[Federal Register Volume 77, Number 184 (Friday, September 21, 2012)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58604-58606]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-23321]
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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
[Docket No. SSA-2012-0023]
Social Security Ruling (SSR), 12-1p; Title II: Determining
Whether Work Performed in Self-Employment by Persons Who Are Blind Is
Substantial Gainful Activity and Treatment of Income Resulting From the
Randolph-Sheppard Act and Similar Programs
AGENCY: Social Security Administration.
ACTION: Notice of Social Security Ruling.
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SUMMARY: We are giving notice of SSR 12-1p. This SSR explains our
policy for evaluating whether work performed by self-employed persons
who are blind is substantial gainful activity (SGA) under the
disability program in title II of the Social Security Act (Act). In
addition, this ruling clarifies that we do not count the income
resulting from the Randolph-Sheppard Act and similar programs as
earnings when we determine whether blind persons are engaging in SGA.
DATES: Effective Date: September 21, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Andrea Stoneham, Office of Program
Development and Research, Social Security Administration, 6401 Security
Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235-6401, (410) 965-6286, or, if you are
deaf or hard of hearing, you may call our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778.
You may also visit our Internet site, Social Security Online, at http://www.socialsecurity.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Although 5 U.S.C. 552(a)(1) and (a)(2) do
not require us to publish this SSR, we are doing so in accordance with
20 CFR 402.35(b)(1).
SSRs make available to the public precedential decisions relating
to the Federal old-age, survivors, disability,
[[Page 58605]]
supplemental security income, special veterans benefits, and black lung
benefits programs. We base SSRs on determinations or decisions made at
all levels of administrative adjudication, Federal court decisions,
Commissioner's decisions, opinions of the Office of the General
Counsel, or other interpretations of the law and regulations.
Although SSRs do not have the same force and effect as statutes or
regulations, they are binding on all of our components. 20 CFR
402.35(b)(1).
This SSR will be in effect until we publish a notice in the Federal
Register that rescinds it, or until we publish a new SSR that replaces
or modifies it.
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance, Program Nos. 96.001 Social
Security--Disability Insurance; 96.002, Social Security--Retirement
Insurance; and 96.004, Social Security--Survivors Insurance).
Dated: September 7, 2012.
Michael J. Astrue,
Commissioner of Social Security.
Policy Interpretation Ruling
Title II: Determining whether work performed in self-employment by
persons who are blind is substantial gainful activity and treatment of
income resulting from the Randolph-Sheppard Act and similar programs.
Purpose: This Social Security Ruling (SSR) explains our policy for
evaluating whether work performed by self-employed persons who are
blind is substantial gainful activity (SGA) under the disability
program in title II of the Social Security Act (Act).\1\ In addition,
this ruling clarifies that we do not count income resulting from the
Randolph-Sheppard Act and similar programs as earnings when we
determine whether blind persons are engaging in SGA.
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\1\ A person is blind if his or her visual impairment meets the
definition of ``blindness'' in section 216(i)(1) of the Act. See 20
CFR 404.1581.
Citations (Authority): Sections 216(i) and 223(d) of the Act, as
amended; (42 U.S.C. 416(i) and 423(d)); 20 CFR 404.1572, 404.1573,
404.1575, and 404.1584; section 7 of the Randolph-Sheppard Act, as
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amended (20 U.S.C. 107d-3); 34 CFR 395.8 and 395.32.
Introduction: Under the disability provisions of the law, a title
II disability beneficiary who performs SGA after the trial work period
is not eligible for disability payments except during the first month
he or she performs SGA, and the two succeeding months, whether or not
he or she performs SGA in those months. We define SGA in the
regulations as work that involves doing significant physical or mental
activities and is the kind of work usually done for pay or profit. Work
activity may be substantial even if the person does it on a part-time
basis, or does less, is paid less, or has less responsibility than in
previous work. Work activity by a self-employed person is gainful if it
is the kind of work usually done for profit, whether or not the person
realizes a profit. We generally do not consider activities such as
self-care, household tasks, hobbies, therapy, school attendance, club
activities, or social programs to be SGA. See 20 CFR 404.1572.
Policy Interpretation: For work activity performed by blind self-
employed persons, we evaluate self-employment work activity based on
whether the blind person has received a substantial income from the
business and rendered significant services to the business.\2\
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\2\ We apply this test to evaluate work activity performed by
blind self-employed persons in 1978 or later. We use a different
test to evaluate work activity performed by blind self-employed
individuals prior to 1978. See SSR 83-34, ``Titles II and XVI:
Determining Whether Work Is Substantial Gainful Activity--Self-
Employed Persons.''
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Substantial Income
To determine whether a blind person has received substantial income
from the business, we determine the blind person's countable income in
the same manner as we determine the countable income of non-blind
persons. We use the Internal Revenue Service rules to determine gross
income, deductions, and net income from self-employment. We then deduct
the reasonable value of any significant amount of unpaid help furnished
by the person's spouse, children, or others, impairment-related work
expenses (if they were not already deducted from gross income as a
business expense), unincurred business expenses, and any soil bank
payments (if such payments were included as income by a farmer). The
income remaining after we make all applicable deductions represents the
actual value of work performed and is the amount we use to determine
whether the person has engaged in SGA. We refer to this amount as the
blind person's countable income. See 20 CFR 404.1575(c) and
404.1584(d).
We then compare his or her countable income from the business with
the dollar amounts in our published SGA earnings guidelines for persons
who are blind.\3\ We generally adjust the SGA guidelines annually based
on increases in the national average wage index.
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\3\ Evaluation of a self-employed person's work activity for SGA
purposes is concerned only with income that represents the person's
own productivity. Therefore, before applying the earnings guidelines
it is necessary to ascertain what portion of the individual's income
represents the actual value of the work he or she performed. See SSR
83-34. For 1978 and later, the law establishes SGA earnings
guidelines for blind persons that are higher than the SGA earnings
guidelines for non-blind persons. Section 335 of Public Law 95-216,
91 Stat. 1509, 1547.
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If the average monthly countable income of a self-employed
blind person exceeds our SGA earnings guidelines for the applicable
year, we will consider the person's work activity to be SGA, unless he
or she has not rendered significant services to the business.
If the average monthly countable income of the blind
person is equal to or less than the SGA earnings guidelines for the
applicable year, we will not consider his or her work activity to be
SGA.
Significant Services
If the countable income of a self-employed blind person exceeds our
SGA guidelines for blind persons, we will consider whether he or she
(if not a farm landlord \4\) has rendered significant services to
determine whether the work activity is SGA. If the blind person
operates a business alone, we consider any services rendered to be
significant to the business. However, if the business involves the
services of more than one person, we evaluate the actual services
rendered by the blind person to determine whether they are significant.
We will consider services significant if the blind person provides more
than half the total time needed to manage the business, or more than 45
hours a month regardless of the total management time the business
required.
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\4\ If a blind person is a farm landlord (i.e., you rent farm
land to another) who materially participates in the production or
the management of the production of the things raised on the rented
farm, we will consider those services as significant. See 20 CFR
404.1082, 404.1575(b)(2).
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Vending Machine Income Received by Blind Vendors Under the Randolph-
Sheppard Act and Similar Programs
The Randolph-Sheppard Act established a program for persons who are
blind to operate vending facilities as a business on Federal
property.\5\ The income the blind vendor receives from the operation of
the business is self-employment income. In addition, under the
Randolph-Sheppard Act program, a blind vendor who operates a vending
facility on Federal property may also receive income from vending
machines that are located on the same property, even though the blind
vendor does not
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service, operate, or maintain the vending machines.\6\
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\5\ Randolph-Sheppard Act, as amended (20 U.S.C. 107 et seq.);
34 CFR part 395.
\6\ Section 7 of the Randolph-Sheppard Act, as amended (20
U.S.C. 107d-3); 34 CFR 395.8 and 395.32.
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Various states have established similar programs for persons who
are blind to operate vending facilities as a business on state and
local government property. Like the Randolph-Sheppard Act program, many
of these State programs provide the blind vendor with income from
vending machines that are located on the same property but are operated
independently of the blind vendor's vending facility business.
The income that blind self-employed vendors receive under the
Randolph-Sheppard Act (and similar State programs) from vending
machines that are located on the same property, but are not serviced,
operated, or maintained by the blind vendor, is not a measure of a
blind vendor's own productivity. It does not represent the actual value
of any part of the blind vendor's work activity. Since the income a
blind vendor receives under this provision of the Randolph-Sheppard Act
(or similar State programs) is independent of his or her own vending
business, and cannot be attributed to the blind vendor's own work
activity, we will not consider this income when we determine whether
the self-employment work activity is SGA. We will deduct this income
from the blind vendor's net income before we apply the SGA earnings
guidelines.
Cross-References: SSR 83-34 Titles II and XVI: Determining Whether
Work Is Substantial Gainful Activity--Self-Employed Persons; Program
Operations Manual System sections DI 10501.015, DI 10515.005, and DI
10515.010.
[FR Doc. 2012-23321 Filed 9-20-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P