[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 72 (Monday, April 17, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 18169-18171]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-07632]


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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD


Agency Forms Submitted for OMB Review, Request for Comments

    Summary: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) is forwarding 
an Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), Office of Management and Budget (OMB). 
Our ICR describes the information we seek to collect from the public. 
Review and approval by OIRA ensures that we impose appropriate 
paperwork burdens.
    The RRB invites comments on the proposed collections of information 
to determine (1) the practical utility of the collections; (2) the 
accuracy of the estimated burden of the collections; (3) ways to 
enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information that is 
the subject of collection; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of 
collections on respondents, including the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology. Comments to the 
RRB or OIRA must contain the OMB control number of the ICR. For proper 
consideration of your comments, it is best if the RRB and OIRA receive 
them within 30 days of the publication date.
    1. Title and purpose of information collection: RUIA Investigations 
and Continuing Entitlement; OMB 3220-0025.
    Under Section 1(k) of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act 
(RUIA), unemployment and sickness benefits are not payable for any day 
remuneration is payable or accrues to the claimant. Also Section 4(a-1) 
of the RUIA provides that unemployment or sickness benefits are not 
payable for any day the claimant receives the same benefits under any 
law other than the RUIA. Under Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) 
regulation 20 CFR 322.4(a), a claimant's certification or statement on 
an RRB-provided claim form, that he or she did not work on any day 
claimed and did not receive income such as vacation pay or pay for time 
lost, shall constitute sufficient evidence unless there is conflicting 
evidence. Further, under 20 CFR 322.4(b), when there is a question 
raised as to whether or not remuneration is payable or has accrued to a 
claimant with respect to a claimed day(s), an investigation shall be 
made with a view to obtaining information sufficient for a finding. The 
RRB utilizes the following three forms to obtain information from 
railroad employers, nonrailroad employers, and claimants, that is 
needed to determine whether a claimed day(s) of unemployment or 
sickness were improperly or fraudulently claimed: Form ID-5i, Request 
for Employment Information; Form ID-5R (SUP), Report of Employees Paid 
RUIA Benefits for Every Day in Month Reported as Month of Creditable 
Service; and Form UI-48, Statement Regarding Benefits Claimed for Days 
Worked. Completion is voluntary. One response is requested of each 
respondent.
    To qualify for unemployment or sickness benefits payable under 
Section 2 of the Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act (RUIA), a railroad 
employee must have certain qualifying earnings in the applicable base 
year. In addition, to qualify for extended or accelerated benefits 
under Section 2 of the RUIA, a railroad employee who has exhausted his 
or her rights to normal benefits must have at least 10 years of 
railroad service (under certain conditions, military service may be

[[Page 18170]]

credited as months of railroad service). Accelerated benefits are 
unemployment or sickness benefits that are payable to a railroad 
employee before the regular July 1 beginning date of a benefit year if 
an employee has 10 or more years of service and is not qualified for 
benefits in the current benefit year.
    During the RUIA claims review process, the RRB may determine that 
unemployment or sickness benefits cannot be awarded because RRB records 
show insufficient qualifying service and/or compensation. When this 
occurs, the RRB allows the claimant the opportunity to provide 
additional information if they believe that the RRB service and 
compensation records are incorrect.
    Depending on the circumstances, the RRB provides the following 
forms to obtain information needed to determine if a claimant has 
sufficient service or compensation to qualify for unemployment or 
sickness benefits. Form UI-9, Statement of Employment and Wages; Form 
UI-44, Claim for Credit for Military Service; Form ID-4U, Advising of 
Service/Earnings Requirements for Unemployment Benefits; and Form ID-
4X, Advising of Service/Earnings Requirements for Sickness Benefits. 
Completion of these forms is required to obtain or retain a benefit. 
One response is required of each respondent.
    Previous Requests for Comments: The RRB has already published the 
initial 60-day notice (82 FR 9249 on February 3, 2017) required by 44 
U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That request elicited no comments.

Information Collection Request (ICR)

    Title: RUIA Investigations and Continuing Entitlement.
    OMB Control Number: 3220-0025.
    Forms submitted: UI-9, UI-23, UI-44, UI-48, ID-4U, ID-4X, ID-5I, 
ID-5R (SUP).
    Type of request: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Affected public: Private Sector; Businesses or other for profits.
    Abstract: The information collection has two purposes. When RRB 
records indicate that railroad service and/or compensation is 
insufficient to qualify a claimant for unemployment or sickness 
benefits, the RRB obtains information needed to reconcile the 
compensation and/or service on record with that claimed by the 
employee. Other forms in the collection allow the RRB to determine 
whether unemployment or sickness benefits were improperly obtained.
    Changes proposed: The RRB proposes no changes to the forms in this 
collection.
    The burden estimate for the ICR is as follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual
                           Form number                               responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
UI-9............................................................              69              10              11
UI-44...........................................................              10               5               1
UI-48...........................................................              14              12               3
ID-4U...........................................................              35               5               3
ID-4X...........................................................              25               5               2
ID-5i...........................................................           1,050              15             262
ID-5R (SUP).....................................................             400              10              67
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           1,603  ..............             349
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    2. Title and Purpose of information collection: Self-Employment/
Corporate Officer Work and Earnings Monitoring; OMB 3220-0202.
    Section 2 of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA) provides for the 
payment of disability annuities to qualified employees. Section 2 also 
provides that if the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) receives a report 
of an annuitant working for a railroad or earning more than prescribed 
dollar amounts from either nonrailroad employment or self-employment, 
the annuity is no longer payable, or can be reduced, for the months 
worked. The regulations related to the nonpayment or reduction of the 
annuity by reason of work are prescribed in 20 CFR 220.160-164.
    Some activities claimed by the applicant as ``self-employment'' may 
actually be employment for someone else (e.g., training officer, 
consultant, salesman). 20 CFR 216.22(c) states, for example, that an 
applicant is considered an employee, and not self-employed, when acting 
as a corporate officer, since the corporation is the applicant's 
employer. Whether the RRB classifies a particular activity as self-
employment or as work for an employer depends upon the circumstances in 
each case. The circumstances are prescribed in 20 CFR 216.21-216-23.
    Certain types of work may actually indicate an annuitant's recovery 
from disability. Regulations related to an annuitant's recovery from 
disability for work are prescribed in 20 CFR 220.17-220-20.
    In addition, the RRB conducts continuing disability reviews (also 
known as a CDR), to determine whether the annuitant continues to meet 
the disability requirements of the law. Payment of disability benefits 
and/or a beneficiary's period of disability will end if medical 
evidence or other information shows that an annuitant is not disabled 
under the standards prescribed in Section 2 of the RRA. Continuing 
disability reviews are generally conducted if one or more of the 
following conditions are met: (1) The annuitant is scheduled for a 
routine periodic review, (2) the annuitant returns to work and 
successfully completes a trial work period, (3) substantial earnings 
are posted to the annuitant's wage record, or (4) information is 
received from the annuitant or a reliable source that the annuitant has 
recovered or returned to work. Provisions relating to when and how 
often the RRB conducts disability reviews are prescribed in 20 CFR 
220.186.
    To enhance program integrity activities, the RRB utilizes Form G-
252, Self-Employment/Corporate Officer Work and Earnings Monitoring. 
Form G-252 obtains information from a disability annuitant who either 
claims to be self-employed or a corporate officer, or who the RRB 
determines to be self-employed or a corporate officer after a 
continuing disability review. The continuing disability review may be 
prompted by a report of work, return to railroad service, an allegation 
of a medical improvement or a routine disability review call-up. The 
information gathered is used to determine entitlement and/or continued 
entitlement to, and the amount of, the disability annuity, as 
prescribed in 20 CFR 220.176. Completion is required to retain 
benefits. One response is required of each respondent.

[[Page 18171]]

    Previous Requests for Comments: The RRB has already published the 
initial 60-day notice (82 FR 9250 on February 3, 2017) required by 44 
U.S.C. 3506(c)(2). That request elicited no comments.

Information Collection Request (ICR)

    Title: Self-Employment/Corporate Officer Work and Earnings 
Monitoring.
    OMB Control Number: 3220-0202.
    Form(s) submitted: G-252.
    Type of request: Extension without change of a currently approved 
collection.
    Affected public: Individuals or Households.
    Abstract: To determine entitlement or continued entitlement to a 
disability annuity, the RRB will obtain information from disability 
annuitants who claim to be self-employed or a corporate officer or who 
the RRB determines to be self-employed or a corporate officer after a 
continuing disability review.
    Changes proposed: The RRB proposes no changes to Form G-252.
    The burden estimate for the ICR is as follows:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual
                           Form number                               responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
G-252...........................................................             100              20              33
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................             100  ..............              33
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Additional Information or Comments: Copies of the forms and 
supporting documents can be obtained from Dana Hickman at (312) 751-
4981 or [email protected].
    Comments regarding the information collection should be addressed 
to Brian Foster, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 North Rush Street, 
Chicago, Illinois 60611-1275 or [email protected] and to the OMB 
Desk Officer for the RRB, Fax: 202-395-6974, Email address: 
[email protected].

Martha P. Rico,
Secretary to the Board.
[FR Doc. 2017-07632 Filed 4-14-17; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P