33 USC § 771 - Benefits for surviving spouses of Lighthouse Service employees; death of employee during retirement; amount of payment

Where—

(1) any former employee of the Lighthouse Service has died or shall hereafter die at a time when that employee was receiving or was entitled to receive retirement pay under section 763 of this title, as amended and supplemented, and

(2) the surviving spouse of the former employee was married to the former employee prior to the retirement of the former employee from the Lighthouse Service and has not remarried—

the surviving spouse, so long as the surviving spouse does not remarry, shall be paid $100 per month by the Secretary of Transportation.

Source

(Aug. 19, 1950, ch. 761, § 1,64 Stat. 465; Pub. L. 85–351, § 1,Mar. 28, 1958, 72 Stat. 49; Pub. L. 89–670, § 6(b)(1),Oct. 15, 1966, 80 Stat. 938; Pub. L. 90–163, § 1,Nov. 29, 1967, 81 Stat. 518; Pub. L. 90–167, § 1(a),Nov. 29, 1967, 81 Stat. 520; Pub. L. 98–557, § 15(b)(1),Oct. 30, 1984, 98 Stat. 2866.)

Amendments

1984—Pub. L. 98–557substituted references to surviving spouse for references to widow.

1967—Pub. L. 90–167struck out provision which exempted from coverage of this section widows of employees whose positions were classified in one of the grades of the professional and scientific service of the Classification Act of 1923, or a comparable grade of the Classification Act of 1949, or who performed duties of a position comparable to a position so classified after the enactment of law requiring the classification of such positions.

Pub. L. 90–163substituted “$100 per month” for “$75 per month”.

1958—Pub. L. 85–351substituted “$75 per month” for “$50 per month”.

Effective Date of 1967 Amendments

Section 2 ofPub. L. 90–167provided that: “No payment shall be made by reason of the amendments made by this section [amending this section and section 772 of this title] for any period prior to the first day of the first month following the month in which this Act is enacted [Nov. 29, 1967].”

Section 1 ofPub. L. 90–163provided that the amendment made by that section is effective on the first day of the month following Nov. 29, 1967.

Effective Date of 1958 Amendment

Section 2 ofPub. L. 85–351provided that: “The amendments made by this Act [amending this section and section 772 of this title] shall take effect on the first day of the first month which begins after the date of the enactment of this Act [Mar. 28, 1958].”

Effective Date

Section 6 of act Aug. 19, 1950, provided that: “No payment shall be made under this Act [enacting this section and sections 772 to 775 of this title] for any period prior to the first day of the first month following the month in which this Act is enacted.”

Transfer of Functions

Bureau of Lighthouses, of which Lighthouse Service was a part, transferred and consolidated with Coast Guard under Secretary of the Treasury by Reorg. Plan No. II of 1939, § 2(a), eff. July 1, 1939, 4 F.R. 2731, 33 Stat. 1432, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. Functions of Secretary of the Treasury relating to Coast Guard transferred to Secretary of Transportation by section 6(b)(1) ofPub. L. 89–670. See section 108 of Title 49, Transportation.

For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see sections 468 (b), 551 (d), 552 (d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.

Increase in Widows Benefits and Effective Date of Increase

Pub. L. 94–170, Dec. 23, 1975, 89 Stat. 1022, provided: “That the benefits payable under section 1 orsection 2 of the Act of August 19, 1950 (64 Stat. 465, 466), as amended (33 U.S.C. 771, 772) shall, effective on the first day of the calendar month following enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 1975], be increased by $26 per month.

“Sec. 2. The increases under this Act shall apply to benefits which commence before, on, or after the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 1975], but no increase in benefits shall be paid for any period prior to the date of enactment of this Act [Dec. 23, 1975], or the date on which the eligibility for benefits commences, whichever is later.”

Cost-of-Living Adjustment to Widow’s Annuity

Section 2 ofPub. L. 90–163provided that: “Each annuity payable under the Act entitled ‘An Act to provide benefits for widows of certain persons who were retired or are eligible for retirement under section 6 of the Act entitled “An Act to authorize aids to navigation and for other works in the Lighthouse Service, and for other purposes”, approved June 20, 1918, as amended’, approved August 19, 1950 (33 U.S.C. 771–775), and each annuity payable under section 6 of the Act entitled ‘An Act to authorize aids to navigation and for other works in the Lighthouse Service, and for other purposes’, approved June 20, 1918 (33 U.S.C. 763), shall be increased by the same percentage, adjusted to the nearest dollar, and on the same effective date, as each increase hereafter allowed under the cost-of-living annuity adjustment provisions of section 8340 (b) of title 5, United States Code.”