[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 183 (Friday, September 24, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53120-53121]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-20652]


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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD


Proposed Collection; Comment Request

    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: Employee's 
Certification; OMB 3220-0140. Section 2 of the Railroad Retirement Act 
(RRA) (45 U.S.C. 231a), provides for the payment of an annuity to the 
spouse or divorced spouse of a retired railroad employee. For the 
spouse or divorced spouse to qualify for an annuity, the RRB must 
determine if any of the employee's current marriage to the applicant is 
valid.
    The requirements for obtaining documentary evidence to determine 
valid marital relationships are prescribed in 20 CFR 219.30 through 
219.35. Section 2(e) of the RRA requires that an employee must 
relinquish all rights to any railroad employer service before a spouse 
annuity can be paid.
    The RRB uses Form G-346, Employee's Certification, to obtain the 
information needed to determine whether the employee's current marriage 
is valid. Form G-346 is completed by the retired employee who is the 
husband or wife of the applicant for a spouse annuity. Completion is 
required to obtain a benefit. One response is requested of each 
respondent. The RRB proposes no changes to Form G-346.
    Consistent with 20 CFR 217.17, the RRB uses Form G-346sum, 
Employee's Certification Summary, which mirrors the information 
collected on Form G-346, when an employee, after being interviewed by 
an RRB field office representative ``signs'' the form using an 
alternative signature method known as ``attestation.'' Attestation 
refers to the action taken by the RRB field office representative to 
confirm and annotate the RRB's records of the applicant's affirmation 
under penalty of perjury that the information provided is correct and 
the applicant's agreement to sign the form by proxy. Completion is 
required to obtain a benefit. One response is requested of each 
respondent. The RRB proposes no changes to Form G-346sum.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
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                                                                      Annual
                            Form No.                                 responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
G-346...........................................................           3,300               5             300
G-346sum........................................................           2,260               5             188
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................           5,560  ..............             488
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    2. Title and purpose of information collection: Railroad Separation 
Allowance or Severance Pay Report; OMB 3220-0173.
    Section 6 of the Railroad Retirement Act (45 U.S.C. 231e) provides 
for a lump-sum payment to an employee or the employee's survivors equal 
to the Tier II taxes paid by the employee on a separation allowance or 
severance payment for which the employee did not receive credits toward 
retirement. The lump-sum is not payable until retirement benefits begin 
to accrue or the employee dies. Also, Section 4 (a-1) (iii) of the 
Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act provides that a railroad employee 
who is paid a separation allowance is disqualified for unemployment and 
sickness benefits for the period of time the employee would have to 
work to earn the amount of the allowance. The reporting requirements 
are specified in 20 CFR 209.14.
    In order to calculate and provide payments, the Railroad Retirement 
Board (RRB) must collect and maintain records of separation allowances 
and severance payments which were subject to Tier II taxation from 
railroad employers. The RRB uses Form BA-9, Report of Separation 
Allowance or Severance Pay, to obtain information from railroad 
employers concerning the separation allowances and severance payments 
made to railroad employees and/or the survivors of railroad employees. 
Employers currently have the option of submitting their reports on 
paper Form BA-9, (or in like format) on a CD-ROM, or by File Transfer 
Protocol (FTP), or Secure Email. Completion is mandatory. One response 
is requested of each respondent. The RRB proposes no changes to the 
manual, CD-ROM, secure email, or FTP Version of Form BA-9. The RRB 
proposes the addition of an internet equivalent version of Form BA-9 to 
the information collection.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual
                            Form No.                                 responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
BA-9 (Paper)....................................................             100              76             127
BA-9 (Internet).................................................             215              15              54
BA-9 (CD-ROM)...................................................              10              76              13
BA-9 (Secure Email).............................................              25              76              32

[[Page 53121]]

 
BA-9 (FTP)......................................................              10              76              13
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................             360  ..............             239
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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 Kennisha Tucker at (312) 469-2591 
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 emailed 
to [email protected]. Written comments should be received within 60 
days of this notice.

Brian D. Foster,
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-20652 Filed 9-23-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-P