[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 172 (Thursday, September 5, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 72430-72431]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-19860]


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DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

Office of Workers' Compensation Programs

[OMB Control No. 1240-0001]


Proposed Extension of Information Collection; Statement of 
Recovery

AGENCY: Division of Federal Employees' Longshore and Harbor Workers' 
Compensation (OWCP/DFELHWC), Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, 
Labor.

ACTION: Request for public comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Labor, as part of its continuing effort to 
reduce paperwork and respondent burden, conducts a pre-clearance 
request for comment to provide the general public and Federal agencies 
with an opportunity to comment on proposed collections of information 
in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. This request 
helps to ensure that: requested data can be provided in the desired 
format; reporting burden (time and financial resources) is minimized; 
collection instruments are clearly understood; and the impact of 
collection requirements on respondents can be properly assessed. 
Currently, the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Division of 
Federal Employees' Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation, (OWCP/
DFELHWC) is soliciting comments on the information collection for the 
Statement of Recovery, CA-1122 Short form, and for the Statement of 
Recovery, CA-1108 Long Form.

DATES: All comments must be received on or before November 4, 2024.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comment as follows. Please note that late, 
untimely filed comments will not be considered.
    Electronic Submissions: Submit electronic comments in the following 
way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Comments submitted electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov will be posted to the docket, with no changes. 
Because your comment will be made public, you are responsible for 
ensuring that your comment does not include any confidential 
information that you or a third party may not wish to be posted, such 
as your or anyone else's Social Security number or confidential 
business information.
     If your comment includes confidential information that you 
do not wish to be made available to the public, submit the comment as a 
written/paper submission.
    Written/Paper Submissions: Submit written/paper submissions in the 
following way:
     Mail/Hand Delivery: Mail or visit DOL-OWCP/DFELHWC, Office 
of Workers' Compensation Programs, Division of Federal Employees' 
Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation, U.S. Department of Labor, 
200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room S-3323, Washington, DC 20210.
     OWCP/DFELHWC will post your comment as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted and marked as 
confidential, in the docket at https://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anjanette Suggs, Office of Workers' 
Compensation Programs, Division of Federal Employees' Longshore, and 
Harbor Workers' Compensation, OWCP/DFELHWC, at [email protected] 
@dol.gov (email); (202) 354-9660.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    The Division of Federal Employees', Longshore and Harbor Workers' 
Compensation (DFELHWC) administers the Federal Employees' Compensation 
Act (FECA). A Federal employee who sustains a work-related injury is 
entitled to receive compensation under the FECA. If that injury is 
caused under circumstances that create a legal liability in a third 
party to pay damages,

[[Page 72431]]

the FECA authorizes the Secretary of Labor to require the employee to 
assign his or her right of action to the United States or prosecute the 
action in his or her own name. See 5 U.S.C. 8131.
    After identifying third-party claims through the claims process, 
OWCP refers them to the Solicitor of Labor (SOL). SOL initiates Forms 
CA-1108 and CA-1122 to determine the amount of the refund due to the 
United States out of the proceeds of an action asserted by an injured 
Federal employee against a liable third party for a compensable injury.
    An injured federal employee who receives money or property from a 
judgment or a settlement of the action must reimburse the United States 
for past compensation payments. See 5 U.S.C. 8132. The formula in 
section 8132 of the FECA must be used to calculate the reimbursement. 
Section 8132 states that ``the beneficiary, after deducting therefrom 
the costs of suit and a reasonable attorney's fee, shall refund to the 
United States the amount of compensation paid by the United States and 
credit any surplus on future payments of compensation payable to him 
for the same injury.'' Therefore, to calculate the amount of the refund 
due, employees must provide the amount of the settlement they received, 
the amount of the costs of the suit, and the fees charged by the 
attorney.
    If the amount of the employee's recovery remaining after certain 
deductions specified in the statute exceeds the amount of OWCP's 
disbursements, the surplus must be credited against future payments of 
compensation, because the FECA mandates that the employee ``shall 
refund to the United States the amount of compensation paid by the 
United States and credit any surplus on future payments of 
compensation.'' 5 U.S.C. 8132.
    To enforce the United States' statutory right to reimbursement, the 
Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) has promulgated 
regulations. The regulations require a FECA beneficiary to report these 
types of payments (20 CFR 10.710) and submit the detailed information 
necessary to calculate the amount of the refund and surplus, if any, 
according to the formula in the statute. (20 CFR 10.707(e)).
    The information collected by Form CA-1108 and Form CA-1122 from the 
FECA beneficiary includes this information and is necessary to 
calculate the amount of the refund and surplus owed to the United 
States from the FECA beneficiary's settlement or judgment, as required 
in the statute and the regulations.
    See: http://www.dol.gov/owcp/dfec/regs/statutes/feca.htm#8131, 
http://www.dol.gov/owcp/dfec/regs/statutes/feca.htm#8132, https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?c=ecfr&SID=c131552afa82be329e42e2c9d62a41c8&rgn=div5&view=text&node=20:1.0.1.2.2&idno=20#se20.1.10_1707.

II. Desired Focus of Comments

    OWCP/DFELHWC is soliciting comments concerning the proposed 
information collection related to the Statement of Recovery. OWCP/
DFELHWC is particularly interested in comments that:
     Evaluate whether the collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the Agency, 
including whether the information has practical utility;
     Evaluate the accuracy of OWCP/DFELHWC's estimate of the 
burden related to the information collection, including the validity of 
the methodology and assumptions used in the estimate;
     Suggest methods to enhance the quality, utility, and 
clarity of the information to be collected; and
     Minimize the burden of the information collection on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.
    Background documents related to this information collection request 
are available at https://regulations.gov and at DOL-OWCP/DFELHWC 
located at 200 Constitution Ave. NW, Room S-3323, Washington, DC 20210. 
Questions about the information collection requirements may be directed 
to the person listed in the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT section of 
this notice.

III. Current Actions

    This information collection request concerns the Statement of 
Recovery, Long Form CA-1108 and Short Form CA-1122. OWCP/DFELHWC has 
updated the data with respect to the number of respondents, responses, 
burden hours, and burden costs supporting this information collection 
request from the previous information collection request.
    Type of Review: Extension, without change, of a currently approved 
collection.
    Agency: Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, Division of 
Federal Employees' Longshore, and Harbor Workers' Compensation, OWCP/
DFELHWC.
    OMB Number: 1240-0001.
    Affected Public: Private Sector--Business or other For-profits.
    Number of Respondents: 1,392.
    Frequency: On Occasion.
    Number of Responses: 1,392.
    Annual Burden Hours: 640 hours.
    Annual Respondent or Recordkeeper Cost: $32.00.
    OWCP/DFELHWC 1240-0001: OWCP/DFELHWC Statement of Recovery Forms.
    Comments submitted in response to this notice will be summarized in 
the request for Office of Management and Budget approval of the 
proposed information collection request; they will become a matter of 
public record and will be available at https://www.reginfo.gov.

Anjanette Suggs,
Certifying Officer.
[FR Doc. 2024-19860 Filed 9-4-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4510-CH-P