[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 246 (Thursday, December 23, 2004)]
[Notices]
[Page 76963]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-28065]


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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

    Statement Regarding Contributions and Support of Children: OMB 
3220-0195. Section 2(d)(4) of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), 
provides, in part, that a child is deemed dependent if the conditions 
set forth in Section 202(d)(3),(4) and (9) of the Social Security Act 
are met. Section 202(d)(4) of the Social Security Act, as amended by 
Public Law 104-121, requires as a condition of dependency, that a child 
receives one-half of his or her support from the stepparent. This 
dependency impacts upon the entitlement of a spouse or survivor of an 
employee whose entitlement is based upon having a stepchild of the 
employee in care, or on an individual seeking a child's annuity as a 
stepchild of an employee. Therefore, depending on the employee for at 
least one-half support is a condition affecting eligibility for 
increasing an employee or spouse annuity under the social security 
overall minimum provisions on the basis of the presence of a dependent 
child, the employee's natural child in limited situations, adopted 
children, stepchildren, grandchildren and step-grandchildren and 
equitably adopted children. The regulations outlining child support and 
dependency requirements are prescribed in 20 CFR 222.50-57.
    In order to correctly determine if an applicant is entitled to a 
child's annuity based on actual dependency, the RRB uses Form G-139, 
Statement Regarding Contributions and Support of Children, to obtain 
financial information needed to make a comparison between the amount of 
support received from the railroad employee and the amount received 
from other sources. Completion is required to obtain a benefit. One 
response is required of each respondent.
    The RRB estimates that 500 Form G-139's are completed annually. The 
completion time is estimated at 60 minutes. The RRB proposes non-burden 
impacting editorial changes to Form G-139.
    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 Officer at 
(312) 751-3363 or [email protected]. Comments regarding the 
information collection should be addressed to Ronald J. Hodapp, 
Railroad Retirement Board, 844 N. Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611-
2092 or [email protected]. Written comments should be received 
within 60 days of this notice.

Charles Mierzwa,
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 04-28065 Filed 12-22-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P