[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 179 (Wednesday, September 16, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55705-55707]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-23275]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

[Docket No: SSA-2015-0053]


Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Request and 
Comment Request

    The Social Security Administration (SSA) publishes a list of 
information collection packages requiring clearance by the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with Public Law 104-13, the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, effective October 1, 1995. This notice 
includes revisions and extensions of OMB-approved information 
collections.
    SSA is soliciting comments on the accuracy of the agency's burden 
estimate; the need for the information; its practical utility; ways to 
enhance its quality, utility, and clarity; and ways to minimize burden 
on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology. Mail, email, or fax your 
comments and recommendations on the information collection(s) to the 
OMB Desk Officer and SSA Reports Clearance Officer at the following 
addresses or fax numbers.

(OMB)

    Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, Fax: 
202-395-6974, Email address: [email protected].

(SSA)

    Social Security Administration, OLCA, Attn: Reports Clearance 
Director, 3100 West High Rise, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD 
21235, Fax: 410-966-2830, Email address: [email protected].
    Or you may submit your comments online through www.regulations.gov, 
referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-2015-0053].
    I. The information collections below are pending at SSA. SSA will 
submit them to OMB within 60 days from the date of this notice. To be 
sure we consider your comments, we must receive them no later than 
November 16, 2015. Individuals can obtain copies of the collection 
instruments by writing to the above email address.
    1. Farm Self-Employment Questionnaire--20 CFR 404.1082(c) & 
404.1095--0960-0061. SSA collects the information on Form SSA-7156 on a 
voluntary and as-needed basis to determine the existence of an 
agriculture trade or business, which may affect the monthly benefit, or 
insured status of the applicant. SSA requires the existence of a trade 
or business before determining if an individual or partnership may have 
net earnings from self-employment. When an applicant indicates self-
employment as a farmer, SSA uses the SSA-7165 to obtain the information 
we need to determine the existence of an agricultural trade or 
business, and subsequent covered earnings for Social Security 
entitlement purposes. As part of the application process, we conduct a 
personal interview, either face-to-face or via telephone, and document 
the interview using Form SSA-7165. The respondents are applicants for 
Social Security benefits, whose entitlement depends on workers having 
covered earnings from self-employment as farmers.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

[[Page 55706]]



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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
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SSA-7156....................................          47,500                1               10            7,917
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    2. Pain Report Child--20 CFR 404.1512 and 416.912--0960-0540. 
Before SSA can make a disability determination for a child, we require 
evidence from Supplemental Security Income (SSI) applicants or 
claimants to prove their disability. Form SSA-3371-BK provides 
disability interviewers, and SSI applicants or claimants in self-help 
situations, with a convenient way to record information regarding 
claimants' pain or other symptoms. The State disability determination 
services adjudicators and administrative law judges use the information 
from Form SSA-3371-BK to assess the effects of symptoms on claimants' 
ability to function, for purposes of determining disability under the 
Act. The respondents are applicants for, or claimants of, SSI payments.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-3371....................................         250,000                1               15           62,500
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    3. Internet Request for Replacement of Forms SSA-1099/SSA-1042S--20 
CFR 401.45--0960-0583. Title II beneficiaries use Forms SSA-1099 and 
SSA-1042S, Social Security Benefit Statement, to determine (1) if their 
Social Security benefits are taxable, and (2) the amount they need to 
report to the Internal Revenue Service. In cases where the original 
forms are unavailable (e.g., lost, stolen, mutilated), an individual 
may use SSA's automated telephone application to request a replacement 
SSA-1099 or SSA-1042S. SSA uses the information from the automated 
telephone requests to verify the identity of the requestor and to 
provide replacement copies of the forms. The automated telephone 
options reduce requests to the National 800 Number Network (N8NN) and 
visits to local Social Security field offices (FO). The respondents are 
Title II beneficiaries who wish to request a replacement SSA-1099 or 
SSA-1042S via the Internet or telephone.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Automated Telephone Requestors..............         206,424                1                2            6,881
N8NN........................................         483,021                1                3           24,151
Calls to local FOs..........................         810,448                1                3           40,522
Other (program service centers).............          78,375                1                3            3,919
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    Totals..................................       1,578,268   ...............  ...............          75,473
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    II. SSA submitted the information collections below to OMB for 
clearance. Your comments regarding the information collections would be 
most useful if OMB and SSA receive them 30 days from the date of this 
publication. To be sure we consider your comments, we must receive them 
no later than October 16, 2015. Individuals can obtain copies of the 
OMB clearance packages by writing to [email protected].
    1. Employment Relationship Questionnaire--20 CFR 404.1007--0960-
0040. When SSA needs information to determine a worker's employment 
status for the purpose of maintaining a worker's earning records, the 
agency uses Form SSA-7160-F4 to determine the existence of an employer-
employee relationship. We use the information to develop the employment 
relationship; specifically to determine whether a beneficiary is self-
employed or an employee. The respondents are individuals seeking to 
establish their status as employees, and their alleged employers.
    Note: This is a correction notice. SSA published this information 
collection as a revision on July 17, 2015, at 80 FR 42600. Since we are 
not revising the Privacy Act Statement, this is now an extension of an 
OMB-approved information collection.
    Type of Request: Extension of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Individuals.................................           8,000                1               25            3,333
Businesses..................................           7,200                1               25            3,000

[[Page 55707]]

 
State/Local Government......................             800                1               25              333
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    Totals..................................          16,000   ...............  ...............           6,666
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    2. Testimony by Employees and the Production of Records and 
Information in Legal Proceedings--20 CFR 403.100-403.155--0960-0619. 
Regulations at 20 CFR 403.100-403.155 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations establish SSA's policies and procedures for an individual, 
organization, or government entity to request official agency 
information, records, or testimony of an agency employee in a legal 
proceeding when the agency is not a party. The request, which 
respondents submit in writing to the Commissioner, must (1) fully set 
out the nature and relevance of the sought testimony; (2) explain why 
the information is not available by other means; (3) explain why it is 
in SSA's interest to provide the testimony; and (4) provide the date, 
time, and place for the testimony. Respondents are individuals or 
entities who request testimony from SSA employees in connection with a 
legal proceeding.
    Type of Request: Extension of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
20 CFR 403.100-403.155......................             100                1               60              100
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    3. Notification of a Social Security Number (SSN) To An Employer 
for Wage Reporting--20 CFR 422.103(a)--0960-0778. Individuals applying 
for employment must provide a Social Security Number, or indicate they 
have applied for one. However, when an individual applies for an 
initial SSN, there is a delay between the assignment of the number and 
the delivery of the SSN card. At an individual's request, SSA uses Form 
SSA-132 to send the individual's SSN to an employer. Mailing this 
information to the employer: (1) Ensures the employer has the correct 
SSN for the individual; (2) allows SSA to receive correct earnings 
information for wage reporting purposes; and (3) reduces the delay in 
the initial SSN assignment and delivery of the SSN information directly 
to the employer. It also enables SSA to verify the employer as a 
safeguard for the applicant's personally identifiable information. The 
majority of individuals who take advantage of this option are in the 
United States with exchange visitor and student visas; however, we 
allow any applicant for an SSN to use the SSA-132. The respondents are 
individuals applying for an initial SSN who ask SSA to mail 
confirmation of their application or the SSN to their employers.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                Average  burden  Estimated total
           Modality of completion                Number of       Frequency of    per  response    annual burden
                                                respondents        response        (minutes)         (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-132.....................................         298,953                1                2            9,965
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    Dated: September 11, 2015.
Naomi R. Sipple,
Reports Clearance Officer, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2015-23275 Filed 9-15-15; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4191-02-P