Agency Information Collection Activities: Proposed Request and 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, Email address: OIRA_Submission@omb.eop.gov.

(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: OR.Reports.Clearance@ssa.gov.

Or you may submit your comments online through www.regulations.gov,, referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-2016-0002].

I. The information collections below are pending at SSA. SSA will submit them to OMB within 60 days from the date of this notice. To be sure we consider your comments, we must receive them no later than April 8, 2016. Individuals can obtain copies of the collection instruments by writing to the above email address.

1. Statement for Determining Continuing Eligibility, Supplemental Security Income Payment(s)—20 CFR 416.204—0960-0416. SSA conducts disability redeterminatons to determine if Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipients (1) met and continue to meet all statutory and regulatory requirements for SSI eligibility and (2) are receiving the correct SSI payment amount. SSA makes these redeterminations through periodic use of Form SSA-8203BK. SSA conducts this legally mandated information collection in field offices via personal contact (face-to-face or telephone interview) using the automated Modernized SSI Claim System (MSSICS). The respondents are SSI recipients or their representative payees.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

2. Information About Joint Checking/Savings Account—20 CFR 416.1201 and 416.1208—0960-0461. SSA considers a person's resources when evaluating eligibility for SSI. Generally, we consider funds in checking and savings accounts as resources owned by the individuals whose names appear on the account. However, individuals applying for SSI may rebut this assumption of ownership in a joint account by submitting certain evidence to establish the funds do not belong to them. SSA uses Form SSA-2574 to collect information from SSI applicants and recipients who object to the assumption that they own all or part of the funds in a joint checking or savings account bearing their names. SSA collects information about the account from both the SSI applicant or recipient and the other account holder(s). After receiving the completed form, SSA determines if we should consider the account to be a resource for the SSI applicant and recipient. The respondents are applicants and recipients of SSI, and individuals who list themselves as joint owners of financial accounts with SSI applicants or recipients.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

3. Plan for Achieving Self-Support (PASS)—20 CFR 416.110(e), 416.1180-416.1182, 416.1225-416.1227—0960-0559. The SSI program encourages recipients to return to work. One of the program objectives is to provide incentives and opportunities that help recipients toward employment. The PASS provision allows individuals to use available income or resources (such as business equipment, education, or specialized training) to enter or re-enter the workforce and become self-supporting. In turn, SSA does not count the income or resources recipients use to fund a PASS when determining an individual's SSI eligibility or payment amount. An SSI recipient who wants to use available income and resources to obtain education or training to become self-supporting completes Form SSA-545. SSA uses the information from the SSA-545 to evaluate the recipient's PASS, and to determine eligibility under the provisions of the SSI program. The respondents are SSI recipients who want to develop a return-to-work plan.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

4. Registration for Appointed Representative Services and Direct Payment—0960-0732. SSA uses Form SSA-1699 to register appointed representatives of claimants before SSA who:

• Want to register for direct payment of fees;
• Registered for direct payment of fees prior to 10/31/09, but need to update their information;
• Registered as appointed representatives on or after 10/31/09, but need to update their information; or
• Received a notice from SSA instructing them to complete this form.

By registering these individuals, SSA: (1) Authenticates and authorizes them to do business with us; (2) allows them to access our records for the claimants they represent; (3) facilitates direct payment of authorized fees to appointed representatives; and, (4) collects the information we need to meet Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requirements to issue specific IRS forms if we pay an appointed representative in excess of a specific amount ($600). The respondents are appointed representatives who want to use Form SSA-1699 for any of the purposes cited in this Notice.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

II. SSA submitted the information collections below to OMB for clearance. Your comments regarding the 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 March 9, 2016. Individuals can obtain copies of the OMB clearance packages by writing to OR.Reports.Clearance@ssa.gov.

1. Certificate of Responsibility for Welfare and Care of Child Not in Applicant's Custody— 20 CFR 404.330, 404.339-404.341 and 404.348-404.349—0960-0019. Under the provisions of the Social Security Act (Act), non-custodial parents who are filing for spouse, mother, or father Social Security benefits based on having the child of a number holder or worker in their care, must meet the in-care requirements the Act discusses. The in-care provision requires claimants to have an entitled child under age 16 or disabled in their care. SSA uses Form SSA-781, Certificate of Responsibility for Welfare and Care of Child in Applicant's Custody, to determine if claimants meet the requirement. The respondents are applicants for spouse, mother's or father's Social Security benefits.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

2. Authorization for the Social Security Administration to Obtain Account Records from a Financial Institution—20 CFR 416.200 and 416.203—0960-0293. SSA collects and verifies financial information from individuals applying for Title II and Title XVI waiver determinations, as well as those who apply for, or currently receive (in the case of redetermination) Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. We require the financial information from these applicants to: (1) Determine the eligibility of the applicant or recipient for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits; or (2) determine if a request to waive a Social Security overpayment defeats the purpose of the Social Security Act. If the Title II and Title XVI waiver applicants, or the SSI claimants provide incomplete, unavailable, or seemingly altered records, SSA contacts their financial institutions to verify the existence, ownership, and value of accounts owned. Financial institutions need individuals to sign Form SSA-4641-F4, or work with SSA staff to complete one of SSA's electronic applications, e4641 or the Access to Financial Institutions (AFI) screens, to authorize the individual's financial institution to disclose records to SSA. The respondents are Title II and Title XVI recipients applying for waivers, or SSI applicants, recipients, and their deemors to determine SSI eligibility.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

3. Request for Change in Time/Place of Disability Hearing—20 CFR 404.914(c)(2) and 416.1414(c)(2)—0960-0348. At the request of the claimants or their representative, SSA schedules evidentiary hearings at the reconsideration level for claimants of Title II benefits or Title XVI payments when we deny their claims for disability. When claimants or their representatives find they are unable to attend the scheduled hearing, they complete Form SSA-769 to request a change in time or place of the hearing. SSA uses the information as a basis for granting or denying requests for changes and for rescheduling disability hearings. Respondents are claimants or their representatives who wish to request a change in the time or place of their hearing.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

4. Notice Regarding Substitution of Party Upon Death of Claimant—Reconsideration of Disability Cessation—20 CFR 404.907-404.921 and 416.1407-416.1421—0960-0351. When a claimant dies before we make a determination on that person's request for reconsideration of a disability cessation, SSA seeks a qualified substitute party to pursue the appeal. If SSA locates a qualified substitute party, the agency uses Form SSA-770 to collect information about whether to pursue or withdraw the reconsideration request. We use this information as the basis for the decision to continue or discontinue with the appeals process. Respondents are substitute applicants who are pursuing a reconsideration request for a deceased claimant.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

5. Privacy and Disclosure of Official Records and Information; Availability of Information and Records to the Public—20 CFR 401.40(b)&(c), 401.55(b), 401.100(a), 402.130, 402.185—0960-0566. SSA established methods for the public to: (1) Access their SSA records; (2) allow SSA to disclose records; (3) correct or amend their SSA records; (4) consent to release of their records; (5) request records under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA); (6) request SSA waive or reduce fees normally charges for release of FOIA; and (7) request access to an extract of their SSN record. SSA often collects the necessary information for these requests through a written letter, with the exception of the consent for release of records, for which we use Form SSA-3288. The respondents are individuals requesting access to, correction of, or disclosure of SSA records.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

6. Beneficiary Interview and Auditor's Observations Form—0960-0630. SSA's Office of the Inspector General collects information from Form SSA-322, the Beneficiary Interview and Auditor's Observation form, to interview beneficiaries or their payees to determine whether they are complying with their duties and responsibilities. The respondents are randomly selected SSI recipients and Social Security beneficiaries who have representative payees.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.

7. International Direct Deposit—31 CFR 210—0960-0686. SSA's International Direct Deposit (IDD) Program allows beneficiaries living abroad to receive their payments via direct deposit to an account at a financial institution outside the United States. SSA uses Form SSA-1199-(Country) to enroll Title II beneficiaries residing abroad in IDD, and to obtain the direct deposit information for foreign accounts. Routing account number information varies slightly for each foreign country, so we use a variation of the Treasury Department's Form SF-1199A for each country. The respondents are Social Security beneficiaries residing abroad who want SSA to deposit their Title II benefit payments directly to a foreign financial institution.

Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information collection.