[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 143 (Monday, July 27, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 44402-44403]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-18314]


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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: Application for 
Survivor Death Benefits; OMB 3220-0031.
    Under section 6 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA), lump-sum 
death benefits are payable to surviving widow(er)s, children, and 
certain other dependents. Lump-sum death benefits are payable after the 
death of a railroad employee only if there are no qualified survivors 
of the employee immediately eligible for annuities. With the exception 
of the residual death benefit, eligibility for survivor benefits 
depends on whether the deceased employee was ``insured'' under the RRA 
at the time of death. If the deceased employee was not insured, 
jurisdiction of any survivor benefits payable is transferred to the 
Social Security Administration and survivor benefits are paid by that 
agency instead of the RRB. The requirements for applying for benefits 
are prescribed in 20 CFR 217, 219, and 234.
    The collection obtains the information required by the RRB to 
determine entitlement to and amount of the survivor death benefits 
applied for. To collect the information, the RRB uses Forms AA-11a, 
Designation for Change of Beneficiary for Residual Lump-Sum;

[[Page 44403]]

AA-21, Application for Lump-Sum Death Payment and Annuities Unpaid at 
Death; AA-21cert, Application Summary and Certification; G-131, 
Authorization of Payment and Release of All Claims to a Death Benefit 
or Accrued Annuity Payment; and G-273a, Funeral Director's Statement of 
Burial Charges. One response is requested of each respondent. 
Completion is required to obtain benefits. The RRB proposes the 
following changes to the forms in the information collection:
     Form AA-21--Add clarifying language to better define who 
qualifies for a child's annuity and other minor editorial changes;
     Form G-273a--Add clarifying language to Item 2, regarding 
the total amount of charges the funeral home should enter; and what the 
funeral home should list as types of payments received or expected to 
be received to Item 3.
     Form G-131--For clarity, add an Instructions section and 
space for the RRB to enter the applicant's name and the waived share 
amount.
     Form AA-11a--Remove from the information collection due to 
less than 10 responses a year.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
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                                                                      Annual
                            Form No.                                 responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
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AA-21cert (with assistance).....................................           3,500              20           1,167
AA-21 (without assistance)......................................             200              40             133
G-131...........................................................             100               5               8
G-273a..........................................................           4,000              10             667
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           7,800  ..............           1,975
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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. 2015-18314 Filed 7-24-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P