[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 15 (Tuesday, January 23, 1996)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 1711-1712]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-806]



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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

20 CFR Part 416

[Regulations No. 16]
RIN 0960-AD36


Supplemental Security Income for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled; 
Income and Resources; Victims' Compensation Payments and Relocation 
Assistance Exclusions

AGENCY: Social Security Administration.

ACTION: Final rules.

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SUMMARY: These final rules exclude from income and resources under the 
supplemental security income (SSI) program, payments received by an 
individual (or spouse) from a fund established by a State to aid 
victims of crime and certain relocation assistance received from a 
State or local government.

EFFECTIVE DATE: These rules will become effective February 22, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Harry J. Short, Legal Assistant, 3-B-1 
Operations Building, 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235, 
(410) 965-6243.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 1612(b) of the Social Security Act 
(the Act), as amended by sections 5031 and 5035 of Pub. L. 101-508, 
effective May 1, 1991, excludes from income under the SSI program 
payments received by an individual (or spouse) from a fund established 
by a State to aid victims of crime, and relocation assistance provided 
by a State or local government which is comparable to assistance 
provided under title II of the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real 
Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970. Sections 5031 and 5035 also 
amended section 1613(a) of the Act to exclude these payments and 
assistance from resources for a period of 9 months beginning with the 
month following the month in which they are received. However, with 
respect to victims' compensation payments under section 5031, the 
resource exclusion applies to the extent that the payments were made as 
compensation for expenses incurred or losses suffered as a result of a 
crime. In addition, section 5031 amended section 1631(a) of the Act to 
provide that benefits under title XVI shall not be denied to any 
individual solely by reason of the refusal of the individual to accept 
an amount offered as compensation for a crime of which the individual 
was a victim. Section 13732 of Public Law 103-66 (the Omnibus Budget 
Reconciliation Act of 1993) amended section 5035 of Pub. L. 101-508 by 
making permanent the exclusion of relocation assistance which 
originally was set to expire on April 30, 1994.
    These final regulations amend Secs. 416.210(b), 416.1124, and 
416.1210 and create new Secs. 416.1229 and 416.1239 to reflect these 
statutory changes. These final regulations also amend Sec. 416.1161 to 
apply these same income exclusions when victims' compensation payments 
and State and local government relocation assistance are received by 
the ineligible spouse or ineligible parent of an eligible individual or 
child in order that the deeming rules not reduce the SSI payment of, or 
render ineligible, the individual or child. The amendments to 
Sec. 416.1210 result in the application of the resource exclusions to 
these deemors. Not to apply the exclusions in such cases could thwart 
the Congressional intent underlying sections 5031 and 5035 that State 
victims' compensation payments and relocation assistance not be treated 
as income and resources and thus not adversely affect SSI eligibility. 
For this same reason, the resource exclusions also apply to victims' 
compensation payments and relocation assistance received by an alien's 
sponsor whose resources are deemed to an eligible alien. Under section 
1621(b)(1) of the Act, income exclusions are not applicable in 
determining the amount of a sponsor's income that will be deemed to an 
alien. Therefore, the income exclusions for victims' compensation 
payments and relocation assistance do not apply to such payments 
received by a sponsor whose income is deemed to an alien. Section 
416.1204 is updated to reflect the inclusion of the resource exclusion 
for victims' compensation payments and relocation assistance as well as 
the other resource exclusions applicable to the resources of a sponsor.
    These rules were published in a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on 
August 26, 1994 (59 FR 44093). A 60-day comment period was provided. We 
did not receive any public comments. We are, therefore, adopting as 
final the rules essentially as proposed.

Regulatory Procedures

Executive Order 12866

    We have consulted with the Office of Management and Budget and 
determined that these rules do not meet the criteria for a significant 
regulatory action under Executive Order 12866.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

    We certify that these rules will not have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities since these rules 
affect only individuals. Therefore, a regulatory flexibility analysis 
as provided in Pub. L. 96-354, the Regulatory Flexibility Act, is not 
required.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    These regulations will impose no additional reporting and 
recordkeeping requirements subject to Office of Management and Budget 
clearance.

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance: Program No. 96.006-
Supplemental Security Income.)

List of Subjects in 20 CFR Part 416

    Administrative practice and procedure, Aged, Blind, Disability 
benefits, Public assistance programs, Supplemental Security Income 
(SSI), Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements.

 
[[Page 1712]]

    Approved: December 20, 1995.
Shirley S. Chater,
Commissioner of Social Security.
    For the reasons set out in the preamble, part 416 of chapter III of 
title 20 of the Code of Federal Regulations is amended as follows:

PART 416--SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, BLIND, AND 
DISABLED

Subpart B--[Amended]

    1. The authority citation for subpart B of part 416 is revised to 
read as follows:

    Authority: Secs. 702(a)(5), 1110(b), 1602, 1611, 1614, 1615(c), 
1619(a), 1631, and 1634 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
902(a)(5), 1310(b), 1381a, 1382, 1382c, 1382d(c), 1382h(a), 1383, 
and 1383c); secs. 211 and 212, Pub. L. 93-66, 87 Stat. 154 and 155 
(42 U.S.C. 1382 note); sec. 502(a), Pub. L. 94-241, 90 Stat. 268 (48 
U.S.C. 1681 note); sec. 2, Pub. L. 99-643, 100 Stat. 3574 (42 U.S.C. 
1382h note).

    2. Section 416.210 is amended by revising paragraph (b) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 416.210  You do not apply for other benefits.

* * * * *
    (b) What ``other benefits'' includes. ``Other benefits'' includes 
any payments for which you can apply that are available to you on an 
ongoing or one-time basis of a type that includes annuities, pensions, 
retirement benefits, or disability benefits. For example, ``other 
benefits'' includes veterans' compensation and pensions, workers' 
compensation payments, Social Security insurance benefits and 
unemployment insurance benefits. ``Other benefits'' for which you are 
required to apply do not include payments that you may be eligible to 
receive from a fund established by a State to aid victims of crime. 
(See Sec. 416.1124(c)(17).)
* * * * *

Subpart K--[Amended]

    3. The authority citation for Subpart K of Part 416 is revised to 
read as follows:

    Authority: Secs. 702(a)(5), 1602, 1611, 1612, 1613, 1614(f), 
1621, and 1631 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 902(a)(5), 
1381a, 1382, 1382a, 1382b, 1382c(f), 1382j, and 1383); sec. 211, 
Pub. L. 93-66, 87 Stat. 154 (42 U.S.C. 1382 note).

    4. Section 416.1124 is amended by replacing the periods after 
paragraphs (c)(9) and (c)(16) with semicolons, by removing ``and'' from 
the end of (c)(15), and by adding new paragraphs (c)(17) and (c)(18) to 
read as follows:


Sec. 416.1124  Unearned income we do not count.

* * * * *
    (c) * * *
    (17) Payments received by you from a fund established by a State to 
aid victims of crime; and
    (18) Relocation assistance provided you by a State or local 
government that is comparable to assistance provided under title II of 
the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition 
Policies Act of 1970 that is subject to the treatment required by 
section 216 of that Act.
    5. Section 416.1161 is amended by replacing the period after 
paragraph (a)(20) with a semicolon, and by adding new paragraphs 
(a)(21) and (a)(22) to read as follows:


Sec. 416.1161  Income of an ineligible spouse, ineligible parent, and 
essential person for deeming purposes.

* * * * *
    (a) * * *
    (21) Payments from a fund established by a State to aid victims of 
crime (see Sec. 416.1124(c)(17)); and
    (22) Relocation assistance, as described in Sec. 416.1124(c)(18).

Subpart L--[Amended]

    6. The authority citation for subpart L of part 416 is revised to 
read as follows:

    Authority: Secs. 702(a)(5), 1602, 1611, 1612, 1613, 1614(f), 
1621, and 1631 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 902(a)(5), 
1381a, 1382, 1382a, 1382b, 1382c(f), 1382j, and 1383); sec. 211, 
Pub. L. 93-66, 87 Stat. 154 (42 U.S.C. 1382 note).

    7. Section 416.1204 is amended by revising paragraph (a) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 416.1204  Deeming of resources of the sponsor of an alien.

* * * * *
    (a) Exclusions from the sponsor's resources. Before we deem a 
sponsor's resources to an alien, we exclude the same kinds of resources 
that are excluded from the resources of an individual eligible for SSI 
benefits. The applicable exclusions from resources are explained in 
Sec. 416.1210 (paragraphs (a) through (i), (k), and (m) through (q)) 
through Sec. 416.1239. For resources excluded by Federal statutes other 
than the Social Security Act, as applicable to the resources of 
sponsors deemed to aliens, see the appendix to subpart K of part 416. 
We next allocate for the sponsor or for the sponsor and spouse (if 
living together). (The amount of the allocation is the applicable 
resource limit described in Sec. 416.1205 for an eligible individual 
and an individual and spouse.)
* * * * *
    8. Section 416.1210 is amended by removing ``and'' from the end of 
paragraph (n), by replacing the period at the end of paragraph (o) with 
a semicolon, and by adding new paragraphs (p) and (q) to read as 
follows:


Sec. 416.1210  Exclusions from resources; general.

* * * * *
    (p) Payments received as compensation for expenses incurred or 
losses suffered as a result of a crime as provided in Sec. 416.1229; 
and
    (q) Relocation assistance from a State or local government as 
provided in Sec. 416.1239.
    9. A new Sec. 416.1229 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 416.1229  Exclusion of payments received as compensation for 
expenses incurred or losses suffered as a result of a crime.

    (a) In determining the resources of an individual (and spouse, if 
any), any amount received from a fund established by a State to aid 
victims of crime is excluded from resources for a period of 9 months 
beginning with the month following the month of receipt.
    (b) To be excluded from resources under this section, the 
individual (or spouse) must demonstrate that any amount received was 
compensation for expenses incurred or losses suffered as the result of 
a crime.
    10. A new Sec. 416.1239 is added to read as follows:


Sec. 416.1239  Exclusion of State or local relocation assistance 
payments.

    In determining the resources of an individual (or spouse, if any), 
relocation assistance provided by a State or local government (as 
described in Sec. 416.1124(c)(18)) is excluded from resources for a 
period of 9 months beginning with the month following the month of 
receipt.

[FR Doc. 96-806 Filed 1-22-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4190-29-P