[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 248 (Thursday, December 26, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78848-78849]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-32515]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION


Agency Information Collection Activities: Emergency 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. L. 104-13 
effective October 1, 1995, the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The 
information collection packages that may be included in this notice are 
for new information collections, revisions to OMB-approved information 
collections and extensions (no change) of OMB-approved information 
collections.
    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. The information can be mailed and/or faxed to the individuals 
at the addresses and fax numbers listed below:

(OMB)
Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, New 
Executive Office Building, Room 10235, 725 17th St., NW., Washington, 
DC 20503. Fax: 202-395-6974.
(SSA)
Social Security Administration, DCFAM, Attn: Reports Clearance Officer, 
1338 Annex Building, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21235. Fax: 
410-965-6400.

    I. SSA has submitted the information collection listed below for 
emergency consideration by OMB. SSA has requested OMB approval within 
30 days from the date of this notice. Therefore, your comments will be 
most useful if received before the 30 days concludes. You can obtain 
copies of the OMB clearance package by calling the SSA Reports 
Clearance Officer at 410-965-0454, or by writing to the address listed 
above.
    Request for Internet Services--Password--0960-0632. SSA uses a 
personal identification number (PIN)/password process for verifying the 
identity of individuals who choose to use the Internet and Automated 
Telephone Response in order to conduct business with the agency. An 
individual will be requested to provide certain information about 
himself or herself that SSA can verify in its records in order to 
obtain a password for use with its electronic services. The information 
that SSA collects varies depending on individual circumstances. Some 
examples of the information collected are: name, social security 
number, password request code, benefit payment amount, and other shared 
secret types of information from SSA records. Once the requestor's 
identity is verified, SSA issues a PIN to the requestor which will 
allow them to establish a password for use with SSA Internet/telephone 
transactions.
    Until now, the services offered have been primarily to 
beneficiaries receiving benefits under title II of the Social Security 
Act, including Retirement, Survivors and Disability benefits. Beginning 
in April 2003, SSA will offer the opportunity for certain beneficiaries 
receiving benefits under title XVI of the Social Security Act, known as 
Supplemental Security Income (SSI), to report their wages 
electronically. SSA will initiate a 6-month Proof of Concept project to 
test the beneficiary acceptance of this technology for reporting wages. 
Participation in this Proof of Concept is voluntary. Individuals who 
must report wages include SSI beneficiaries, and, in some cases, the 
parent or spouse of the SSI beneficiary. In order to use SSA's 
electronic services, SSA must authenticate the person using its PIN/
password process to protect the information in its records from those 
not authorized to receive it. This technology is expected to be more 
secure, less burdensome, faster and provide better customer service 
than other available options. The respondents are individuals who elect 
to conduct business with the agency in an electronic medium.
    Type of Request: Revised information collection.
    Number of Respondents: 391,267.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 65,211 hours.

[[Page 78849]]

    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 
packages by calling the SSA Reports Clearance Officer at 410-965-0454, 
or by writing to the address listed above.

1. Quickstart Enrollment--31 CFR 209 and 210--0960-0564

    The information collected is needed by SSA to facilitate electronic 
transmission of data for direct deposit of funds to a payee's account. 
The respondents are Social Security beneficiaries and SSI recipients 
requesting direct deposit to their financial institutions.
    Type of Request: Extension of an OMB-approved information 
collection.
    Number of Respondents: 3,950,000.
    Frequency of Response: 1.
    Average Burden Per Response: 3 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 197,500 hours.

2. Request for Internet Services Representative Payee, 20 CFR 401.45 
Report--0960-NEW

Background
    SSA is developing an Internet Representative Payee Report form 
(I623) to electronically report on the use of benefit payments made on 
behalf of Social Security beneficiaries and SSI recipients. As part of 
this process, SSA will conduct a proof of concept (POC) test that will 
be limited to 40 organizational representative payees. During the 
projected 6-month POC test, participating organizations will use the 
I623 to complete and file the representative payee report instead of 
using the paper SSA-623.
The Collection
    Organizations participating in the POC will designate up to three 
employees that will be authenticated using SSA's existing Integrated 
Registration for Employers and Submitters (IRES) OMB control number 
0960-0626. Once authenticated, the employee will be required to enter a 
Personal Identification Number (PIN) and Password to gain access to the 
online I623 application. The PIN and Password will serve as the 
electronic signature. SSA will use the information collected through 
the I623 to determine whether the payments provided to the 
representative payee have been used for the beneficiary's current 
maintenance and personal needs and whether the representative payee 
continues to be concerned with the beneficiary's welfare. The 
respondents are organizational representative payees designated to 
receive funds on behalf of Social Security beneficiaries and/or SSI 
recipients.
    Type of request: New information collection.
    Number of Respondents: 40 organizations.
    Frequency of Response: 117.5 per respondent.
    Average Burden Per Response: 15 minutes.
    Estimated Annual Burden: 1,175 hours.

    Dated: December 19, 2002.
Elizabeth A. Davidson,
Reports Clearance Officer, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 02-32515 Filed 12-24-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P