[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 158 (Wednesday, August 17, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 50684-50685]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-17627]
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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
[Docket No: SSA-2022-0044]
Agency Information Collection Activities: 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 one new collection.
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,
Comments: https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Submit your
comments online referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-2022-0044].
(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 https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain, referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-
2022-0044].
SSA submitted the information collection below to OMB for
clearance. Your comments regarding this information collection 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 September 16, 2022. Individuals can obtain copies of the
OMB clearance package by writing to [email protected].
1. The National Beneficiary Survey (NBS)--0960-NEW
Background
SSA's Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and SSI programs
provide a crucial and necessary income for people with disabilities. By
improving employment outcomes for SSDI beneficiaries and SSI
recipients, SSA supports the effort to reduce the reliance of people
with disabilities on these programs. SSA previously conducted seven
rounds of the National Beneficiary Survey (NBS) in 2004, 2005, 2006,
2010, 2015, 2017, and 2019. Conducting the prior rounds of the NBS
provided SSA with an important understanding of the work interests and
experiences of SSI recipients and SSDI beneficiaries, and helped SSA
gain information about their impairments; health; living arrangements;
family structure; pre-disability occupation; and use of non-SSA
programs (e.g., the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). The
prior rounds of NBS data are available to researchers and the public.
SSA contracted with Mathematica to conduct the NBS data collection.
NBS Project Description
The primary purpose of the new NBS is to: (1) assess beneficiary
well-being and interest in work; (2) learn about beneficiary work
experiences (successful and unsuccessful); and (3) identify factors
that promote or restrict long-term work success. As with the previous
NBS rounds, the current NBS will collect information on factors such as
health; living arrangements; family structure; current occupation; use
of non-SSA programs; knowledge of SSDI and SSI work incentive programs;
obstacles to work; and beneficiary interest and motivation to return to
work.
SSA is requesting approval to administer Round 8 of the NBS in
2023. The information we will collect is not something we could obtain
from SSA administrative data or other sources. In the Round 8 NBS, the
sample design is similar to the ones we used for the prior NBS. The
sample includes the nationally representative beneficiary samples (RBS)
of adult SSDI and SSI disability program participants, as well as the
successful worker sample (SWS) which includes beneficiaries who worked
above the substantial gainful activity for at least three consecutive
months during the six months preceding their NBS interview. SSA plans
to complete 8,000 interviews: 5,000 from a cross-sectional sample of
active beneficiaries (SSI and SSDI) and 3,000 from a successful worker
sample, and will conduct the survey interviews primarily by telephone.
We will send a letter in advance informing the beneficiary that an
interviewer will contact them to conduct, or schedule a date and time
for the survey. The beneficiary can also contact the 800 number we
provide in the sample letter to schedule the interview or take the
survey with an interviewer. We will send follow-up letters and
postcards reminding the beneficiary to contact us, if they have not
already done so, and we will also send postcard messages about
establishing the best time for the beneficiary to take the survey.
In addition to the Round 8 NBS, we propose to conduct an
experimental web and a paper-based data collection effort to test if
these modes are feasible methods to collect data from nonrespondents.
SSA will conduct this experiment during the administration of the Round
8 NBS, and we will include a shorter version of the instrument for web
and paper administration designed to collect critical data from
nonrespondents to the telephone interview modality. We will mail the
abbreviated experimental paper version survey to the beneficiaries to
complete and send back to Mathematica.
We will pull the sample for the experimental web and paper
administration of the NBS from Round 8 SWS nonrespondents. Respondent
participation in the NBS is voluntary and the decision to participate
has no impact on current or future receipt of payments or benefits.
Respondents are current SSDI beneficiaries and SSI recipients.
Type of Request: Request for a new information collection.
[[Page 50685]]
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Average wait
Average time for
Number of Frequency of Average burden Estimated theoretical mathematica Total annual
Modality of completion respondents response per response total annual hourly cost teleservice opportunity cost
(minutes) burden (hours) amount centers (dollars) ***
(dollars) * (minutes) **
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Representative Beneficiary Sample..... 5,000 1 60 5,000 * $11.70 ** 5 *** $63,379
Successful Worker Sample.............. 3,000 1 70 3,500 * 11.70 ** 5 ***43,875
Successful Worker Sample web-based 125 1 25 52 * 11.70 .............. *** 608
experiment...........................
Successful Worker Sample, paper-based 100 1 25 42 * 11.70 .............. *** 491
experiment respondent................
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Totals............................ 8,225 .............. .............. 8,594 .............. .............. *** 108,353
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* We based this figure on the average DI payments based on SSA's current FY 2022 data (https://www.ssa.gov/legislation/2022factsheet.pdf).
** We based this figure on Mathematica's FY 2022 average wait times for their teleservice centers, based on Mathematica's current management information
data.
*** This figure does not represent actual costs that SSA is imposing on recipients of Social Security payments to complete this application; rather,
these are theoretical opportunity costs for the additional time respondents will spend to complete the application. There is no actual charge to
respondents to complete the application.
Dated: August 11, 2022.
Naomi Sipple,
Reports Clearance Officer, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2022-17627 Filed 8-16-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P