[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 139 (Thursday, July 18, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37499-37500]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-18225]
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RAILROAD RETIREMENT BOARD
Proposed Collection; Comment Request
SUMMARY: In accordance with the requirement of Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of
the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 which provides opportunity for
public comment on new or revised data collections, the Railroad
Retirement Board (RRB) will publish periodic summaries of proposed data
collections.
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the proposed information
collection is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of
the agency, including whether the information has practical utility;
(b) the accuracy of the RRB's estimate of the burden of the collection
of the information; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and
clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to minimize
the burden related to the collection of information on respondents,
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of
information technology.
Title and purpose of information collection: Application for
Survivor Death Benefits: OMB 3220-0031 Under Section 6 of the Railroad
Retirement Act (RRA), lump-sum death benefits are payable to surviving
widow and widowers, children and certain other dependents. Lump-sum
death benefits are payable after the death of a railroad employee only
if there are no qualified survivors of the employee immediately
eligible for annuities. With the exception of the residual death
benefit, eligibility for survivor benefits depend on whether the
employee was ``insured'' under the RRA at the time of death. If a
deceased employee was not so insured, jurisdiction of any survivor
benefits payable is transferred to the Social Security Administration
and survivor benefits are paid by that agency instead of the RRB. The
collection obtains the information required by the RRB to determine
entitlement to and amount of the survivor death benefits applied for.
The RRB currently utilizes Form(s) AA-11a (Designation for Change
of Beneficiary for Residual Lump-Sum), AA-21 (Application for Lump-Sum
Death Payment and Annuities Unpaid at Death), G-131 (Authorization of
Payment and Release of All Claims to a Death Benefit or Accrued Annuity
Payment), and G-273a (Funeral Director's Statement of Burial Charges),
to obtain the necessary information. One response is requested of each
respondent. Completion is required to obtain benefits.
In order to implement a presumed Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT)
policy, a new section that requests information about an applicant's
financial institution is being proposed to Form AA-21. A similar
section is being proposed to Form G-273a in order to allow for EFT
payments directly to the funeral director's financial institution.
Additional changes being proposed to the G-273a include the addition of
a clarification question related to billing by the responsible funeral
home, the deletion of two questions deemed to be no longer necessary,
and some reformatting of questions remaining from the current approved
version. In addition, minor editorial changes are being proposed to all
of the forms in order to incorporate language required by the Paperwork
Reduction Act of 1995.
Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
The estimated annual respondent burden is as follows:
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Annual Time Burden
Form Nos. responses (minutes) (hours)
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AA-11a........................... 400 10 67
AA-21 (with assistance).......... 6,000 32 3,200
AA-21 (without assistance)....... 6,000 42 4,200
G-131............................ 600 5 50
G-273a........................... 9,600 12 1,920
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Total...................... 22,600 ........... 9,437
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[[Page 37500]]
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION OR COMMENTS: To request more information or to
obtain a copy of the information collection justification, forms, and/
or supporting material, please call the RRB Clearance Officer at (312)
751-3363. Comments regarding the information collection should be
addressed to Ronald J. Hodapp, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 N. Rush
Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611-2092. Written comments should be
received within 60 days of this notice.
Chuck Mierzwa,
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 96-18225 Filed 7-17-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 7905-01-M
