[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 105 (Thursday, May 30, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 46945-46947]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-11803]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

[Docket No: SSA-2024-0016]


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 revisions 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
(SSA) Social Security Administration, OLCA, Attn: Reports Clearance 
Director, Mail Stop 3253 Altmeyer, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD 
21235, Fax: 833-410-1631, Email address: [email protected]

    Or you may submit your comments online through https://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAmain by clicking on Currently under 
Review--Open for Public Comments and choosing to click on one of SSA's 
published items. Please reference Docket ID Number [SSA-2024-0016] in 
your submitted response.
    SSA submitted the information collections below to OMB for 
clearance. Your comments regarding these 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 July 1, 2024. Individuals can obtain copies of these 
OMB clearance packages by writing to the [email protected].
    1. Development of Participation in a Vocational Rehabilitation or 
Similar Program--20 CFR 404.316(c), 404.337(c), 404.352(d), 
404.1586(g), 404.1596, 404.1597(a), 404.327, 404.328, 416.1321(d), 
416.1331(a)-(b), and 416.1338, 416.1402--0960-0282. State Disability 
Determination Services (DDS) determine if Social Security disability 
payment recipients whose disability ceased and who participate in 
vocational rehabilitation programs may continue to receive disability 
payments. To do this, DDSs need information about the recipients, the 
types of program participation, and the services they receive under the 
rehabilitation program. SSA uses Form SSA-4290 to collect this 
information. The respondents are State employment networks, vocational 
rehabilitation agencies, or other providers of educational or job 
training services.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                                                        Average wait
                                                                                                           Average      time in field
                                           Number of    Frequency of   Average burden     Estimated      theoretical    office or for     Total annual
         Modality of completion           respondents     response      per response    total annual     hourly cost     teleservice    opportunity cost
                                                                          (minutes)    burden (hours)      amount          centers       (dollars) ***
                                                                                                         (dollars) *    (minutes) **
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SSA-4290-F5 (By mail)...................        2,400               1              40           1,600        * $21.27  ..............        *** $34,032
SSA-4290-F5 (Telephone).................          600               1              30             300         * 21.27           ** 19         *** 10,422
                                         ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals..............................        3,000  ..............  ..............           1,900  ..............  ..............         *** 44,454
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* We based this figure on average Social and Human Service Assistant's hourly salary, as reported by (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes211093.htm).
** We based this figure on the average FY 2024 wait times for field offices phone calls, based on SSA'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.

    2. Application to Collect a Fee for Payee Services--20 CFR 
404.2040a & 416.640a--0960-0719. Sections 205(j) and 1631(a) of the 
Social Security Act (Act) allow SSA to authorize certain organizational 
representative payees to collect a fee for providing payee services. 
Before an organization may collect this fee, they complete and submit 
Form SSA-445. SSA uses the information to determine whether to 
authorize or deny permission to collect fees for payee services. The 
respondents are private sector businesses, or State and local 
government offices, applying to become a fee-for-service organizational 
representative payee.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

[[Page 46946]]



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                                                                                                                              Average
                                                                                          Average burden     Estimated      theoretical    Total annual
                   Modality of completion                     Number of    Frequency of    per response    total annual     hourly cost     opportunity
                                                             respondents     response        (minutes)     burden hours       amount      cost (dollars)
                                                                                                              (hours)       (dollars) *         **
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Private sector business....................................           80               1              13              17        * $18.48         ** $314
State/local government offices.............................           10               1              10               2         * 18.48           ** 37
                                                            --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals.................................................           90  ..............  ..............              19  ..............          ** 351
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* We based these figures on average Personal Care and Service Occupations hourly wages, as reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics data (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes390000.htm).
** 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.

    3. Screen Pop--20 CFR 401.45--0960-0790. Section 205(a) of the Act 
requires SSA to verify the identity of individuals who request a record 
or information pertaining to themselves, and to establish procedures 
for disclosing personal information. SSA established Screen Pop, an 
automated telephone process, to speed up verification for such 
individuals. Accessing Screen Pop, callers enter their Social Security 
number (SSN) using their telephone keypad or speech technology prior to 
speaking with a National 800 Number Network (N8NN) agent. The automated 
Screen Pop application collects the SSN and routes it to the ``Start 
New Call'' Customer Help and Information (CHIP) screen. Functionality 
for the Screen Pop application ends once the SSN connects to the CHIP 
screen and the SSN routes to the agent's screen. When the call connects 
to the N8NN agent, the agent can use the SSN to access the caller's 
record as needed. The respondents for this collection are individuals 
who contact SSA's N8NN to speak with an agent.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                                        Average        Average wait
                                                                        Average    Estimated total    theoretical        time for        Total annual
         Modality of completion            Number of   Frequency of   burden per    annual burden     hourly cost      teleservice     opportunity cost
                                          respondents    response      response        (hours)           amount          centers         (dollars) ***
                                                                       (minutes)                      (dollars) *      (minutes) **
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Screen Pop.............................   51,933,760             1             1          865,563         * $31.48            ** 19    *** $544,958,276
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* We based this figure on average U.S. worker's hourly wages, as reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics data (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes_nat.htm#00-00000).
** We based this figure on the average FY 2024 wait times for teleservice centers, based on SSA'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.

    4. Electronic Consent Based Social Security Number Verification--20 
CFR 400.100--0960-0817. The electronic Consent Based Social Security 
Number Verification (eCBSV) is a fee-based SSN verification service 
which allows permitted entities (a financial institution as defined by 
section 509 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, 42 U.S.C. 405(b)(4), and 
Pub. L. 115-174; or service provider, subsidiary, affiliate, agent, 
subcontractor, or assignee of a financial institution), to verify that 
an individual's name, date of birth (DOB), and SSN match our records 
based on the SSN holder's signed, including electronic consent in 
connection with a credit transaction or any circumstance described in 
section 604 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b).

Background

    SSA established the eCBSV service in response to section 215 of the 
Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act of 2018 
(Banking Bill), Public Law 115-174. Permitted entities are able to 
submit the SSN, name, and DOB of the number holder in connection with a 
credit transaction, or any circumstances described in section 604 of 
the Fair Credit Reporting Act to SSA for verification via an 
application programming interface. eCBSV allows SSA to verify permitted 
entities who submit SSN, name, and DOB matches, or does not match, the 
data contained in SSA's records. After obtaining number holders' 
consents, a permitted entity submits the names, DOBs, and SSNs of 
number holders to the eCBSV service. SSA matches the information 
against our Master File, using SSN, name, and DOB. The eCBSV service 
responds in real time with a match, or no match indicator (and an 
indicator if our records show that the number holder died). SSA does 
not provide specific information on what data elements did not match, 
nor does SSA provide any SSNs or other identifiable information. The 
verification does not authenticate the identity of the number holders 
or conclusively prove the number holders we verify are who they are 
claiming to be.

Consent Requirements

    Under the eCBSV process, the permitted entities do not submit the 
number holder's consent forms to SSA. SSA requires each permitted 
entity to retain a valid consent for each SSN verification request 
submitted for a period of 5 years. SSA allows the permitted entities to 
retain the consent in an electronic format, and SSA requires a wet or 
electronic signature on the consent. Permitted entities may request 
verification of a number holder's SSN on behalf of a financial 
institution pursuant to the terms of the Banking Bill; the user 
agreement between SSA and the PE; and the SSN Holder's consent. The 
permitted entity ensures the financial institution agrees to the terms 
in the user agreement to only use the SSN verification for the purpose 
stated in the consent, and prohibits public entities from further using 
or disclosing the SSN verification. This relationship is subject to the 
terms in the user agreement between SSA and the PE.

Compliance Review

    SSA requires each permitted entity to undergo compliance reviews 
which an SSA approved certified public accountant (CPA) conducts. The 
compliance reviews ensure the permitted entities meet all terms and 
conditions of the user agreement, including obtaining valid consent 
from number holders. The permitted entities pay all compliance review 
costs through the eCBSV fees. In general, SSA requests annual reviews 
with additional reviews

[[Page 46947]]

as necessary. The CPA follows review standards established by the 
American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and contained in the 
Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS).
    Initially, SSA only allowed 10 permitted entities access to use the 
service, with an estimated 307,000,000 requests. Now, with the open 
enrollment, eCBSV is available to all interested permitted entities, as 
defined in section 215 of the Banking Bill with an estimated annual 
77,000,000 requests, and 20 participating public entities. The 
respondents are permitted entities; members of the public who consent 
to SSN verifications; and CPAs who provide compliance review services.
    Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information 
collection.

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                                                                                                                           Average
                                                                                       Average burden     Estimated      theoretical      Total annual
                     Requirement                          Number of     Frequency of    per response    total annual     hourly cost    opportunity cost
                                                         respondents      response        (minutes)    burden (hours)      amount         (dollars) **
                                                                                                                         (dollars) *
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(a) People whose SSNs SSA will verify--Reading and         76,000,000               1               3       3,800,000        * $13.30     ** $50,540,000
 Signing.............................................
(a) Sending in the verification request, calling our       76,000,000               1               1       1,266,667         * 43.55      ** 55,163,348
 system, getting a response..........................
(c) CPA Compliance Review and Report ***.............              21               1           4,800           1,680         * 43.65          ** 73,332
                                                      --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Totals...........................................     152,000,021  ..............  ..............       5,068,347  ..............     ** 105,776,680
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* We based these figures on average Business and Financial operations occupations (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes130000.htm), and Accountants and
  Auditors hourly salaries (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes132011.htm), as reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and average DI payments, as
  reported in SSA's disability insurance payment data (https://mwww.ba.ssa.gov/legislation/2024FactSheet.pdf).
** 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.
*** The enrollment process occurs automatically through the eCBSV Customer Connection, and entails providing consent for SSA to verify the EIN;
  electronically signing the eCBSV User Agreement, and the permitted entities certification; selecting their annual tier level; and linking to pay.gov
  to make payment for services.
**** SSA uses one CPA firm (an SSA-approved contractor) to conduct compliance reviews and prepare written reports of findings on the permitted entities.

Cost Burden

    The public cost burden depends on the number of permitted entities 
using the service and the annual transaction volume. SSA based the 
current tier fee schedule below on 20 participating public entities in 
fiscal year (FY) 2023 submitting an anticipated annual volume of 65 
million transactions. For FY 2024, we are maintaining the current tier 
structure, based our analysis, which estimated 20 participating public 
entities with an anticipated annual volume of 52 million. Since our 
analysis and initial estimate, one permitted entity noted the potential 
for a significant increase in volume in FY 2024. The total cost for 
developing and operating the service is $62 million through FY 2023. Of 
this amount, $37 million remains unrecovered/unreimbursed. The current 
subscription tier structure and associated fees intend to recover these 
costs over a four-year period, assuming projected enrollments and 
transaction volumes meet these projections. SSA uses the fee to 
allocate for forecasted systems and operational expenses; agency 
oversight; and overhead necessary to sustain the service.

                         eCBSV Tier Fee Schedule
------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                    Annual transaction
              Tier                      threshold           Annual fee
------------------------------------------------------------------------
1..............................  Up to 10,000 (1-10,000)          $7,000
2..............................  Up to 200,000 (10,001-          130,000
                                  200,000).
3..............................  Up to 1 million                 630,000
                                  (200,001-1 million).
4..............................  Up to 2.5 million             1,500,000
                                  (1,000,001-2.5
                                  million).
5..............................  Up to 5 million               3,000,000
                                  (2,500,001-5 million).
6..............................  Up to 10 million              4,500,000
                                  (5,000,001-10 million).
7..............................  Up to 15 million              5,000,000
                                  (10,000,001-15
                                  million).
8..............................  Up to 20 million              6,250,000
                                  (15,000,001-20
                                  million).
9..............................  Up to 25 million              7,250,000
                                  (20,000,001-25
                                  million).
10.............................  Up to 75 million              8,250,000
                                  (25,000,001-200
                                  million).
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    SSA calculates fees based on forecasted systems and operational 
expenses, agency oversight, overhead, and Certified Public Accountant 
audit contract costs.
    Section 215(h)(1)(B) of the Banking Bill requires that the 
Commissioner shall ``periodically adjust'' the price paid by users to 
ensure that amounts collected are sufficient to fully offset the costs 
of administering the eCBSV system. SSA will monitor costs incurred to 
provide eCBSV services on at least and annual basis, and will revise 
the tier fee schedule accordingly. SSA will notify permitted entities 
of the tier fee schedule in effect at the renewal of the eCBSV user 
agreements; when a permitted entity begins a new 365-day agreement 
period; and via notice in the Federal Register. SSA will govern 
permitted entities renewals by the tier in effect at the time of 
renewal.

    Dated: May 23, 2024.
Naomi Sipple,
Reports Clearance Officer, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-11803 Filed 5-29-24; 8:45 am]
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