[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 183 (Thursday, September 21, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55221-55222]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 06-7831]


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MERIT SYSTEMS PROTECTION BOARD


Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection

AGENCY: Merit Systems Protection Board.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) intends to request 
approval of a revised information collection from the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3506 and 3507). The currently approved information 
collection is the MSPB Appeal Form, MSPB Form 185 (OMB Control Number 
3124-0009). The MSPB intends to make one substantive change to the 
information collected on the MSPB Appeal Form: Individuals who file 
appeals with the MSPB will be required to provide the last four digits 
of their Social Security numbers. In addition, several minor edits have 
been made to the Appeal Form to make the process

[[Page 55222]]

easier to understand. At this time, the MSPB is requesting public 
comments on the revised MSPB Form 185, which is available for review on 
the MSPB Web site at http://mspb.gov/headlinespage.html. In addition to 
soliciting comments on the changes to the Appeal Form, we are also 
soliciting comments on the public reporting burden.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before November 20, 2006.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments to the Office of the Clerk of the Board, 
Merit Systems Protection Board, 1615 M Street, NW., Washington, DC 
20419. Because of possible mail delays, respondents are encouraged to 
submit comments by e-mail to [email protected] or by facsimile (fax) 
transmittal to (202) 653-7130.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Office of the Clerk of the Board, 1615 
M Street, NW., Washington, DC 20419; telephone (202) 653-7200; 
facsimile (fax) (202) 653-7130; e-mail to [email protected]. Persons 
without Internet access may request a paper copy of the MSPB Appeal 
Form from the Office of the Clerk.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The current version of the MSPB Appeal Form 
was approved by OMB, in accordance with the requirements of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act, in July 2003. At the same time, OMB approved 
the Board's use of e-Appeal, the MSPB's Web-based system for filing 
appeals online (https://e-appeal.mspb.gov). Once OMB has approved the 
changes to the paper-based form as described below, the MSPB will 
incorporate these changes into e-Appeal.

Social Security Numbers

    In Part 1 of the revised Appeal Form, each appellant is required to 
provide the last four digits of his or her Social Security number. The 
instructions for this item state as follows: ``The Merit Systems 
Protection Board requires that you provide it with the last four digits 
of your Social Security number. This information will be used solely 
for identification purposes in the processing of your appeal. Failure 
to provide this information may result in the delay or non-processing 
of your appeal.''
    The reason for requiring this information is to ascertain whether 
an appellant has filed previous appeals with the MSPB that may affect 
the processing of the new appeal. Because of the similarity of names 
and the possibility of name changes, and because appellants sometimes 
use nicknames instead of formal names, it can be difficult to determine 
whether the person who has filed a new appeal is the same person who 
filed one or more previous Board appeals. Although requiring the last 
four digits of the appellant's Social Security number will not result 
in certainty as to the filer's identity, it will give the MSPB more 
assurance in this regard.
    Section 7(a) of the Privacy Act of 1974 provides that it is 
unlawful for a federal agency to ``deny to any individual any right, 
benefit, or privilege provided by law because of such individual's 
refusal to disclose his social security account number.'' Because 
federal law provides federal employees the right to file appeals with 
the MSPB, that right cannot be conditioned on the individual's 
providing the MSPB with his or her Social Security number. According to 
a Policy Analyst with the Information Policy and Technology Branch of 
the OMB, OMB takes the position that the last four digits of an 
individual's Social Security number do not constitute that individual's 
Social Security number, and can be made mandatory. The Board will 
carefully safeguard the last four digits of Social Security numbers 
provided by appellants in MSPB proceedings. This information will not 
generally be disclosed to third parties.

Estimated Reporting Burden

    In accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act 
of 1995, the MSPB is soliciting comments on the public reporting burden 
for this information collection. The public reporting burden for this 
collection of information is estimated to vary from 20 minutes to 4 
hours, with an average of 60 minutes per response, including time for 
reviewing the form and instructions, searching existing data sources, 
gathering the data necessary, and completing and reviewing the 
collection of information.
    Specifically, the MSPB invites comments on: (1) Whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of MSPB's functions, including whether the information will 
have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the MSPB's estimate of 
burden of the proposed collection of information, including the 
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) ways to enhance 
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques, when appropriate, and other forms of information 
technology.

                                                            Estimated Annual Reporting Burden
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                                                            Annual number of    Frequency per       Total annual        Hours per
                       5 CFR Parts                            respondents          response           response           response         Total hours
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1201, 1208, and 1209.....................................             7,150                  1              7,150                1.0              7,150
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    Dated: September 15, 2006.
Bentley M. Roberts, Jr.,
Clerk of the Board.
[FR Doc. 06-7831 Filed 9-20-06; 8:45 am]
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