Commonwealth Consolidated Acts Commonwealth Consolidated Acts(1) The spouse of a deceased eligible employee (being an eligible employee whose period of contributory service is not less than 8 years) who becomes entitled to spouse's benefit by virtue of subsection 81(2) may, not later than 3 months after becoming so entitled, elect, by notice in writing to CSC, that, in lieu of benefit being payable in accordance with section 85, pension and lump sum benefit be paid in accordance with this section.
(2) Where a spouse makes an election under subsection (1) of this section, the annual rate of the pension to which the spouse is entitled is 67 per centum of the annual rate of the pension to which the deceased eligible employee would have been entitled under section 71 if he or she had not died, but had, on the day immediately following the date of his or her death, become entitled to invalidity benefit and had made an election under that section.
(3) If, at any time when spouse's pension is payable to a spouse who makes an election under subsection (1), there are children of the deceased eligible employee who are eligible children, then, in the application of subsection (2) at that time to the spouse, the reference in subsection (2) to 67 per centum shall be read as a reference to:
(a) where there is 1 eligible child--78 per centum;
(b) where there are 2 eligible children--89 per centum; or
(c) where there are 3 or more eligible children--100 per centum.
(4) Where a spouse makes an election under subsection (1), the lump sum benefit to which the spouse is entitled is an amount equal to the accumulated contributions of the deceased eligible employee.
(5) A spouse who makes an election under section 87 is not entitled to make an election under subsection (1) of this section.