Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 224 / Monday, November 22, 2010 / Notices 71171 

1Section 223(d)(1)(A) of the Act; 20 CFR 

404.1505(a). 

2Section 1614(a)(3)(A) of the Act; 20 CFR 

416.905(a). 

3Sections 222(c) and 223(d)(4) of the Act; 20 CFR 

404.1592. 

4 Id. 

5 20 CFR 404.1592(b). 

6 20 CFR 404.1572. 

7 20 CFR 404.1571–404.1576. 

8 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(1) and 404.1594(d)(5). 

9 20 CFR 404.401a and 404.1592a(a)(2). 

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION 

[Docket No. SSA–2010–0050] 

Social Security Disability Program 

Demonstration Project: Benefit Offset 

National Demonstration (BOND) 

AGENCY: Social Security Administration. 

ACTION: Notice. 

SUMMARY: We are announcing the 

following demonstration project relating 

to the Social Security disability program 

under title II of the Social Security Act 

(Act). Under this project, we will test 

modifications to current title II program 

rules that we apply to beneficiaries who 

work and receive title II benefits based 

on disability. We will also modify 

current rules for paying outcome 

payments to providers of services under 

the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency 

program (Ticket to Work program). We 

are conducting this project, called the 

Benefit Offset National Demonstration 

(BOND), under the demonstration 

authority provided in section 234 of the 

Act. 

In this project, we are testing the use 

of a benefit offset based on earnings as 

an alternative to certain rules that we 

currently apply to title II disability 

beneficiaries who work. Under the 

benefit offset, we will reduce title II 

disability benefits by $1 for every $2 

that a beneficiary earns above a 

substantial gainful activity threshold 

amount. This alternative rule will allow 

a beneficiary to receive reduced benefit 

payments when we would ordinarily 

stop payments under our usual rules 

because of the beneficiary’s work and 

earnings. 

In selecting beneficiaries to 

participate in the project, we will 

include some beneficiaries who receive 

only title II disability benefits. We also 

will include some beneficiaries who 

receive both title II disability benefits 

and Supplemental Security Income 

(SSI) based on disability or blindness 

under title XVI of the Act. However, we 

are only modifying title II program rules 

for beneficiaries who participate in the 

project. We will continue to apply the 

usual SSI program rules for participants 

who receive SSI payments in addition to 

title II disability benefits. 

DATES: The demonstration project will 

begin January 2011 and will end 

September 2022. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Jamie Kendall by email at 

jamie.kendall@ssa.gov, by telephone at 

(202) 358–6448, or by mail at Social 

Security Administration, Office of 

Program Development and Research, 

ITC Building, 500 E Street, SW., 

Washington, DC 20254. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

Who may receive disability benefits? 

Under title II of the Act, we provide 

for the payment of the following 

benefits to persons who meet the 

definition of disability under the Act: 

• Disability insurance benefits for a 

worker insured under the Act; 

• Widow’s and widower’s insurance 

benefits based on disability for a widow, 

widower, or surviving divorced spouse 

of an insured worker; and 

• Childhood disability benefits for a 

child of an insured worker who is 

entitled to retirement or disability 

benefits or has died. 

In the rest of this notice, we refer to 

these benefits collectively as Social 

Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) 

benefits and refer to the beneficiaries 

who receive them as SSDI beneficiaries. 

Under title XVI of the Act, we pay SSI 

to persons who are aged, blind, or 

disabled and have limited income and 

resources. An SSDI beneficiary with 

limited income and resources may 

qualify for SSI payments. 

A person must meet the definition of 

disability under title II of the Act in 

order to be eligible for SSDI benefits. A 

person is disabled under title II if he or 

she has a physical or mental impairment 

or combination of impairments that is 

expected to last for at least 12 months 

or to result in death and prevents the 

person from doing any substantial 

gainful work.1 This definition of 

disability also applies under title XVI of 

the Act for persons age 18 or older.2

How do we help disability beneficiaries 

to return to work? 

Under the Act, we offer certain work 

incentives to encourage disability 

beneficiaries to attempt to work. We 

also administer the Ticket to Work 

program and other employment support 

programs to assist disability 

beneficiaries to become as self-sufficient 

as possible through work and to 

promote their economic independence. 

Under certain provisions of the Act, 

such as the title II provision for a trial 

work period, beneficiaries are allowed 

to test their ability to work and continue 

to keep their cash and medical benefits. 

The Trial Work Period 

We provide a trial work period (TWP) 

that allows SSDI beneficiaries to test 

their ability to work for at least nine 

months and not have that work 

considered for disability purposes.3

During this period, beneficiaries 

continue to receive full SSDI benefits 

regardless of how much money they 

earn as long as they report the work 

activity and continue to have a disabling 

impairment. The TWP ends when a 

beneficiary has completed nine trial 

work months, not necessarily 

consecutive, within a 60-month period. 

(The TWP may end earlier if we 

determine that the beneficiary’s 

disability ended based on medical 

factors.) 4 We count as a trial work 

month any month in which a 

beneficiary’s gross earnings are above a 

certain amount ($720 a month in 2010) 

or in which the beneficiary works more 

than 80 hours in self-employment.5

What happens if a beneficiary works 

after the TWP? 

If a beneficiary works after the TWP 

ends, we review the beneficiary’s work 

and earnings to decide if the work is 

substantial gainful activity (SGA). Work 

is ‘‘substantial’’ if it involves doing 

significant physical or mental activities. 

Work activity may be ‘‘substantial’’ even 

if it is performed on a part-time basis. 

Work activity is ‘‘gainful’’ if it is 

performed for pay or profit or is the 

kind of work usually performed for pay 

or profit, whether or not a profit is 

realized.6

In deciding whether work is SGA, we 

consider the nature of the person’s job 

duties, the skills and experience the 

person needs to do the job, and how 

much the person actually earned. 

Usually, we consider a person’s work to 

be substantial and gainful if monthly 

earnings, after allowable deductions, 

average more than the monthly SGA 

amount (in 2010, $1,000 a month for a 

person who is not blind, or $1,640 a 

month for a person who is blind). If the 

person is self-employed, we may give 

more consideration to the kind and 

value of the work, including the 

person’s part in the management of the 

business, than to the person’s income 

alone.7

We will decide that an SSDI 

beneficiary’s disability has ended in the 

first month he or she does SGA after 

completion of the TWP.8 We pay 

benefits for the month disability ended 

and the following two months, no 

matter how much the beneficiary earns.9


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10The SSI program under title XVI of the Act 

does not provide a TWP. The performance of SGA 

by a recipient of SSI payments based on disability 

or blindness does not affect the recipient’s 

disability or blindness status under the SSI 

program. Section 1619 of the Act; 20 CFR 416.260– 

416.269. 

11Sections 202(d)(1), (d)(6), (e)(1), and (f)(1) and 

223(a)(1) of the Act; 20 CFR 404.316(d), 404.337(d), 

404.352(e), and 404.1592a(a). 12 20 CFR 404.1592a(b). 13Section 223(e) of the Act; 20 CFR 404.401a and 

404.1592a(a)(2). 14 20 CFR 404.325 and 404.1592a(a)(3)(i). 15 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(2)(i) and (3)(i). 16 20 CFR 404.325 and 404.1592a(a)(3)(ii). 

17Section 216(i) of the Act; 20 CFR 404.320. 

18Section 216(i)(2)(D) of the Act; 20 CFR 404.321 

and 404.325. 

This three-month period is the ‘‘grace 

period.’’ 

What happens next depends on 

whether disability ended due to SGA 

during or after the reentitlement 

period.10

The Reentitlement Period 

We provide a 36-month reentitlement 

period that begins immediately after an 

SSDI beneficiary completes the TWP. 

The reentitlement period allows an 

SSDI beneficiary with a disabling 

impairment an additional period to test 

his or her ability to work.11 The 

reentitlement period ends after 36 

months or when the beneficiary ceases 

to have a disabling impairment, 

whichever is earlier.12

If we determine that a beneficiary’s 

disability ended during the 

reentitlement period because he or she 

performed SGA, we will pay benefits for 

the months in the three-month grace 

period. After the grace period, we will 

not pay benefits to the disability 

beneficiary or anyone receiving benefits 

on his or her earnings record for any 

month during the reentitlement period 

in which the disability beneficiary does 

SGA. However, we will pay benefits for 

any month during the reentitlement 

period in which the disability 

beneficiary does not do SGA.13 If the 

beneficiary performs SGA after the 

reentitlement period, we will find that 

entitlement to disability benefits 

terminates in the first month after the 

reentitlement period in which he or she 

performs SGA.14

When we determine whether a 

beneficiary performed SGA in a month 

after the grace period, we only consider 

his or her work in or earnings for that 

month. We do not apply the rules 

regarding averaging of earnings or 

unsuccessful work attempts.15

We apply different rules if the month 

a beneficiary’s disability ended due to 

the performance of SGA occurred after 

the 36-month reentitlement period. In 

this situation, we will find that 

entitlement to and payment of benefits 

terminate in the first month after the 

grace period.16

Period of Disability for an Insured 

Worker 

Under title II of the Act, a worker who 

becomes disabled may apply to have us 

establish a period of disability to protect 

his or her earnings record as well as 

apply for disability insurance benefits. 

A period of disability protects the 

benefit rights of a worker and his or her 

dependents or survivors by allowing us 

to exclude the time the worker is 

disabled from consideration in 

determining his or her insured status 

and the amount of monthly benefits 

payable on his or her record. 

In general, to be entitled to a period 

of disability, a worker must: 

• File an application; 

• Be insured for disability under the 

Act; and 

• Be disabled throughout a period of 

at least five full calendar months.17

A period of disability may begin on 

the day the worker’s disability begins if 

he or she is insured for disability on that 

day. The period of disability ends with 

the earliest of the following months: 

• The month before the month he or 

she attains full retirement age; 

• The month before his or her 

termination month; or 

• If he or she performs SGA during 

the reentitlement period, the last month 

for which he or she received cash 

benefits.18

Description of the BOND Project 

Under the BOND project, we will 

modify certain title II disability program 

rules that we currently apply to SSDI 

beneficiaries who work. We will test 

alternate rules to determine their 

effectiveness in encouraging SSDI 

beneficiaries to return to work or 

increase their earnings. We are testing 

the use of a benefit offset based on 

earnings and the provision of enhanced 

benefits counseling services. Under the 

benefit offset, we will reduce SSDI 

benefits by $1 for every $2 of a 

beneficiary’s earnings that are above a 

certain dollar amount. This dollar 

amount is equal to the applicable 

monthly SGA amount for the calendar 

year multiplied by the number of 

months for which the beneficiary is 

eligible for the offset in that year. The 

benefit offset will allow a beneficiary to 

receive reduced SSDI benefit payments 

when we would ordinarily stop or 

terminate benefit payments under our 

usual rules because of the beneficiary’s 

performance of SGA. We will evaluate 

the impact of the benefit offset and the 

enhanced counseling services on work 

activity, earnings, and continued receipt 

of cash benefits. 

We have contracted with Abt 

Associates to assist in implementing the 

BOND project and to conduct the 

evaluation activities. Under a prior 

contract with us, Abt Associates helped 

us develop the demonstration project 

design and evaluation plans. The design 

identified the program changes, target 

populations, treatment groups, sample 

sizes, and project sites. The evaluation 

plan identified pertinent outcomes, the 

data necessary for the analysis, and 

appropriate measurements of the effects 

of the alternate rules that we will test. 

The evaluation will focus on issues such 

as the rate of return to work by project 

participants, their earnings and ability 

to sustain work, and the rate at which 

they leave cash benefits due to work. 

We will also examine for whom these 

interventions appear to be the most 

effective. 

Where will we conduct the BOND 

project? 

We will conduct this project in 10 

sites across the country. Abt Associates 

is setting up local demonstration site 

offices in each of these locations to work 

directly with the beneficiaries in this 

project. We randomly selected the 

following 10 locations to be project 

sites. (These locations are general 

descriptions of the project sites as some 

small areas within certain locations may 

not be part of the demonstration site.) 

• Alabama; 

• Arizona and Southeastern 

California; 

• Colorado and Wyoming; 

• Southeastern Michigan; 

• Southeastern Texas; 

• Southern Florida; 

• Vermont, Maine, New Hampshire, 

and Northern Massachusetts; 

• Washington DC area including 

Northern Virginia, suburban Maryland, 

and Northeastern West Virginia; 

• Western New York State; and 

• Wisconsin. 

Who is eligible to participate in the 

BOND project? 

To be eligible to participate in the 

project, a beneficiary must: 

• Be at least age 20 and under age 60; 

• Be entitled to title II benefits based 

on disability; 

• Receive title II disability cash 

benefits, unless we are not paying cash 

benefits because the beneficiary is 

engaging in SGA after the grace period 

and during the reentitlement period; 

• Reside in one of the 10 sites for the 

project, according to our administrative 

records; and 


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• Not be a current or prior treatment 

or control group participant in any of 

our other demonstration projects. 

How will we select participants and 

assign them to control or treatment 

groups? 

We will select potential participants 

for the BOND project from a pool of 

beneficiaries who are entitled to SSDI 

benefits, reside in one of the 10 sites 

according to our records, and meet the 

other requirements for eligibility for 

participation described above. This pool 

will include some concurrent SSDI/SSI 

beneficiaries, that is, beneficiaries who 

receive both title II benefits based on 

disability and title XVI payments based 

on disability or blindness. We estimate 

that the pool will consist of 

approximately one million beneficiaries, 

with SSDI-only beneficiaries comprising 

about 80% of the pool and concurrent 

SSDI/SSI beneficiaries comprising about 

20% of the pool. We will identify the 

beneficiaries in the pool who are SSDIonly beneficiaries and will randomly 

assign these beneficiaries to one of the 

three groups described below. We will 

identify the beneficiaries in the pool 

who are concurrent SSDI/SSI 

beneficiaries and will randomly assign 

these beneficiaries to one of the first two 

groups described below. 

• Stage 1 Control Group—We will 

assign approximately 580,000 SSDI-only 

and concurrent SSDI/SSI beneficiaries 

to this group, which will continue to be 

subject to our usual program rules. We 

will not test any alternative rules with 

this group. 

• Stage 1 Treatment Group—We will 

assign approximately 80,000 SSDI-only 

and concurrent SSDI/SSI beneficiaries 

to this group, which will be offered the 

opportunity for the benefit offset under 

Stage 1 of the project. 

• Stage 2 Eligible Group—We will 

assign approximately 340,000 SSDI-only 

beneficiaries to this group, from which 

we expect to recruit about 12,600 

beneficiaries to volunteer to participate 

in Stage 2 of the BOND project. We will 

randomly assign SSDI-only beneficiaries 

who have agreed to participate in Stage 

2 of the project to a Control Group or 

one of two Treatment Groups, as 

described below. Concurrent SSDI/SSI 

beneficiaries are not eligible to 

participate in Stage 2 of the project. 

How will we conduct Stage 1 and Stage 

2 of the BOND project? 

The BOND project design includes 

two separate stages. Stage 1 will consist 

of a control group that receives no 

alternative program rules and a 

treatment group that is offered the 

opportunity for the benefit offset. 

Beneficiaries randomly assigned to the 

Stage 1 treatment group will receive a 

notice informing them of their eligibility 

for the project and the alternate program 

rules that will apply for the treatment of 

earnings. The notice will provide 

contact information for beneficiaries to 

establish Abt Associates as their central 

point of contact for the BOND project. 

Stage 2 will consist of a control group 

and two treatment groups. We will 

recruit volunteers for Stage 2 from the 

pool of approximately 340,000 SSDIonly beneficiaries in the Stage 2 Eligible 

Group described above. We will recruit 

about 12,600 SSDI-only beneficiaries to 

volunteer to participate in Stage 2 of the 

project. While we are not required to 

obtain a beneficiary’s consent to 

participate in a demonstration project 

under section 234 of the Act, we will 

require beneficiaries whom we recruit 

for Stage 2 of the project and who wish 

to participate in the project to sign a 

consent form to indicate their agreement 

to participate. We will randomly assign 

the SSDI-only beneficiaries who consent 

to participate to one of the following 

three groups: 

• Stage 2 Control Group—We will 

assign approximately 4,800 beneficiaries 

to this group, which will continue to be 

subject to our usual program rules. We 

will not test any alternative rules with 

this group. 

• Stage 2 Offset Treatment Group— 

We will assign approximately 4,800 

beneficiaries to this group. We will offer 

this group the opportunity for the 

benefit offset under Stage 2 of the 

project. 

• Stage 2 Offset and Enhanced 

Benefits Counseling Treatment Group— 

We will assign approximately 3,000 

beneficiaries to this group. We will offer 

this group the opportunity for the 

benefit offset and enhanced benefits 

counseling services. We will send the 

volunteers randomly assigned to the two 

treatment groups in Stage 2 a notice 

informing them of the alternate program 

rules that will apply for the treatment of 

earnings and the enhanced benefits 

counseling, depending on their 

treatment group. 

Alternate Title II Program Rules for 

Participants in the Benefit Offset 

Treatment Groups 

We will apply the following alternate 

program rules to beneficiaries assigned 

to the treatment groups. The alternate 

rules will provide a beneficiary whose 

disability ended because of the 

performance of SGA the opportunity to 

continue working or start working again 

and receive SSDI benefit payments, 

subject to a benefit offset. The benefit 

offset will allow a beneficiary who 

performs SGA after the grace period to 

receive reduced SSDI benefit payments 

when we would ordinarily stop 

payments or terminate entitlement 

under our usual rules. We will continue 

to apply our usual rules for the TWP, for 

deciding whether disability ended due 

to the performance of SGA, and for 

paying benefits for months in the grace 

period to participants in the treatment 

groups. 

When will a participant in a treatment 

group be eligible for the benefit offset? 

A beneficiary who is in a Stage 1 or 

Stage 2 treatment group and whose 

disability ends or has ended under our 

usual rules due to the performance of 

SGA will be eligible for the benefit 

offset during his or her ‘‘BOND 

participation period.’’ The BOND 

participation period is a period of up to 

60 months that begins and ends as 

described below. A beneficiary must 

complete the TWP by September 30, 

2017 to qualify for the BOND 

participation period. A beneficiary 

whose disability ended because of the 

performance of SGA will be eligible for 

the benefit offset during his or her 

BOND participation period beginning 

with the later of the following months: 

• The month after the beneficiary’s 

three-month grace period; or 

• The first month of the beneficiary’s 

BOND participation period. 

When does the BOND participation 

period begin? 

The BOND participation period of a 

beneficiary who is assigned to a 

treatment group begins as follows: 

• For a beneficiary who did not 

complete the TWP in or before the 

month of assignment to a treatment 

group, the BOND participation period 

begins with the month after the month 

the TWP is completed, provided the 

beneficiary completes the TWP by 

September 30, 2017. 

• For a beneficiary who completed 

the TWP in or before the month of 

assignment to a treatment group, the 

BOND participation period begins with 

the month after the month of assignment 

to a treatment group. 

We explain in the following table 

when the BOND participation period 

and eligibility for the benefit offset 

begin depending on a beneficiary’s 

status as of the close of the month of his 

or her assignment to a treatment group. 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES
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19 If a beneficiary whose disability has ended due 

to SGA appeals an impairment severity cessation 

determination and receives statutory benefit 

continuation pending the appeal, the BOND 

participation period may continue during the 

appeal. 20 20 CFR 404.1574–404.1576. 

Beneficiary status at close of month of random 

assignment to a treatment group BOND Participation period begins Eligibility for the benefit offset begins 

TWP not completed ........................................... Month after TWP completed, provided TWP 

completed by September 30, 2017.

Month after grace period if disability ends due 

to SGA. 

TWP completed and disability did not end due 

to SGA.

Month after month of assignment to treatment 

group.

Month after grace period if disability ends due 

to SGA. 

TWP completed, disability ended due to SGA, 

and grace period has not ended.

Month after month of assignment to treatment 

group.

Month after grace period. 

TWP completed, disability ended due to SGA, 

grace period has ended, and entitlement has 

not terminated.

Month after month of assignment to treatment 

group.

First month of BOND participation period. 

When does the BOND participation 

period end? 

The BOND participation period ends 

with the earliest of the following 

months: 

• The 60th month after it begins; 

• The month before the month the 

beneficiary ceases to have a disabling 

impairment;19

• For a beneficiary in a Stage 2 

treatment group, the month before the 

month the beneficiary’s withdrawal of 

consent to participate becomes effective; 

• For a beneficiary entitled to 

disability insurance benefits, the month 

before the month the beneficiary attains 

full retirement age; or 

• The month before the month of 

death. 

When will a participant in the Stage 2 

Offset and Enhanced Benefits 

Counseling Treatment Group be eligible 

for counseling services? 

A beneficiary assigned to this Stage 2 

treatment group will be eligible for 

enhanced benefits counseling services 

beginning with the month after the 

month he or she is assigned to this 

treatment group. The beneficiary will 

continue to be eligible for these services 

until his or her BOND participation 

period ends. A beneficiary who does not 

complete the TWP by September 30, 

2017 and does not qualify for the BOND 

participation period will no longer be 

eligible for these counseling services 

beginning October 1, 2017. 

What happens if a participant in a 

treatment group does not complete the 

TWP by September 30, 2017? 

A beneficiary in a Stage 1 or Stage 2 

treatment group who does not complete 

the TWP by September 30, 2017 will not 

qualify for the BOND participation 

period and will not be eligible for the 

benefit offset. We will apply our usual 

title II disability program rules 

beginning October 1, 2017. 

In addition, a beneficiary in the Stage 

2 Offset and Enhanced Benefits 

Counseling Treatment Group who does 

not complete the TWP by September 30, 

2017 will no longer be eligible for the 

enhanced benefits counseling beginning 

October 1, 2017. 

How will we apply the benefit offset? 

We may apply the benefit offset to 

reduce monthly SSDI benefits beginning 

with the first month a beneficiary in a 

treatment group is eligible for the offset. 

A beneficiary who qualifies for the 

BOND participation period and whose 

disability has ended due to the 

performance of SGA is eligible for the 

offset beginning with the first month 

after his or her grace period or the first 

month of his or her BOND participation 

period, whichever is later. A beneficiary 

is eligible for the offset only during his 

or her BOND participation period. 

If a beneficiary is eligible for the offset 

throughout a calendar year, we will 

determine whether his or her earnings 

for the year, after allowable deductions, 

exceed the BOND yearly amount to 

decide whether to reduce SSDI benefits 

payable for months in that year under 

the benefit offset. We will reduce a 

beneficiary’s monthly SSDI benefit 

payments by $1 for every $2 of the 

beneficiary’s yearly earnings that are 

above the applicable BOND yearly 

amount. If the beneficiary’s earnings for 

the year do not exceed the BOND yearly 

amount, we will not reduce his or her 

SSDI benefits for months in that year 

under the offset. 

The BOND yearly amount for a 

calendar year is equal to twelve times 

the applicable monthly SGA amount for 

that year. For example, in 2010, the 

monthly SGA amount is $1,000 for a 

beneficiary who is not blind and $1,640 

for a beneficiary who is blind. The 

BOND yearly amount for 2010 would be 

$12,000 for a beneficiary who is not 

blind and $19,680 for a beneficiary who 

is blind. 

A beneficiary may be eligible for the 

benefit offset for less than an entire 

calendar year. This situation may occur, 

for example, in a beneficiary’s first and 

last years of eligibility for the offset. In 

this situation, we will prorate the 

applicable BOND yearly amount for the 

calendar year based on the number of 

months for which the beneficiary is 

eligible for the offset in that year. We 

will use the prorated BOND yearly 

amount to decide whether to offset the 

beneficiary’s SSDI benefits based on his 

or her earnings. We will only consider 

the beneficiary’s earnings for the period 

of months for which he or she is eligible 

for the offset in the calendar year and 

will only apply the offset to the benefits 

payable for months in that period. The 

period of months for which a 

beneficiary is eligible for the offset in a 

calendar year is his or her ‘‘offset 

period’’ in that year. 

When a beneficiary’s offset period is 

less than the calendar year, we will 

determine whether the beneficiary’s 

earnings for the offset period, after 

allowable deductions, exceed the 

prorated BOND yearly amount to decide 

whether to reduce SSDI benefits payable 

for months in the offset period. We will 

reduce a beneficiary’s monthly SSDI 

benefit payments for months in his or 

her offset period by $1 for every $2 of 

the beneficiary’s earnings for that period 

that are above the prorated BOND yearly 

amount. If the beneficiary’s earnings for 

the offset period do not exceed the 

prorated BOND yearly amount, we will 

not reduce his or her SSDI benefits for 

months in that period under the offset. 

We will decide whether to reduce a 

beneficiary’s monthly SSDI benefit 

payments under the offset and 

determine the amount by which 

monthly benefits will be reduced (i.e., 

the monthly offset amount) based on a 

beneficiary’s estimate of earnings for the 

calendar year or for the months for 

which he or she is eligible for the offset 

in the calendar year. A beneficiary who 

is eligible for the benefit offset will 

provide us with an estimate of earnings 

after deducting the estimated amount of 

any impairment-related work expenses 

and any earnings that are not counted 

under our usual SGA rules.20


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21 20 CFR 404.1574(b)(2) and 404.1584(d)(3). 

In the example below, we show how 

we will calculate the amount by which 

monthly SSDI benefit payments will be 

reduced under the offset for a 

beneficiary who is eligible for the offset 

throughout a calendar year and whose 

estimated yearly earnings exceed the 

BOND yearly amount. In the example, 

we use the BOND yearly amount that 

would apply in 2010 to a beneficiary 

who is not blind. However, since the 

BOND yearly amount is equal to twelve 

times the applicable monthly SGA 

amount, the BOND yearly amount may 

increase from year to year as a result of 

increases in the applicable SGA 

amount.21 Therefore, the BOND yearly 

amount for 2011, or for a later year, may 

be higher than the amount that would 

apply in 2010. 

Example 

A beneficiary who is eligible for the 

offset throughout a calendar year 

provides us with an estimate of his 

earnings for the year. The beneficiary 

estimates that his yearly earnings, after 

allowable deductions, will be $15,000. 

The BOND yearly amount is $12,000. 

The beneficiary’s estimated yearly 

earnings exceed the BOND yearly 

amount by $3,000. We will reduce each 

of the beneficiary’s SSDI benefit 

payments for months in the year by 

$125. The calculations for this example 

are as follows: 

First, we calculate the amount of 

estimated annual earnings that exceed 

the BOND yearly amount. 

Second, we calculate the annual $1 

for $2 benefit offset amount by dividing 

the amount of estimated earnings that 

exceeds the BOND yearly amount by 2. 

$3,000 ÷ 2 = $1,500 (annual $1 for $2 

benefit offset amount) 

Finally, we calculate the monthly offset 

amount by dividing the annual offset 

amount by 12 months. 

$1,500 ÷ 12 = $125 (monthly $1 for $2 

benefit offset amount) 

For the purposes of the BOND project, 

we will round the monthly benefit offset 

amount resulting from the calculations 

above up to the nearest dime. 

In determining when wages will be 

counted as earnings for purposes of 

applying the benefit offset, we will 

count a beneficiary’s wages as earnings 

at the earliest of the following times: 

• When the beneficiary receives the 

wages; 

• When they are credited to the 

beneficiary’s account; or 

• When they are set aside for the 

beneficiary’s use. 

If the beneficiary is self-employed, we 

count net earnings from selfemployment on a taxable year basis. 

However, we divide the total of these 

earnings equally among the months in 

the taxable year to get the beneficiary’s 

earnings for each month. For example, 

if the beneficiary’s net earnings from 

self-employment for a taxable year are 

$2,400, we consider that the beneficiary 

received $200 in each month. If the 

beneficiary has net losses from selfemployment, we divide them over the 

taxable year in the same way, and we 

deduct them only from the beneficiary’s 

other earned income. 

We will perform an end-of-year 

reconciliation after the close of each 

calendar year in which a beneficiary 

was eligible for the benefit offset. We 

will determine the actual amount of the 

beneficiary’s earnings, after allowable 

deductions, for the calendar year (or for 

those months for which the beneficiary 

was eligible for the offset in the year) to 

decide if he or she was paid more or less 

in benefits than was due under the 

offset. We will make appropriate 

adjustments to future benefit payments 

if we determine that we paid the 

beneficiary too much or too little in 

benefits under the offset. We will send 

the beneficiary a written notice of our 

determination that will provide appeal 

rights. 

What happens to the payment of 

benefits to other persons entitled on the 

earnings record of a beneficiary whose 

SSDI benefits are subject to the offset? 

If any other person(s) is entitled to 

benefits on the earnings record of a 

beneficiary whose SSDI benefits are 

subject to the offset, we will pay the 

other person(s) the full amount of 

monthly cash benefits that he or she is 

otherwise due for any month for which 

the beneficiary is eligible for payment of 

a reduced SSDI benefit under the offset. 

However, we will not pay benefits to the 

other person(s) for any month for which 

the beneficiary’s SSDI benefit is reduced 

to zero under the offset. 

What happens to the reentitlement 

period of a beneficiary who qualifies 

for the BOND participation period? 

The BOND participation period 

replaces a beneficiary’s reentitlement 

period or supplements it if the 

reentitlement period ended in or before 

the month of the beneficiary’s 

assignment to a treatment group. The 

BOND participation period will: 

• Replace the reentitlement period if 

a beneficiary completes the TWP in or 

after the month of assignment to a 

treatment group and on or before 

September 30, 2017 (subject to the 

exception below); 

• Replace any remaining months of 

the reentitlement period if a beneficiary 

completed the TWP and his or her 

reentitlement period did not end in or 

before the month of assignment to a 

treatment group (subject to the 

exception below); or 

• Provide an additional period for a 

beneficiary to test his or her ability to 

work if the beneficiary completed the 

TWP and his or her reentitlement period 

ended in or before the month of 

assignment to a treatment group. 

Exception: If a beneficiary’s BOND 

participation period ends before his or 

her reentitlement period would have 

ended under the usual rules, the 

beneficiary will be eligible under the 

usual rules for whatever months of his 

or her reentitlement period remain after 

the BOND participation period ends. 

What happens when a beneficiary’s 

BOND participation period ends? 

We will apply our usual title II 

disability program rules beginning with 

the first month after his or her BOND 

participation period ends. If a 

beneficiary works after the BOND 

participation period ends, we will 

review the beneficiary’s work and 

earnings under our usual rules to decide 


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22 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(3). 

23 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(1) and (2). 

24 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(2)(i) and (3)(i). 

25 Id. 

26 20 CFR 404.1592a(a)(1) and (3)(ii). 

27Section 226(b) of the Act; 42 CFR 406.12. 

28 Id. 

29Section 1148 of the Act; 20 CFR part 411. 30 20 CFR 411.135. 31 20 CFR part 411, subpart H. 32Section 1148(h) of the Act; 20 CFR 411.500, 

411.525, and 411.575. 33 20 CFR 411.500 and 411.525. 

if the work is SGA. We will apply the 

same rules that we would apply to a 

beneficiary who works after his or her 

reentitlement period ends, including the 

rules for terminating entitlement to 

SSDI benefits if the work is SGA.22

However, under the exception described 

in the previous section, a beneficiary 

may be eligible for one or more months 

of the reentitlement period after his or 

her BOND participation period ends. In 

this situation, we will consider any 

work the beneficiary performs in any 

remaining months of his or her 

reentitlement period under the usual 

rules that we apply to a beneficiary who 

works during the reentitlement 

period.23 In either situation, we will use 

the following rules to decide whether 

the work performed by a beneficiary 

after the BOND participation period 

ends is SGA: 

• If the beneficiary’s disability ended 

due to SGA before or during the BOND 

participation period, we will decide 

whether this work is SGA under our 

usual rules for evaluating whether work 

performed after the grace period is 

SGA.24 We will not apply the rules on 

averaging of earnings or unsuccessful 

work attempts.25

• If the beneficiary’s disability has 

not ended due to SGA, we will decide 

whether the work is SGA under our 

usual rules for evaluating whether work 

is SGA for purposes of determining if 

disability has ended, including the rules 

on averaging of earnings and 

unsuccessful work attempts.26

When will the period of disability end 

for a BOND participant entitled to 

disability insurance benefits? 

We will apply our usual title II 

disability program rules to determine 

when the period of disability ends for a 

participant in a treatment group who 

does not complete the TWP by 

September 30, 2017 or whose disability 

does not end due to the performance of 

SGA before the end of his or her BOND 

participation period. See the section 

‘‘Period of disability for an insured 

worker’’ for our usual rules on when a 

period of disability ends. 

We will apply the following alternate 

rules to determine when the period of 

disability ends for a disability insurance 

beneficiary in a treatment group whose 

disability ended due to SGA before or 

during his or her BOND participation 

period. 

1. The beneficiary’s period of 

disability will end with the close of the 

earliest of the following months: 

• The month before the month he or 

she attains full retirement age; 

• The month before his or her 

termination month; or 

• The last month for which he or she 

received a benefit payment if his or her 

monthly benefits were reduced to zero 

under the benefit offset for each month 

thereafter up to his or her termination 

month. 

2. For purposes of determining when 

his or her period of disability ends, the 

beneficiary’s termination month will be 

the earlier of the following months: 

• The third month following the 

month in which he or she no longer has 

a disabling impairment; or 

• The first month in which he or she 

performs SGA following his or her 

BOND participation period or, if later, 

the month after the grace period. 

Will the alternate rules under the 

BOND project affect a beneficiary’s 

Medicare coverage? 

The alternate program rules that we 

will apply to a beneficiary in a 

treatment group will not affect his or her 

Medicare eligibility. A beneficiary who 

is under age 65 and who has been 

entitled to SSDI benefits for 24 months 

is entitled to Hospital Insurance under 

the Medicare program (Medicare Part 

A).27 Entitlement to Medicare coverage 

generally continues as long as a 

beneficiary’s entitlement to SSDI 

benefits continues. However, a 

beneficiary whose entitlement to SSDI 

benefits terminates due to the 

performance of SGA and who continues 

to have a disabling impairment may be 

entitled to extended Medicare coverage 

for a period of at least 93 months 

following the end of his or her TWP. 

Under the Act, the period of extended 

Medicare coverage is determined as if 

the beneficiary had a 15-month 

reentitlement period following the end 

of his or her TWP.28 This rule for 

determining the period of extended 

Medicare coverage will continue to 

apply to an SSDI beneficiary who is in 

a BOND treatment group and entitled to 

Medicare. 

May a beneficiary in a Stage 2 

treatment group withdraw from the 

BOND project? 

A beneficiary in a Stage 2 treatment 

group may withdraw his or her consent 

to participate in the BOND project at 

any time in writing. A beneficiary who 

wishes to withdraw his or her consent 

to participate will work with Abt 

Associates to facilitate his or her 

withdrawal from the project. A 

beneficiary in a Stage 2 treatment group 

who withdraws his or consent to 

participate will no longer be eligible for 

the alternate program rules or any 

project services available under the 

BOND project. We will continue to track 

the beneficiary for project evaluation 

using administrative data. We will 

apply our usual program rules to the 

beneficiary beginning with the month 

his or her withdrawal from the project 

becomes effective. 

Ticket to Work Program 

We issue tickets to disability 

beneficiaries, which they may use to 

obtain services from service providers 

under the Ticket to Work program. A 

beneficiary may assign his or her ticket 

to a qualified service provider to obtain 

employment services to find, enter, and 

retain employment.29 A qualified 

service provider is an Employment 

Network (EN) or a State vocational 

rehabilitation agency that qualifies to 

receive EN payments from us.30 We pay 

a qualified service provider, to which a 

beneficiary has assigned a ticket, for 

certain outcomes achieved by the 

beneficiary.31 We may pay an outcome 

payment to a qualified service provider 

for each month for which SSDI benefits 

and Federal SSI are not payable to the 

beneficiary because of the performance 

of SGA or by reason of earnings from 

work activity.32 If the beneficiary is an 

SSDI-only or concurrent SSDI/SSI 

beneficiary, we may pay outcome 

payments for a maximum of 36 months, 

not necessarily consecutive.33

Alternate Rule for Paying Outcome 

Payments Under the Ticket to Work 

Program 

We will apply an alternate rule for 

paying outcome payments to a qualified 

service provider that has been assigned 

a ticket by an SSDI-only or concurrent 

SSDI/SSI beneficiary in a BOND 

treatment group. We will pay an 

outcome payment to the provider for 

each month for which the beneficiary’s 

SSDI benefits are reduced under the 

benefit offset and Federal SSI is not 

payable by reason of earnings from work 

activity. We will apply this alternate 

rule for paying outcome payments only 

during a beneficiary’s BOND 

participation period. We will apply our 

usual rule for paying outcome payments 


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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 224 / Monday, November 22, 2010 / Notices 71177 

beginning with the first month after a 

beneficiary’s BOND participation period 

ends. We will continue to limit the 

number of months for which outcome 

payments may be made based on the 

same ticket to a maximum of 36 months. 

We will count any month for which we 

pay an outcome payment under the 

alternate rule or our usual rule toward 

this 36-month limit. 

What is our authority for conducting 

the BOND project? 

We are conducting the BOND project 

under the demonstration authority in 

section 234 of the Act. This section of 

the Act directs us to carry out 

experiments and demonstration projects 

to determine the relative advantages and 

disadvantages of, among other 

approaches, various alternative methods 

of treating the work activity of 

individuals entitled to title II benefits 

based on disability, including such 

methods as a reduction in benefits based 

on earnings. Section 234 of the Act 

authorizes us to waive compliance with 

the benefit requirements of title II of the 

Act and the requirements of section 

1148 of the Act (concerning the Ticket 

to Work program) as they relate to the 

title II program, insofar as is necessary 

for a thorough evaluation of the 

alternative methods under 

consideration. 

What provisions of the Act and 

regulations are we waiving to provide 

alternate rules under the BOND 

project? 

Alternate Title II Program Rules 

Under the Act and our regulations, we 

provide an SSDI beneficiary with a 

disabling impairment a 36-month 

reentitlement period following the 

completion of the TWP during which 

the beneficiary’s entitlement to benefits 

continues even if the beneficiary is 

performing SGA. However, we do not 

pay benefits to the disability beneficiary 

or any other person entitled to benefits 

on his or her earnings record for any 

month after the grace period and during 

the reentitlement period in which the 

disability beneficiary performs SGA. In 

determining whether a beneficiary 

performs SGA in a month after the grace 

period, we consider only his or her 

work in or earnings for that month. We 

terminate entitlement to benefits if the 

disability beneficiary performs SGA 

after the reentitlement period. In 

addition, we provide a disability 

insurance beneficiary a period of 

disability to protect his or her earnings 

record. We terminate the beneficiary’s 

period of disability when his or her 

entitlement to cash benefits terminates 

or, if earlier, with the last month for 

which he or she received cash benefits 

during the reentitlement period. 

Sections 202(d)(1), (d)(6), (e)(1), and 

(f)(1), 216(i)(2)(D), and 223(a)(1) and (e) 

of the Act; 20 CFR 404.316(d), 

404.321(c), 404.325, 404.337(d), 

404.352(e), 404.401a, and 404.1592a. 

We are waiving these provisions of 

the Act and regulations to the extent 

necessary to provide the alternate title II 

program rules described in this notice to 

beneficiaries in the BOND treatment 

groups. (See the section ‘‘Alternate Title 

II Program Rules for Participants in the 

Benefit Offset Treatment Groups’’ for the 

rules we will apply.) In general, under 

the alternate program rules, we will 

provide the following to an SSDI 

beneficiary assigned to a treatment 

group who completes the TWP by 

September 30, 2017: 

• A BOND participation period of up 

to 60 months beginning with the month 

after completion of the TWP or the 

month after assignment to a treatment 

group, whichever is later; 

• Eligibility for the benefit offset 

during a beneficiary’s BOND 

participation period beginning with the 

month after the grace period or the first 

month of the BOND participation 

period, whichever is later; 

• Payment of SSDI benefits, subject to 

reduction under the benefit offset, for 

months for which the SSDI beneficiary 

is eligible for the benefit offset (see the 

section ‘‘How will we apply the benefit 

offset?’’ for the rules we will apply); 

• Payment of benefits to any other 

person entitled to benefits on the 

earnings record of the SSDI beneficiary 

for any month for which the 

beneficiary’s SSDI benefits are reduced 

under the benefit offset, unless SSDI 

benefits are reduced to zero under the 

offset; 

• Termination of a disability 

insurance beneficiary’s period of 

disability with the close of the last 

month for which he or she received a 

benefit payment if his or her monthly 

benefits were reduced to zero under the 

benefit offset for each month thereafter 

up to the month his or her entitlement 

to cash benefits terminated; and 

• Application of our usual program 

rules beginning with the month after the 

BOND participation period ends. 

Alternate Rule for Paying Outcome 

Payments Under the Ticket to Work 

Program 

Under the Ticket to Work program, 

we pay a qualified service provider, to 

which a disability beneficiary has 

assigned a ticket, for certain outcomes 

achieved by the beneficiary. We may 

pay an outcome payment to a qualified 

service provider for each month for 

which SSDI benefits and Federal SSI are 

not payable to the beneficiary because of 

the performance of SGA or by reason of 

earnings from work activity. If the 

beneficiary is an SSDI-only or 

concurrent SSDI/SSI beneficiary, we 

may pay outcome payments for a 

maximum of 36 months, not necessarily 

consecutive. Section 1148(h) of the Act; 

20 CFR 411.500(b)–(e), 411.525(a)(1)(i), 

and 411.575(b)(1)(i)(A). 

We are waiving this section of the Act 

and these provisions of our regulations 

to the extent necessary to provide the 

alternate rule described in this notice 

for paying outcome payments to a 

qualified service provider to which a 

beneficiary in a treatment group has 

assigned a ticket. In general, under the 

alternate rule, a qualified service 

provider will be eligible for an outcome 

payment for each month (up to a 

maximum of 36) for which the 

beneficiary’s SSDI benefits are reduced 

under the benefit offset and Federal SSI 

are not payable by reason of earnings 

from work activity. 

Authority: Section 234 of the Act. 

Dated: November 12, 2010. 

Michael J. Astrue, 

Commissioner of Social Security. 

[FR Doc. 2010–29350 Filed 11–19–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4191–02–P 

SUSQUEHANNA RIVER BASIN 

COMMISSION 

Notice of Projects Approved for 

Consumptive Uses of Water 

AGENCY: Susquehanna River Basin 

Commission. 

ACTION: Notice of approved projects. 

SUMMARY: This notice lists the projects 

approved by rule by the Susquehanna 

River Basin Commission during the 

period set forth in DATES. 

DATES: October 1, 2010, through October 

31, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Susquehanna River Basin 

Commission, 1721 North Front Street, 

Harrisburg, PA 17102–2391. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Richard A. Cairo, General Counsel, 

telephone: (717) 238–0423, ext. 306; fax: 

(717) 238–2436; e-mail: rcairo@srbc.net 

or Stephanie L. Richardson, Secretary to 

the Commission, telephone: (717) 238– 

0423, ext. 304; fax: (717) 238–2436; email: srichardson@srbc.net. Regular 

mail inquiries may be sent to the above 

address. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

notice lists the projects, described 


jlentini on DSKJ8SOYB1PROD with NOTICES