[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 73 (Wednesday, April 16, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 21499-21501]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-08606]
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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Request and
Comment Request
The Social Security Administration (SSA) publishes a list of
information collection packages requiring clearance by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with Public Law (Pub. L.)
104-13, the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, effective October 1, 1995.
This notice includes revisions of OMB-approved information collections
and one new information collection.
SSA is soliciting comments on the accuracy of the agency's burden
estimate; the need for the information; its practical utility; ways to
enhance its quality, utility, and clarity; and ways to minimize burden
on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology. Mail, email, or fax your
comments and recommendations on the information collection(s) to the
OMB Desk Officer and SSA Reports Clearance Officer at the following
addresses or fax numbers.
(OMB)
Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, Fax:
202-395-6974, Email address: [email protected].
(SSA)
Social Security Administration, OLCA, Attn: Reports Clearance
Director, 3100 West High Rise, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD
21235, Fax: 410-966-2830, Email address: [email protected].
I. The information collections below are pending at SSA. SSA will
submit them to OMB within 60 days from the date of this notice. To be
sure we consider your comments, we must receive them no later than June
16, 2014. Individuals can obtain copies of the collection instruments
by writing to the above email address.
1. National Beneficiary Survey--0960-NEW. SSA is proposing to
undertake the National Beneficiary Survey (NBS), a survey intended to
gather data from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients and
Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries about their
characteristics, their well-being, and other factors that promote or
hinder employment. In particular, the survey seeks to uncover important
information about the factors that promote beneficiary self-sufficiency
and, conversely, factors that impede beneficiary efforts to maintain
employment. We will use this data to improve the administration and
effectiveness of the SSDI and SSI programs. These results will be
valuable as SSA and other policymakers continue efforts to improve
programs and services that help SSDI beneficiaries and SSI recipients
become more self-sufficient.
Background
SSDI and SSI programs provide a crucial and necessary safety net
for working-age people with disabilities. By improving employment
outcomes for SSDI beneficiaries and SSI recipients, SSA supports the
effort to reduce the reliance of people with disabilities on these
programs. SSA conducted the prior NBS in 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2010,
and was an important first step in understanding the work interest and
experiences of SSI recipients and SSDI beneficiaries, and in gaining
information about their impairments, health, living arrangements,
family structure, pre-disability occupation, and use of non-SSA
programs (e.g., the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). The
prior NBS data is available to researchers and the public.
The National Beneficiary Survey (NBS)
The primary purpose of the new NBS-General Waves is to assess
beneficiary well-being and interest in work, learn about beneficiary
work experiences (successful and unsuccessful), and identify factors
that promote or restrict long-term work success. Information collected
in the survey includes factors such as health, living arrangements,
family structure, current occupation, use of non-SSA programs,
knowledge of SSDI and SSI work incentive programs, obstacles to work,
and beneficiary interest and motivation to return to work.
We propose to conduct the first wave of the NBS-General Waves in
2015. We will further conduct subsequent rounds in 2017 (round 2) and
2019 (round 3). The information we will collect is not available from
SSA administrative data or other sources. In the NBS-General Waves, the
sample design is similar to what we used for the prior NBS. Enhancement
of the prior questionnaire includes additional questions on the factors
that promote or hinder employment success. We also propose to conduct
semi-structured qualitative interviews (in 2015 only) to provide SSA an
in-depth understanding of factors that aid or inhibit individuals in
their efforts to obtain and retain employment and advance in the
workplace. We will use the qualitative data to add context and
understanding when interpreting survey results, and to inform the
sample and survey design of rounds 2 and 3.
Respondents are current SSDI beneficiaries and SSI recipients.
Respondent participation in the NBS is voluntary and the decision to
participate or not has no impact on current or future receipt of
payments or benefits.
Type of Request: This is a new information collection request.
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Average burden Estimated
Administration year Number of Frequency of per response total annual
respondents response (hours) burden (hours)
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2015 .............. .............. .............. ..............
Cross-Sectional Samples:
Representative Beneficiary Sample........... 4,000 1 .75 3,000
Successful Worker Qualitative Interviews.... 90 1 1.00 90
�������������������������������������������������
Subtotal................................ .............. .............. .............. 3,090
2017 .............. .............. .............. ..............
Cross-Sectional Samples:
Representative Beneficiary Sample........... 4,000 1 .75 3,000
Successful Workers.......................... 4,500 1 .92 4,140
�������������������������������������������������
Subtotal................................ .............. .............. .............. 7,140
[[Page 21500]]
2019 .............. .............. .............. ..............
Cross-Sectional Samples:
Representative Beneficiary Sample........... 4,000 1 .75 3,000
Successful Workers.......................... 3,000 1 .92 2,760
Longitudinal Samples:
Successful Workers.......................... 2,250 1 .75 1,688
�������������������������������������������������
Subtotal................................ .............. .............. .............. 7,448
�������������������������������������������������
Total Burden........................ 26,550 .............. .............. 17,678
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2. Marriage Certification--20 CFR 404.725--0960-0009. Sections
202(b) and 202(c) of the Social Security Act (Act) stipulate that every
spouse of an individual entitled to Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability
Insurance (OASDI) benefits is entitled to a spouse benefit if the wife
or husband, in addition to meeting the entitlement requirements, meets
the relationship criteria in Section 216(h)(1)(A) and (B). SSA uses
Form SSA-3 to determine if a spouse claimant has the necessary
relationship to the Social Security number holder (i.e., the worker) to
qualify for the worker's OASDI benefits. The respondents are applicants
for spouse's OASDI benefits.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average burden Estimated total
Modality of completion Number of Frequency of per response annual burden
respondents response (minutes) (hours)
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SSA-3....................................... 180,000 1 5 15,000
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3. Supplemental Security Income (SSI)--Quality Review Case
Analysis--0960-0133. To assess the SSI program and ensure the accuracy
of payments, SSA conducts legally mandated periodic SSI case analysis
quality reviews. SSA uses Form SSA-8508-BK to conduct these reviews,
collecting information on operating efficiency, the quality of
underlying policies, and the effect of incorrect payments. SSA also
uses the data to determine SSI program payment accuracy rate, which is
a performance measure for the agency's service delivery goals.
Respondents are recipients of SSI payments selected for quality
reviews.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB approved information
collection.
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Estimated
Number of Frequency of Average burden total annual
Modality of completion respondents response per response burden
(minutes) (hours)
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SSA-8508-BK (paper interview)................... 225 1 60 225
SSA-8508-BK (electronic)........................ 4,275 1 60 4,275
�������������������������������������������������
Total....................................... 4,500 .............. .............. 4,500
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4. Claimant's Work Background--20 CFR 404.1512(a); 404.1520(a)(4);
404.1565(b); 416.912(a); 416.920(a)(4); 416.965(b)--0960-0300. Sections
205(a) and 1631(e) of the Act provide the Commissioner of Social
Security with the authority to establish procedures for determining if
a claimant is entitled to disability benefits. The administrative law
judge (ALJ) may ask individuals to provide background information on
Form HA-4633 about work they performed in the past 15 years. When a
claimant requests a hearing before an ALJ to establish an entitlement
to disability benefits, the ALJ may request that the claimant provide a
work history to assist the ALJ in fully inquiring into statutory issues
related to the disability. The ALJ uses the information collected from
the claimants on Form HA-4633 to: (1) Identify the claimant's relevant
work history; (2) decide if expert vocational testimony is required
and, if so, have a vocational expert available to testify during the
hearing; and (3) provide a reference for the ALJ to discuss the
claimant's work history. The ALJ makes the completed HA-4633 part of
the documentary evidence of record. The respondents are claimants for
disability benefits under Title II or Title XVI who requested a hearing
before an ALJ after SSA denied their application for disability
payments.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Estimated
Number of Frequency of Average burden total annual
Modality of completion respondents response per response burden
(minutes) (hours)
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HA-4633--PDF/paper version...................... 20,000 1 15 5,000
[[Page 21501]]
Electronic Records Express...................... 180,000 1 15 45,000
�������������������������������������������������
Total....................................... 200,000 .............. .............. 50,000
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II. SSA submitted the information collections below to OMB for
clearance. Your comments regarding the information collections would be
most useful if OMB and SSA receive them 30 days from the date of this
publication. To be sure we consider your comments, we must receive them
no later than May 16, 2014. Individuals can obtain copies of the OMB
clearance packages by writing to [email protected].
1. Statement of Death by Funeral Director--20 CFR 404.715 and
404.720--0960-0142. When an SSA-insured worker dies, the funeral
director or funeral home responsible for the worker's burial or
cremation completes Form SSA-721 and sends it to SSA. SSA uses this
information for three purposes: (1) To establish proof of death for the
insured worker; (2) to determine if the insured individual was
receiving any pre-death benefits SSA needs to terminate; and (3) to
ascertain which surviving family member is eligible for the lump-sum
death payment or for other death benefits. The respondents are funeral
directors who handled death arrangements for the insured individuals.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average burden Estimated total
Modality of completion Number of Frequency of per response annual burden
respondents response (minutes) (hours)
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SSA-721..................................... 319,811 1 4 21,321
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2. Medicare Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount--Life-Changing
Event Form--0960-0784. Federally mandated reductions in the Federal
Medicare Part B and prescription drug coverage subsidies result in
selected Medicare recipients paying higher premiums with income above a
specific threshold. The amount of the premium subsidy reduction is an
income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA). The Internal Revenue
Service (IRS) transmits income tax return data to SSA for SSA to
determine the IRMAA. SSA uses the Form SSA-44 to determine if a
recipient qualifies for a reduction in the IRMAA. If affected Medicare
recipients believe SSA should use more recent tax data because of a
life-changing event that significantly reduces their income, they can
report these changes to SSA and ask for a new initial determination of
their IRMAA. The respondents are Medicare Part B and prescription drug
coverage recipients and enrollees with modified adjusted gross income
over a high-income threshold who experience one of the eight
significant life-changing events.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Estimated
Number of Frequency of Average burden total annual
Modality of completion respondents response per response burden
(minutes) (hours)
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Personal Interview (SSA field office)........... 147,000 1 30 73,500
SSA-44 Paper Form............................... 39,000 1 45 29,250
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Totals...................................... 186,000 .............. .............. 102,750
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Dated: April 11, 2014.
Faye Lipsky,
Reports Clearance Director, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2014-08606 Filed 4-15-14; 8:45 am]
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