Maria G. Castro, Petitioner, v. Office of Personnel Management, Respondent, 950 F.2d 731 (Fed. Cir. 1991)

Maria G. Castro appeals the final decision of the Merit Systems Protection Board, Docket No. SE08319010570, affirming a decision of the Office of Personnel Management, which held that Mrs. Castro was not entitled to a survivor annuity under the Civil Service Retirement Act 5 U.S.C. §§ 8331 et seq. This court affirms the decision of the Board.

OPINION

Mrs. Castro applied for survivor benefits pursuant to the Civil Service Retirement Act based upon the employment of her husband, Roque Marcelino Castro. The General Services Administration's National Personnel Records Center found no record of the decedent.

Mrs. Castro provided documentation that between August 1, 1947 and December 1, 1969 Mr. Castro had been employed by various independent contractors at the U.S. Naval Station on Guam. However, employment by contractors is not employment in a position subject to the Civil Service Retirement Act. There was no record of any contribution by Mr. Castro to the Civil Service Retirement and Disability Fund, or that Mr. Castro was entitled to a retirement annuity, or that Mrs. Castro was entitled to a spousal annuity.

The Board's decision, denying a survivor annuity to Mrs. Castro, is supported by substantial evidence and is neither arbitrary nor capricious. 5 U.S.C. § 7703(c).