[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 164 (Friday, August 23, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68232-68233]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-18975]


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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

[Docket No. SSA-2024-0021]


Charging Standard Administrative Fees for Non-Program Information

AGENCY: Social Security Administration (SSA).

ACTION: Notice of updated schedule of standard administrative fees.

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SUMMARY: On August 22, 2012, we announced in the Federal Register a 
schedule of standard administrative fees we charge to the public. When 
authorized, we charge these fees to recover our full costs when we 
provide information and related services for non-program purposes. We 
are announcing an update to the previously published schedule of 
standard administrative fees. The updated standard fee schedule is part 
of our continued effort to standardize fees for non-program information 
requests. Standard fees provide consistency and ensure we recover the 
full cost of supplying information when we receive a request for a 
purpose not directly related to the administration of a program under 
the Social Security Act (Act).

DATES: The changes described above are applicable for requests we 
receive on or after October 1, 2024.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Stephen Hull, Social Security 
Administration, Office of Finance, 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, 
MD 21235-6401, (410) 966-1890. For information on eligibility or filing 
for benefits, visit our website, www.socialsecurity.gov, or call our 
national toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213 or TTY 1-800-325-0778.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 1106 of the Act and the Privacy Act 
\1\ authorize the Commissioner of Social Security to promulgate 
regulations regarding the fees related to providing information. Our 
regulations and operating instructions identify when we will charge 
fees for information.\2\ Under section 1106(c) of the Act, whenever we 
determine a request for information is for any purpose not directly 
related to the administration of the Social Security programs, we may 
require the requester to pay the full cost of providing the 
information.\3\ The agency may also charge fees in response to records 
requests when otherwise authorized by law, such as when authorized for 
certain program requests under section 1106(b) of the Act. To inform 
the public of the standard fees we charge to recover our costs, we 
announced in the Federal Register a schedule of standard administrative 
fees we charge to the public on August 22, 2012.\4\ We last updated the 
schedule of standard fees on September 27, 2022.\5\
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    \1\ 42 U.S.C. 1306 and 5 U.S.C. 552a(f)(5), respectively.
    \2\ See 20 CFR 401.95, 402.170, and 402.175; Program Operations 
Manual System (POMS) GN 03311.005.
    \3\ See 42 U.S.C. 1306(c) and 20 CFR 402.175.
    \4\ 77 FR 50757.
    \5\ 87 FR 58635.
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    New Information: We are required to review and update standard 
administrative fees at least every two years.\6\ Based on the most 
recent cost analysis, the following table provides the new schedule of 
standard administrative fees \7\ per request:
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    \6\ See the Office of Management and Budget Circular No. A-25, 
User Charges.
    \7\ Fees may differ for processing of records depending on 
applicable fee authorities and actions needed to respond to a 
records request, such as whether redactions are necessary and 
whether special services have been requested.
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    Copying an Electronic Folder: $82.
    Copying a Paper Folder: $122.
    Regional Office Certification: \8\ $82.
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    \8\ Requests received in a field office, regional office, or 
headquarters component.
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    Record Extract: \9\ $41.
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    \9\ Requests received and processed in a field office.
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    Third Party Manual SSN Verification: $61.
    Office of Central Operations Certification: \10\ $35.
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    \10\ Requests received in the Office of Central Operations.
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    W-2/W-3 Requests: \11\ $62.
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    \11\ W-2/W-3 Fee is $70 per request, not dependent on the number 
of years or number of individuals within request.
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    Detailed Social Security Earnings Information Requested Using Form 
SSA-7050: $61.
    Requests for Copy of Original Form SS-5, Application for a Social 
Security Card: $27.
    Requests for Copy of Numident Record (Computer Extract of the SS-
5): $26.
    A requester can obtain certified and non-certified detailed yearly 
Social Security earnings information by completing Form SSA-7050, 
Request for Social Security Earning Information. We charge $61 for 
detailed yearly Social Security earnings information requested using 
Form SSA-7050. We will certify the detailed earnings information for an 
additional $35. Detailed earnings information includes the names and 
addresses of employers. Yearly earnings totals are available in two 
ways, depending on the requester's need for certification. A requester 
can continue to obtain non-certified yearly earnings totals using Form 
SSA-7004, Request for Social Security Statement, or through our free 
online service portal, my Social Security, at http://socialsecurity.gov/myaccount, by creating a personal online account for 
Social Security information and services. Online Social Security 
Statements display uncertified yearly earnings, free of charge, and do 
not show any employer information. A requester can obtain certified 
yearly Social Security earnings totals by completing the Form SSA-7050. 
As mentioned above, the cost for certified yearly earnings totals is 
$96 ($61 plus an additional $35 for certification).
    We will continue to evaluate all standard fees at least every two 
years to ensure we capture the full costs associated with providing 
information for non-program-related purposes. We require nonrefundable 
advance payment by check, money order, or credit card. We do not accept 
cash. We will accept only one form of payment in the full amount of the 
standard fee for each request and will not divide the fee amount 
between more than one form of payment. If we revise any of the standard 
fees, we will publish another notice in the Federal Register. For other 
requests for information not addressed here or within the current 
schedule of standard administrative fees, we will continue to charge 
fees calculated on a case-by-case basis.
    Additional information is available on our Business Services 
website at https://www.ssa.gov/thirdparty/business.html or by written 
request to: Social Security Administration, Office of Public Inquiries 
and Communications Support, 1100 West High Rise, 6401 Security 
Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235.
    The Commissioner of SSA, Martin O'Malley, having reviewed and 
approved this document, is delegating the authority to electronically 
sign this document to Faye Lipsky, who is a Federal Register Liaison 
for SSA, for

[[Page 68233]]

purposes of publication in the Federal Register.

Faye Lipsky,
Federal Register Liaison, Office of Legislation and Congressional 
Affairs, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2024-18975 Filed 8-22-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P