[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 166 (Monday, August 27, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 51833-51835]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-20980]


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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.
    1. Title and purpose of information collection: Employer Reporting; 
3220-0005.
    Under Section 9 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), and Section 6 
of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), railroad employers 
are required to submit reports of employee service and compensation to 
the RRB as needed for administering the RRA and RUIA. To pay benefits 
due on a deceased employee's earnings records or determine entitlement 
to, and amount of annuity applied for, it is necessary at times to 
obtain from railroad employers current (lag) service and compensation 
not yet reported to the RRB through the annual reporting process. The 
reporting requirements are specified in 20 CFR 209.6 and 209.7. The RRB 
currently utilizes Form G-88A.1, Notice of Retirement and Verification 
of Date Last Worked, Form G-88A.2, Notice of Retirement and Request for 
Service Needed for Eligibility, and Form AA-12, Notice of Death and 
Compensation, to obtain the required lag service and related 
information from railroad employers. Form G-88A.1 is a computer-
generated listing sent by the RRB to railroad employers and used for 
the specific purpose of verifying information previously provided to 
the RRB regarding the date last worked by an employee. If the 
information is correct, the employer need not reply. If the information 
is incorrect, the employer is asked to provide corrected information. 
Form G-88A.2 is used by the RRB to secure lag service and compensation 
information when it is needed to determine benefit eligibility. Form 
AA-12 obtains a report of lag service and compensation from the last 
railroad employer of a deceased employee. This report covers the lag 
period between the date of the latest record of employment processed by 
the RRB and the date an employee last worked, the date of death or the 
date the employee may have been entitled to benefits under the Social 
Security Act. The information is used by the RRB to determine benefits 
due on the deceased employee's earnings record. The RRB proposes no 
changes to Forms AA-12 or G-88A.2; minor editorial changes to the paper 
version of Form G-88A.1 and the implementation of an Internet 
equivalent version of Forms G-88A.1 and G-88A.2 that can be submitted 
through the RRB's Employer Reporting System (ERS).
    In addition, 20 CFR 209.12(b) requires all railroad employers to 
furnish the RRB with the home addresses of all employees hired within 
the last year (new-hires). Form BA-6a, Form BA-6 Address Report, is 
used by the RRB to obtain home address information of employees from 
railroad employers who do not have the home address information 
computerized and who

[[Page 51834]]

submit the information in a paper format. The form also serves as an 
instruction sheet to railroad employers who can submit the information 
electronically by magnetic tape cartridge, CD-ROM, PC diskette, secure 
Email, or via ERS. The RRB proposes no changes to Form BA-6a.
    Completion of the forms is mandatory. Multiple responses may be 
filed by respondent.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
                             [The estimated annual respondent burden is as follows]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual           Time           Burden
                            Form No.                                 responses       (minutes)        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AA-12...........................................................              60               5               5
G-88A.1.........................................................             100               5               8
G-88A.1 Internet................................................             260               4              17
G-88A.1 Internet (Class 1 railroads)............................             144              16              38
G-88A.2.........................................................             100               5               8
G-88A.2 (Internet)..............................................           1,200             2.5              50
BA-6a Electronic Equivalent*....................................              14              15               4
BA-6a (E-mail)..................................................              30              15               8
BA-6a (File Transfer Protocol)..................................              10              15               3
BA-6a Internet (RR initiated)...................................             250              17              71
BA-6a Internet (RRB initiated)..................................             250              12              50
BA-6a Paper (RR initiated)......................................              80              32              43
BA-6a Paper (RRB initiated).....................................             250              32             133
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           2,748  ..............             438
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    2. Title and purpose of information collection: Survivor 
Questionnaire; OMB 3220-0032.
    Under Section 6 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), benefits that 
may be due on the death of a railroad employee or a survivor annuitant 
include (1) a lump-sum death benefit (2) a residual lump-sum payment 
(3) accrued annuities due but unpaid at death, and (4) monthly survivor 
insurance payments. The requirements for determining the entitlement of 
possible beneficiaries to these benefits are prescribed in 20 CFR part 
234.
    When the RRB receives notification of the death of a railroad 
employee or survivor annuitant, an RRB field office utilizes Form RL-
94-F, Survivor Questionnaire, to secure additional information from 
surviving relatives needed to determine if any further benefits are 
payable under the RRA. Completion is voluntary. One response is 
requested of each respondent. The RRB proposes collecting identifying 
information when a trustee pays the burial expenses; minor non-burden 
impacting clarification; and editorial changes to Form RL-94-F.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
                             [The estimated annual respondent burden is as follows]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual           Time           Burden
                            Form No.                                 responses       (minutes)        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RL-94-F, Items 5-10, and 18.....................................              50               9               8
RL-94-F, Items 5-18.............................................           7,200              11           1,320
RL-94-F, Item 18 only...........................................             750               5              63
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           8,000  ..............           1,391
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    3. Title and purpose of information collection: Employer's Deemed 
Service Month Questionnaire; OMB 3220-0156.
    Section 3(i) of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), as amended by 
Public Law 98-76, provides that the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB), 
under certain circumstances, may deem additional months of service in 
cases where an employee does not actually work in every month of the 
year, provided the employee satisfies certain eligibility requirements, 
including the existence of an employment relation between the employee 
and his or her employer. The procedures pertaining to the deeming of 
additional months of service are found in the RRB's regulations at 20 
CFR part 210, Creditable Railroad Service.
    The RRB utilizes Form GL-99, Employer's Deemed Service Months 
Questionnaire, to obtain service and compensation information from 
railroad employers to determine if an employee can be credited with 
additional deemed months of railroad service.
    The RRB is proposing revisions to Form GL-99 to obtain only a 
``Yes'' or ``No'' response regarding whether an employee was in an 
employment relationship with an employer during any months indicated on 
the GL-99 as not worked. Other minor non-burden impacting editorial 
changes are also proposed. Completion is mandatory. One response is 
required for each RRB inquiry.

[[Page 51835]]



                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
                             [The estimated annual respondent burden is as follows]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                    Annual
                           Form No.                               responses     Time  (minutes)  Burden  (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GL-99........................................................           4,000                2              133
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Additional Information or Comments: To request more information or 
to obtain a copy of the information collection justification, forms, 
and/or supporting material, contact Dana Hickman at (312) 751-4981 or 
[email protected]. Comments regarding the information collection 
should be addressed to Charles Mierzwa, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 
North Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611-2092 or emailed to 
[email protected]. Written comments should be received within 60 
days of this notice.

Charles Mierzwa,
Chief of Information Resources Management.
[FR Doc. 2012-20980 Filed 8-24-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P