[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 169 (Thursday, August 30, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45887-45889]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-21861]


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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 that will require clearance by the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with Pub Law 104-13 
effective October 1, 1995, The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. 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 on ways to minimize burden on 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology.
    Written comments and recommendations regarding the information 
collection(s) should be submitted to the OMB Desk Officer and the SSA 
Reports Clearance Officer and at the following addresses:

(OMB): Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, New 
Executive Office Building, Room 10230, 725 17th St., NW., Washington, 
DC 20503.
(SSA): Social Security Administration, DCFAM, Attn: Frederick W. 
Brickenkamp, 1-A-21 Operations Bldg., 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, 
MD 21235.
    I. The information collection listed below will be submitted to OMB 
within 60 days from the date of this notice. Therefore, your comments 
should be submitted to SSA within 60 days from the date of this 
publication. You can obtain copies of the collection instruments by 
calling the SSA Reports Clearance Officer at 410-965-4145, or by 
writing to him at the address listed above.
    1. Statement Regarding Students' School Attendance--0960-0113. Form 
SSA-2434 is used by the Social Security Administration to determine 
student entitlement status of the children of coal miners, children of 
their widows or the brothers of deceased miners eligible for Black Lung 
benefits. This form collects information from students about to attain 
age 18, for the express purpose of evaluating their continuing 
eligibility for program benefits under the Federal Mine Safety Act of 
1977. The respondents are entitled black lung children of coal miner's 
or their widow, or the brother of deceased black lung coal miners.
    Number of Respondents: 50.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 8 hours.
    II. The information collections listed below have been submitted to 
OMB for clearance. Your comments on the information collections would 
be most useful if received by OMB and SSA within 30 days from the date 
of this publication. You can obtain a copy of the OMB clearance package 
by calling the SSA Reports Clearance Officer on (410) 965-4145, or by 
writing to him at the address listed above.
    1. Employee Identification Statement--0960-0473. The information 
collected on Form SSA-4156 is needed in scrambled earnings situations 
when two or more individuals have used the same social security number 
(SSN), or when an employer (or employers) have reported earnings for 
two or more employees under the same SSN. The information on the form 
is used to help identify the individual (and the SSN) to whom the 
earnings belong. The respondents are employers who have reported 
erroneous wages.
    Number of Respondents: 4,750.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Average Burden: 792 hours.
    2. Plan for Achieving Self-Support--0960-0559. The information on 
form SSA-545 is collected by SSA when a Supplemental Security Income 
(SSI) applicant/recipient desires to use available income and resources 
to obtain education and/or training in order to become self-supportive. 
The information is used to evaluate the recipient's plan for achieving 
self-support to determine whether the plan may be approved under the 
provisions of the SSI program. The respondents are SSI applicants/
recipients who are blind or disabled.
    Number of Respondents: 7,000.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 2 hours.
    Estimated Average Burden: 14,000 hours.
    3. Electronic Death Registration Survey--0960-0625. Section 205(r) 
requires the Social Security Administration (SSA) to enter into

[[Page 45888]]

agreements with States to obtain death records. Sections 202(a)(1)-
(h)(1) require SSA to terminate Retirement, Survivors and Disability 
benefits upon the death of the beneficiary. This survey will measure 
the States' readiness to implement electronic death registration 
processes, which will result in SSA getting death information more 
timely and accurately to terminate benefits as required by law. The 
respondents are State Vital Records Directors.
    Number of Respondents: 55.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 30 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 28 hours.
    4. Request for a Deceased Individual's Social Security Record, SSA-
711; You Can Make Your Payment by Credit Card for a Deceased 
Individual's Social Security Record, SSA-714--0960-NEW. Form SSA-711 is 
used by SSA to fulfill requests from members of the public who apply 
for a microprint of the SS-5, Application for Social Security Card, for 
a deceased individual. SSA provides this information in response to a 
request from an individual conducting genealogical research. The 
information collected on Form SSA-714 is used by SSA to process credit 
card payments from members of the public who request a microprint of 
the SS-5 in conjunction with the service provided by the Agency through 
the SSA-711. Respondents to the SSA-711 and 714 are members of the 
public who request a microprint of the SS-5 of a deceased individual 
for genealogical research.

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                                                                                      Average
                                                                   Frequency of     burden per       Estimated
                                                    Respondents      response        response      annual burden
                                                                                       (min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-711.........................................         320,000               1               7          37,333
SSA-714.........................................          50,000               1               7           5,833
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total burden hours..........................  ..............  ..............  ..............          43,166
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    5. Statement for Determining Continuing Eligibility for 
Supplemental Security Income Payments--Adult, Form SSA-3988-TEST; 
Statement for Determining Continuing Eligibility for Supplemental 
Security Income Payments--Child, Form SSA-3987-TEST--0960-NEW.

Background

    The Social Security Act mandates periodic redeterminations of the 
non-medical factors that relate to the SSI recipients' continuing 
eligibility for SSI payments. Recent SSA studies have indicated that as 
many as \2/3\ of all scheduled redeterminations completed, with the 
assistance of a SSA employee, did not result in any change in 
circumstances that affected payment. Therefore, SSA will conduct a 
limited test to determine whether a less intrusive and labor intensive 
redetermination process could result in significant operational savings 
and a decrease in recipient inconvenience, while timely obtaining the 
accurate data needed to determine continuing eligibility through the 
process.

The Collection

    A limited test of forms SSA-3988-TEST and SSA-3987-TEST will be 
used to determine whether SSI recipients have met and continue to meet 
all statutory and regulatory non-medical requirements for SSI 
eligibility, and whether they have been and are still receiving the 
correct payment amount. The SSA-3988-TEST and SSA-3987-TEST are 
designed as self-help forms that will be mailed to recipients or to 
their representative payees for completion and return to SSA. The test 
objectives are to determine the public's ability to understand and 
accurately complete the test forms. The respondents are recipients of 
SSI benefits or their representatives.

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                                                                                      Average
                                                                   Frequency of     burden per       Estimated
                                                    Respondents      response        response      annual burden
                                                                                       (min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-3988-TEST...................................          13,600               1              20           4,533
SSA-3987-TEST...................................           2,400               1              20             800
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total burden hours..........................  ..............  ..............  ..............           5,333
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    6. Request for the Correction of Earning Records--0960-0029. Form 
SSA-7008 is used by individual wage earners to request SSA's review, 
and if necessary, correction of the Agency's master record of their 
earnings. The respondents are individuals who question SSA's record of 
their earnings.
    Number of Respondents: 375,000.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 62,500 hours.
    7. Statement of Agricultural Employer (Years prior to 1988); 
Statement of Agricultural Employer (1988 and Later)--0960-0036. The 
information on Forms SSA-1002 and SSA-1003 is used by the Social 
Security Administration (SSA) to resolve discrepancies when farm 
workers have alleged that their employers did not report their wages or 
reported them incorrectly. The respondents are agricultural employers.

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                                                                                      Average
                                                                   Frequency of     burden per       Estimated
                                                    Respondents      response        response      annual burden
                                                                                       (min)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-1002........................................          75,000               1              10          12,500

[[Page 45889]]

 
 
SSA-1003........................................          50,000               1              30          25,000
                                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Total burden hours..........................  ..............  ..............  ..............          37,500
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    Dated: August 24, 2001.
Frederick W. Brickenkamp,
Reports Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 01-21861 Filed 8-29-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P