, 1970, 84 Stat. 326; 
Pub. L. 92-185, Sec. 1, Dec. 15, 1971, 85 Stat. 642; Pub. L. 92-315, 
June 20, 1972, 86 Stat. 227; Pub. L. 93-289, Secs. 3, 10(1), May 24, 
1974, 88 Stat. 165, 172; Pub. L. 99-576, title VII, Sec. 701(35), Oct. 
28, 1986, 100 Stat. 3293; Pub. L. 102-54, Sec. 14(b)(16), June 13, 1991, 
105 Stat. 284; renumbered Sec. 1965 and amended Pub. L. 102-83, 
Sec. 5(a), (c)(1), Aug. 6, 1991, 105 Stat. 406; Pub. L. 103-337, div. A, 
title VI, Sec. 651(a), title XVI, Sec. 1677(d)(1), Oct. 5, 1994, 108 
Stat. 2792, 3020; Pub. L. 104-275, title IV, Sec. 402(a), Oct. 9, 1996, 
110 Stat. 3337.)

                       References in Text

    Chapter 67 of title 10 as in effect before the effective date of the 
Reserve Officer Personnel Management Act, referred to in par. (5)(B), 
means chapter 67 (Sec. 1331 et seq.) of Title 10, Armed Forces, prior to 
its transfer to part II of subtitle E of Title 10, its renumbering as 
chapter 1223, and its general revision by section 1662(j)(1) of Pub. L. 
103-337. A new chapter 67 (Sec. 1331) of Title 10 was added by section 
1662(j)(7) of Pub. L. 103-337. For effective date of the Reserve Officer 
Personnel Management Act (Pub. L. 103-337, title XVI), see section 1691 
of Pub. L. 103-337, set out as an Effective Date note under section 
10001 of Title 10.


                               Amendments

    1996--Par. (5)(B). Pub. L. 104-275, Sec. 402(a)(1), inserted ``and'' 
at end.
    Par. (5)(C) to (E). Pub. L. 104-275, Sec. 402(a)(2), (3), 
redesignated subpar. (E) as (C) and struck out former subpars. (C) and 
(D) which read as follows:
    ``(C) a person assigned to, or who upon application would be 
eligible for assignment to, the Retired Reserve of a uniformed service 
who has not received the first increment of retirement pay or has not 
yet reached sixty-one years of age and has completed at least twenty 
years of satisfactory service creditable for retirement purposes under 
chapter 1223 of title 10 (or under chapter 67 of that title as in effect 
before the effective date of the Reserve Officer Personnel Management 
Act);
    ``(D) a person transferred to the Retired Reserve of a uniformed 
service under the temporary special retirement authority provided in 
section 1331a of title 10 who has not received the first increment of 
retirement pay or has not reached sixty-one years of age; and''.
    1994--Par. (5)(B), (C). Pub. L. 103-337, Sec. 1677(d)(1), 
substituted ``chapter 1223 of title 10 (or under chapter 67 of that 
title as in effect before the effective date of the Reserve Officer 
Personnel Management Act)'' for ``chapter 67 of title 10''.
    Par. (5)(D), (E). Pub. L. 103-337, Sec. 651(a), added subpar. (D) 
and redesignated former subpar. (D) as (E).
    1991--Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(a), renumbered section 765 of this 
title as this section.
    Par. (4). Pub. L. 102-54, Sec. 14(b)(16)(A), redesignated cls. (i) 
and (ii) as (A) and (B), respectively.
    Par. (8). Pub. L. 102-54, Sec. 14(b)(16)(B), redesignated cls. (a) 
to (e) as (A) to (E), respectively.
    Par. (9). Pub. L. 102-83, Sec. 5(c)(1), substituted ``1966(b)'' for 
``766(b)''.
    Pub. L. 102-54, Sec. 14(b)(16)(B), redesignated cls. (a) to (e) as 
(A) to (E), respectively.
    1986--Par. (5)(B). Pub. L. 99-576, Sec. 701(35)(A), substituted 
``such person'' for ``he''.
    Par. (9). Pub. L. 99-576, Sec. 701(35)(B), substituted ``the 
child's'' for ``his'' in two places.
    1974--Par. (1)(C). Pub. L. 93-289, Sec. 10(1), substituted 
``National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration'' for ``Environmental 
Science Services Administration''.
    Par. (5). Pub. L. 93-289, Sec. 3, added cls. (B) and (C), 
redesignated former cl. (B) as (D), and substituted ``midshipman of'' 
for ``midshipman at'' in cl. (A).
    Par. (6). Pub. L. 93-289, Sec. 10(1), substituted ``National Oceanic 
and Atmospheric Administration'' for ``Environmental Science Services 
Administration''.
    1972--Par. (1)(D). Pub. L. 92-315, Sec. 1(3), added cl. (D).
    Par. (5)(A). Pub. L. 92-315, Sec. 1(4), expanded definition of 
``member'' to include persons in active duty as a cadet or midshipman at 
the United States Military Academy, United States Naval Academy, United 
States Air Force Academy and the United States Coast Guard Academy.
    1971--Pars. (7) to (9). Pub. L. 92-185 added pars. (7) to (9) 
defining, respectively, ``widow'' or ``widower'', ``child'', and 
``parent''.
    1970--Pub. L. 91-291 struck out from definition of ``active duty'' a 
reference to calls or orders to duty which specify a period of 30 days 
or less, inserted definitions for ``active duty for training'' and 
``inactive duty training'', and, in definition of ``uniformed 
services'', inserted provisions limiting the scope of that term in the 
case of personnel of the Public Health Service and the Environmental 
Science Services Administration to the commissioned corps thereof 
respectively.


                    Effective Date of 1994 Amendment

    Amendment by section 1677(d)(1) of Pub. L. 103-337 effective Dec. 1, 
1994, except as otherwise provided, see section 1691 of Pub. L. 103-337, 
set out as an Effective Date note under section 10001 of Title 10, Armed 
Forces.


                    Effective Date of 1974 Amendment

    Section 12(2) of Pub. L. 93-289 provided that: ``The amendments 
relating to Servicemen's Group Life Insurance coverage on a full-time 
basis for certain members of the Reserves and National Guard shall 
become effective upon the date of enactment of this Act [May 24, 
1974].''


                    Effective Date of 1971 Amendment

    Section 2 of Pub. L. 92-185 provided that: ``The provisions of this 
Act [amending this section] shall apply only to Servicemen's Group Life 
Insurance in effect on the life of an insured member who dies on or 
after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 15, 1971].''


                    Effective Date of 1970 Amendment

    Amendment by Pub. L. 91-291 effective June 25, 1970, see section 
14(a) of Pub. L. 91-291, set out as a note under section 1317 of this 
title.
    Section 14(b) of Pub. L. 91-291 provided that: ``The provisions of 
section 765(7), (8), and (9) [now 1765(7), (8), and (9)] of title 38, 
United States Code, as added by the first section of this Act shall 
apply only to servicemen's group life insurance in effect on the life of 
an insured member who dies on and after the date of enactment of this 
Act [June 25, 1970].''


                Renaming of Group Life Insurance Program

    Section 405(a) of Pub. L. 104-275 provided that: ``The program of 
insurance operated by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under subchapter 
III of chapter 19 of title 38, United States Code, is hereby 
redesignated as the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance program.''


 References to Servicemen's Group Life Insurance or Advisory Council on 
                    Servicemen's Group Life Insurance

    Section 405(d) of Pub. L. 104-275 provided that: ``Any reference to 
Servicemen's Group Life Insurance or to the Advisory Council on 
Servicemen's Group Life Insurance in any Federal law, Executive order, 
regulation, delegation of authority, or other document of the Federal 
Government shall be deemed to refer to Servicemembers' Group Life 
Insurance or the Advisory Council on Servicemembers' Group Life 
Insurance, respectively.''

                  Section Referred to in Other Sections

    This section is referred to in sections 1967, 1968, 1969 of this 
title.
