[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 51 (Monday, March 17, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Page 12721]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-6240]


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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    Summary: In accordance with the requirement of section 
3506(c)(2)(A) of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 which provides 
opportunity for public comment on new or revised data collections, the 
Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) will publish periodic summaries of 
proposed data collections.
    Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed information 
collection is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information has practical utility; 
(b) the accuracy of the RRB's estimate of the burden of the collection 
of the information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize 
the burden related to the collection of information on respondents, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    Title and purpose of information collection: Application for Spouse 
Annuity Under the Railroad Retirement Act; OMB 3220-0042 section 2(c) 
of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), provides for the payment of 
annuities to spouses of railroad retirement annuitants who meet the 
requirements under the RRA. The age requirements for a spouse annuity 
depend on the employee's age and date of retirement and the employee's 
years of railroad service. The requirements relating to the annuities 
are prescribed in 20 CFR 216, 218, 219, 232, 234, and 295.
    The RRB currently uses the electronic AA-3cert, Application Summary 
and Certification process and manual Form AA-3, Application for Spouse/
Divorced Spouse Annuity, to obtain the information needed to determine 
an applicant's entitlement to an annuity and the amount of the annuity.
    The AA-3cert process obtains information from an applicant by means 
of an interview with an RRB field-office representative. During the 
interview, the field-office representative enters the information 
obtained into an on-line information system. Upon completion of the 
interview, the applicant receives Form AA-3cert, Application Summary 
and Certification, which summarizes the information that was provided 
by/or verified by the applicant, for review and signature. The RRB also 
uses manual Form AA-3 in instances where the RRB representative is 
unable to contact the applicant in person or by telephone, i.e., the 
applicant lives in another country.
    The RRB estimates the burden for the collection as follows:

                                                Estimated Burden
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                                                                                     Estimated
                                                                     Estimated      completion       Estimated
                            Form No.                                  annual         time (per     annual burden
                                                                     responses       response)        (hours)
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AA-3CERT........................................................           8,400              30           4,200
AA-3 (manual)...................................................             100              58              97
                                                                 -----------------
    Total.......................................................           8,500  ..............           4,297
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    No changes are proposed to Form AA-3cert or Form AA-3. Completion 
is required to obtain a benefit. One response is requested of each 
respondent.
    Additional Information or Comments: To request more information or 
to obtain a copy of the information collection justification, forms, 
and/or supporting material, please call the RRB Clearance Office at 
(312) 751-3363. Comments regarding the information collection should be 
addressed to Ronald J. Hodapp, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 N. Rush 
Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611-2092. Written comments should be 
received within 60 days of this notice.

Chuck Mierzwa,
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 03-6240 Filed 3-14-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-M