[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 215 (Thursday, November 6, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66002-66004]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-26365]


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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: Application for 
Benefits Due But Unpaid at Death; OMB 3220-0055.
    Under Section 2(g) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act, 
benefits that accrued but were not paid because of the death of the 
employee shall be paid to the same individual(s) to whom benefits are 
payable under Section 6(a)(1) of the Railroad Retirement Act. The 
provisions relating to the payment of such benefits are prescribed in 
20 CFR 325.5 and 20 CFR 335.5.
    The RRB provides Form UI-63, Application for Benefits Due But 
Unpaid at Death, to those applying for the accrued sickness or 
unemployment benefits unpaid at the death of the employee and for 
obtaining the information needed to identify the proper payee. One 
response is requested of each respondent. Completion is required to 
obtain a benefit. The RRB proposes no changes to Form UI-63.

[[Page 66003]]



                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
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                                                                    Annual
                           Form No.                               responses     Time  (minutes)  Burden  (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UI-63........................................................              25                7                3
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    1.
    2. Title and purpose of information collection: Medicare; OMB 3220-
0082.
    Under Section 7(d) of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), the 
Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) administers the Medicare program for 
persons covered by the railroad retirement system. The RRB uses Form 
AA-6, Employee Application for Medicare; Form AA-7, Spouse/Divorced 
Spouse Application for Medicare; and Form AA-8, Widow/Widower 
Application for Medicare; to obtain the information needed to determine 
whether individuals who have not yet filed for benefits under the RRA 
are qualified for Medicare payments provided under Title XVIII of the 
Social Security Act.
    Further, in order to determine if a qualified railroad retirement 
beneficiary who is claiming supplementary medical insurance coverage 
under Medicare is entitled to a Special Enrollment Period (SEP) and/or 
premium surcharge relief because of coverage under an Employer Group 
Health Plan (EGHP), the RRB needs to obtain information regarding the 
claimant's EGHP coverage, if any. The RRB uses Form RL-311-F, Evidence 
of Coverage Under An Employer Group Health Plan, to obtain the basic 
information needed to establish EGHP coverage for a qualified railroad 
retirement beneficiary.
    Completion of the forms is required to obtain a benefit. One 
response is requested of each respondent. The RRB proposes no changes 
to the forms in the collection.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual           Time           Burden
                            Form No.                                 responses       (minutes)        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AA-6............................................................             180               8              24
AA-7............................................................              50               8               7
AA-8............................................................              10               8               1
RL-311-F........................................................           2,000              10             333
    Total.......................................................           2,240  ..............             365
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    3. Request to Non-Railroad Employer for Information About 
Annuitant's Work and Earnings; OMB 3220-0107.
    Under Section 2 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), a railroad 
employee's retirement annuity or an annuity paid to the spouse of a 
railroad employee is subject to work deductions in the Tier II 
component of the annuity and any employee supplemental annuity for any 
month in which the annuitant works for a Last Pre-Retirement Non-
Railroad Employer (LPE). The LPE is defined as the last person, 
company, or institution, other than a railroad employer, that employed 
an employee or spouse annuitant. In addition, the employee, spouse, or 
divorced spouse Tier I annuity benefit is subject to work deductions 
under Section 2(f)(1) of the RRA for earnings from any non-railroad 
employer that are over the annual exempt amount. The regulations 
pertaining to non-payment of annuities by reason of work and LPE are 
contained in 20 CFR 230.1 and 230.2.
    The RRB utilizes Form RL-231-F, Request to Non-Railroad Employer 
for Information About Annuitant's Work and Earnings, to obtain the 
information needed to determine if a work deduction should be applied 
because an annuitant worked in non-railroad employment after the 
annuity beginning date. One response is requested of each respondent. 
Completion is voluntary. The RRB proposes no changes to Form RL-231-F.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                    Annual
                           Form No.                               responses     Time  (minutes)  Burden  (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
RL-231-F.....................................................             300               30              150
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    4. Title and purpose of information collection: Gross Earnings 
Report; OMB 3220-0132.
    In order to carry out the financial interchange provisions of 
section 7(c)(2) of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), the RRB obtains 
annually from railroad employer's the gross earnings for their 
employees on a one-percent basis, i.e., 1% of each employer's railroad 
employees. The gross earnings sample is based on the earnings of 
employees whose social security numbers end with the digits ``30.'' The 
gross earnings are used to compute payroll taxes under the financial 
interchange.
    The gross earnings information is essential in determining the tax 
amounts involved in the financial interchange with the Social Security 
Administration and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Besides 
being necessary for current financial interchange calculations, the 
gross earnings file tabulations are also an integral part of the data 
needed to estimate future tax income and corresponding financial 
interchange amounts. These estimates are made for internal use and to 
satisfy requests from other government agencies and interested groups. 
In addition, cash flow projections of the social security equivalent 
benefit account, railroad retirement account and cost estimates made 
for proposed amendments to laws

[[Page 66004]]

administered by the RRB are dependent on input developed from the 
information collection.
    The RRB utilizes Form BA-11 to obtain gross earnings information 
from railroad employers. Employers have the option of preparing and 
submitting BA-11 reports online via the RRB's Employer Reporting System 
or on paper (or in like format) on magnetic tape cartridges, by File 
Transfer Protocol (FTP), or secure Email. The online BA-11 includes the 
option to file a ``negative report'' (no employees, or no employees 
with the digits ``30''). Completion is mandatory. One response is 
requested of each respondent. The RRB proposes to formally eliminate 
the paper and magnetic tape cartridge versions of Form BA-11 from the 
information collection.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual           Time           Burden
                            Form No.                                 responses       (minutes)        (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BA-11 File Transfer Protocol....................................               7   300 (5 hours)              35
BA-11 CD-ROM....................................................               5              30               2
BA-11 secure E-mail.............................................               5              30               2
BA-11 (Internet)--Positive......................................             137              30              68
BA-11 (Internet)--Negative......................................             329              15              82
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................             483  ..............             189
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    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. 2014-26365 Filed 11-5-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P