Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 111 / Thursday, June 11, 2009 / Proposed Rules 27727 

discontinuity (corrosion and mechanical 

damage)] and, as necessary, repair of the 

airbrake upper crossbeam. 

The required actions include replacing the 

three rivets with Hi-lok pins. For cracking, 

damage, or discontinuity that is outside 

certain limits defined in the service bulletin, 

the repair includes contacting BAE Systems 

(Operations) Limited for repair instructions 

and doing the repair. 

Actions and Compliance 

(f) Unless already done, do the following 

actions: 

(1) At the applicable time specified in 

paragraphs (f)(1)(i) and (f)(1)(ii) of this AD, 

inspect for cracking, damage, and 

discontinuity of the airbrake upper 

crossbeam fastener positions and lightening 

holes; and replace the three rivets with Hilok pins; in accordance with paragraphs 2.B., 

2.C., and 2.D. of the Accomplishment 

Instructions of BAE Systems (Operations) 

Limited Inspection Service Bulletin ISB.53– 

200, Revision 1, dated March 13, 2007. If any 

crack, damage, or discontinuity is found: 

Before further flight, repair as required by 

paragraph (f)(3) of this AD. 

(i) For airplanes that have not been 

inspected in accordance with BAE Systems 

(Operations) Limited MRBR SSI Task No. 53– 

40–125 (MPD Reference 534025–DVI–10000– 

1) as of the effective date of this AD, do the 

inspection prior to accumulating 20,000 total 

flight cycles or 500 flight cycles after the 

effective date of this AD, whichever occurs 

later. 

(ii) For airplanes subject to MRBR and 

SSID requirements that have been inspected 

in accordance with BAE Systems 

(Operations) Limited MRBR SSI Task No. 53– 

40–125 (MPD Reference 534025–DVI–10000– 

1) as of the effective date of this AD, do the 

inspection at the latest of the times in 

paragraphs (f)(1)(ii)(A), (f)(1)(ii)(B), or 

(f)(1)(ii)(C) of this AD. 

(A) Before the accumulation of 4,000 flight 

cycles since last inspection. 

(B) Within 2,500 flight cycles (for MRBR 

airplanes), or within 1,000 flight cycles (for 

SSID airplanes) after the effective date of this 

AD; but not exceeding 8,000 flight cycles 

since the last inspection. 

(C) Within 500 flight cycles after the 

effective date of this AD. 

(2) Repeat the inspection required by 

paragraph (f)(1) of this AD thereafter at the 

applicable time specified in paragraph 

(f)(2)(i), (f)(2)(ii), or (f)(2)(iii) of this AD. If 

any crack, damage, or discontinuity is found: 

Before further flight, repair as required by 

paragraph (f)(3) of this AD. 

(i) Inspect fastener positions at the rivet 

locations at intervals not to exceed 4,000 

flight cycles. 

(ii) Inspect the holes at Hi-lok pin locations 

at intervals not to exceed 12,000 flight cycles. 

(iii) Inspect the lightening holes at 

intervals not to exceed 12,000 flight cycles. 

(3) If any crack, damage, or discontinuity 

is found during any inspection required by 

this AD: Before further flight, do the repair 

in accordance with paragraph 2.E. of the 

Accomplishment Instructions of BAE 

Systems (Operations) Limited Inspection 

Service Bulletin ISB.53–200, Revision 1, 

dated March 13, 2007. 

(4) Actions accomplished before the 

effective date of this AD in accordance with 

BAE Systems (Operations) Limited 

Inspection Service Bulletin ISB.53–200, 

dated December 21, 2006, are considered 

acceptable for compliance with the 

corresponding action specified in this AD. 

FAA AD Differences 

Note 1: This AD differs from the MCAI 

and/or service information as follows: No 

Differences. 

Other FAA AD Provisions 

(g) The following provisions also apply to 

this AD: 

(1) Alternative Methods of Compliance 

(AMOCs): The Manager, International 

Branch, ANM–116, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, FAA, has the authority to 

approve AMOCs for this AD, if requested 

using the procedures found in 14 CFR 39.19. 

Send information to ATTN: Todd Thompson, 

Aerospace Engineer, International Branch, 

ANM–116, Transport Airplane Directorate, 

FAA, 1601 Lind Avenue, SW., Renton, 

Washington 98057–3356; telephone (425) 

227–1175; fax (425) 227–1149. Before using 

any approved AMOC on any airplane to 

which the AMOC applies, notify your 

principal maintenance inspector (PMI) or 

principal avionics inspector (PAI), as 

appropriate, or lacking a principal inspector, 

your local Flight Standards District Office. 

The AMOC approval letter must specifically 

reference this AD. 

(2) Airworthy Product: For any requirement 

in this AD to obtain corrective actions from 

a manufacturer or other source, use these 

actions if they are FAA-approved. Corrective 

actions are considered FAA-approved if they 

are approved by the State of Design Authority 

(or their delegated agent). You are required 

to assure the product is airworthy before it 

is returned to service. 

(3) Reporting Requirements: For any 

reporting requirement in this AD, under the 

provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 

the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 

has approved the information collection 

requirements and has assigned OMB Control 

Number 2120–0056. 

Related Information 

(h) Refer to MCAI European Aviation 

Safety Agency Airworthiness Directive 2007– 

0307, dated December 17, 2007; and BAE 

Systems (Operations) Limited Inspection 

Service Bulletin ISB.53–200, Revision 1, 

dated March 13, 2007; for related 

information. 

Issued in Renton, Washington, on June 4, 

2009. 

Stephen P. Boyd, 

Acting Manager, Transport Airplane 

Directorate, Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. E9–13727 Filed 6–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P 

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION 

20 CFR Part 416 

[Docket No. SSA–2008–0051] 

RIN 0960–AF97 

Exclusion of Certain Military Pay From 

Deemed Income and Resources 

AGENCY: Social Security Administration. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: We propose to revise our 

rules to clarify that, for Supplemental 

Security Income (SSI) purposes, we do 

not consider any combat-related 

military pay as income when we 

determine whether spouses and 

children of members of the uniformed 

services are eligible for SSI. The 

proposed rules also would clarify that 

we do not consider combat-related 

military pay as income when we 

determine the spouse’s or child’s proper 

payment amount. These proposed rules 

also would provide that, when we 

determine whether spouses and 

children are eligible for SSI, we do not 

consider retroactive payments of certain 

military pay as resources for 9 months 

following receipt. These proposed rules 

would protect spouses and children of 

members of the uniformed services from 

a reduction in, or loss of, benefits 

because their spouse or parent serves in 

a combat zone. 

DATES: To be sure that we consider your 

comments, we must receive them no 

later than August 10, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments 

by any one of four methods—Internet, 

facsimile, regular mail, or handdelivery. Commenters should not 

submit the same comments multiple 

times or by more than one method. 

Regardless of which of the following 

methods you choose, please state that 

your comments refer to Docket No. 

SSA–2008–0051 to ensure that we can 

associate your comments with the 

correct regulation: 

1. Federal eRulemaking Portal at 

http://www.regulations.gov. (This is the 

most expedient method for submitting 

your comments, and we strongly urge 

you to use it.) In the ‘‘Search 

Documents’’ section of the Web page, 

type ‘‘SSA–2008–0051,’’ select ‘‘Go,’’ 

and then click ‘‘Send a Comment or 

Submission.’’ The Federal eRulemaking 

Portal issues you a tracking number 

when you submit a comment. 

2. Telefax to (410) 966–2830. 

3. Letter to the Commissioner of 

Social Security, P.O. Box 17703, 

Baltimore, MD 21235–7703. 

4. Deliver your comments to the 

Office of Regulations, Social Security 


cprice-sewell on PRODPC61 with PROPOSALS
27728 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 111 / Thursday, June 11, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

Administration, 922 Altmeyer Building, 

6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, 

Maryland 21235–6401, between 8 a.m. 

and 4:30 p.m. on regular business days. 

All comments are posted on the 

Federal eRulemaking portal, although 

they may not appear for several days 

after receipt of the comment. You may 

also inspect the comments on regular 

business days by making arrangements 

with the contact person shown in this 

preamble. 

Caution: All comments we receive 

from members of the public are 

available for public viewing on the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal at http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Therefore, you 

should be careful to include in your 

comments only information that you 

wish to make publicly available on the 

Internet. We strongly urge you not to 

include any personal information, such 

as your Social Security number or 

medical information, in your comments. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eric 

Skidmore, Social Insurance Specialist, 

Social Security Administration, Office 

of Income Security Programs, 252 

Altmeyer Building, 6401 Security 

Boulevard, Baltimore, MD 21235–6401, 

(410) 597–1833, for information about 

this notice. For information on 

eligibility or filing for benefits, call our 

national toll-free number, 1–800–772– 

1213 or TTY 1–800–325–0778, or visit 

our Internet site, Social Security Online, 

at http://www.socialsecurity.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Version 

The electronic file of this document is 

available on the date of publication in 

the Federal Register at http:// 

www.gpoaccess.gov/fr/index.html. 

Background 

The SSI program provides a minimum 

income level for aged, blind, and 

disabled persons who do not have 

income or resources above levels 

specified in the Social Security Act (the 

Act). The Act generally requires that 

when we determine a person’s 

eligibility for, and amount of, SSI 

benefits, we must consider the income 

and resources of an ineligible spouse 

living in the same household and, in the 

case of a child under the age of 18, an 

ineligible parent living in the same 

household (and the spouse of such a 

parent). Section 1614(f) of the Act, 42 

U.S.C. 1382c(f). We use the term 

‘‘deeming’’ to refer to the process of 

considering part of an ineligible 

spouse’s or parent’s income and 

resources to be the person’s own income 

and resources. 

Although a member of the uniformed 

services on active duty is unlikely to 

apply or be eligible for SSI benefits, 

some members of the uniformed 

services have spouses or children who 

receive or may apply for SSI benefits. 

For purposes of deeming, the Act 

provides that a spouse or parent who is 

absent from the household solely 

because of a duty assignment as a 

member of the Armed Forces generally 

will be treated as if he or she were living 

in the household. Section 1614(f)(4) of 

the Act, 42 U.S.C. 1382c(f)(4). Therefore, 

we generally deem income and 

resources of the member of the 

uniformed services to his spouse or 

child when determining the spouse’s or 

child’s eligibility for, and amount of, 

SSI benefits. Because we consider the 

member of the uniformed services as 

part of the household, we do not treat 

his military pay as unearned income 

from a source outside of the household. 

Although we generally deem income 

of a member of the uniformed services 

to his spouse or child, the Act excludes 

from income certain kinds of pay that 

members of the uniformed services may 

receive. Section 1612(b)(20) of the Act, 

42 U.S.C. 1382a(b)(20). In particular, we 

exclude from income special pay 

received pursuant to 37 U.S.C. 310. 

Members of the uniformed services are 

eligible for special pay during months in 

which they are subject to hostile fire or 

certain other dangerous conditions 

specified in 37 U.S.C. 310. Our current 

regulations implementing section 

1612(b)(20) of the Act exclude ‘‘hostile 

fire pay’’ received under 37 U.S.C. 310 

from income and from deeming to 

spouses and children. 20 CFR 

416.1124(c)(19) and 416.1161(a)(23). We 

are proposing to replace the term 

‘‘hostile fire pay’’ in these sections of 

our rules with the term ‘‘special pay’’ to 

clarify that we exclude from income all 

special pay that a member of the 

uniformed services received pursuant to 

37 U.S.C. 310. 

We are also proposing to add a new 

paragraph to our rules on deeming of 

income to spouses and children that 

excludes from deeming additional types 

of combat-related pay beyond special 

pay under 37 U.S.C. 310. The Act allows 

us to waive the deeming of income and 

resources to a spouse or child when we 

determine that deeming would be 

inequitable. Section 1614(f) of the Act, 

42 U.S.C. 1382c(f). Effective October 1, 

2002, we issued instructions under this 

statutory authority to exclude from a 

spouse’s or child’s deemed income any 

additional pay that members of the 

uniformed services received because 

they were deployed to or served in a 

combat zone. We determined that it 

would be inequitable to deem that pay 

as income and reduce a family 

member’s benefits or potentially render 

the family member ineligible for SSI. 

We are now proposing to incorporate 

this exclusion and the definition of the 

term ‘‘combat zone’’ in our SSI rules. 

We are also proposing to revise our 

rules on deeming of resources to 

spouses and children to exclude 

retroactive payments of certain kinds of 

military pay for 9 months following 

receipt. Congress has retroactively and 

permanently increased the amount of 

special pay under 37 U.S.C. 310 and the 

family separation allowance under 37 

U.S.C. 427. Pursuant to section 1614(f) 

of the Act, we issued instructions 

excluding retroactive payments of the 

increase in special pay received after 

September 2002 from a spouse’s or 

child’s deemed resources for a period of 

9 months following the month of 

receipt. Our instructions similarly 

excluded retroactive payments of the 

family separation allowance that a 

member of the uniformed services 

received as a result of deployment to or 

service in a combat zone. We 

determined that it would be inequitable 

to apply the usual resource deeming 

rules to these retroactive payments in 

recognition of the hardships 

experienced and sacrifices made by 

members of the uniformed services and 

their families. We are now proposing to 

revise our SSI rules to incorporate these 

exclusions. 

Finally, we are proposing to revise the 

punctuation at the conclusion of 

§ 416.1161(a)(25), (a)(26), and (a)(27). 

We are also proposing to clarify some of 

the language in § 416.1202(a) and (b)(1) 

and to reorganize portions of 

§ 416.1202(b)(1) to make that section 

easier to understand. We are proposing 

these changes solely to improve the 

clarity of these rules, and these changes 

would have no substantive effect on our 

policies or procedures. 

Explanation of Proposed Changes 

We propose to amend the regulations 

in 20 CFR, part 416, subparts K and L, 

to reflect the changes discussed above. 

In summary, we propose to: 

1. Revise § 416.1124(c)(19) and 

§ 416.1161(a)(23) to replace the term 

‘‘hostile fire pay’’ with the term ‘‘special 

pay.’’ We propose this technical 

clarification to conform the regulatory 

language to the statutory language in 

section 1612(b)(20) of the Act. 

2. Amend § 416.1160(d) to add a 

definition of the term ‘‘combat zone.’’ 

3. Amend § 416.1161 by adding new 

paragraph (a)(28) to exclude from 

income deemed from an ineligible 

spouse or parent any additional 

increment in pay, other than any 


cprice-sewell on PRODPC61 with PROPOSALS
Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 111 / Thursday, June 11, 2009 / Proposed Rules 27729 

increase in basic pay (e.g., annual pay 

raises, promotions), if: 

• The spouse or parent received the 

additional pay as a result of deployment 

to or service in a combat zone; and 

• The spouse or parent was not 

receiving the additional pay 

immediately prior to deployment to or 

service in a combat zone. 

4. Revise the punctuation at the 

conclusion of paragraphs (a)(25), (a)(26), 

and (a)(27) of § 416.1161. 

5. Revise paragraphs (a) and (b)(1) of 

§ 416.1202 to exclude from resources 

deemed from an ineligible spouse or 

parent (or spouse of a parent), for 9 

months following the month of receipt, 

the unspent portion of any retroactive 

payment of: 

• Special pay the ineligible spouse or 

parent received from one of the 

uniformed services pursuant to 37 

U.S.C. 310; and 

• Family separation allowance the 

ineligible spouse or parent received 

from one of the uniformed services 

pursuant to 37 U.S.C. 427 as a result of 

deployment to or service in a combat 

zone. 

6. Clarify some language in 

paragraphs (a) and (b)(1) of § 416.1202, 

and reorganize portions of paragraph 

(b)(1). 

Clarity of These Rules 

Executive Order (E.O.) 12866, as 

amended, requires each agency to write 

all rules in plain language. In addition 

to your substantive comments on these 

proposed rules, we invite your 

comments on how to make them easier 

to understand. 

For example: 

• Have we organized the material to 

suit your needs? 

• Are the requirements in the rules 

clearly stated? 

• Do the rules contain technical 

language or jargon that isn’t clear? 

• Would a different format (grouping 

and order of sections, use of headings, 

paragraphing) make the rules easier to 

understand? 

• Would more (but shorter) sections 

be better? 

• Could we improve clarity by adding 

tables, lists, or diagrams? 

• What else could we do to make the 

rules easier to understand? 

Regulatory Procedures 

Executive Order 12866 

We have consulted with the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB) and 

determined that these proposed rules 

meet the requirements for a significant 

regulatory action under Executive Order 

12866, as amended. Thus, they were 

subject to OMB review. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

We certify that these proposed rules 

would not have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities, because they affect only 

individuals. Therefore, a regulatory 

flexibility analysis as provided in the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act, as amended, 

is not required. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

These proposed rules do not pose any 

public reporting requirements and are, 

therefore, not subject to the 

requirements of the Paperwork 

Reduction Act. 

(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance 

Program No. 96.006, Supplemental Security 

Income) 

List of Subjects in 20 CFR Part 416 

Administrative practice and 

procedure; Aged, Blind, Disability 

benefits; Public assistance programs; 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements; Supplemental Security 

Income (SSI). 

Dated: June 3, 2009. 

Michael J. Astrue, 

Commissioner of Social Security. 

For the reasons set out in the 

preamble, we propose to amend 

subparts K and L of part 416 of chapter 

III of title 20 Code of Federal 

Regulations as set forth below: 

PART 416—SUPPLEMENTAL 

SECURITY INCOME FOR THE AGED, 

BLIND, AND DISABLED 

Subpart K—[Amended] 

1. The authority citation for subpart K 

of part 416 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Secs. 702(a)(5), 1602, 1611, 

1612, 1613, 1614(f), 1621, 1631, and 1633 of 

the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 902(a)(5), 

1381a, 1382, 1382a, 1382b, 1382c(f), 1382j, 

1383, and 1383b); sec. 211, Public Law 93– 

66, 87 Stat. 154 (42 U.S.C. 1382 note). 

2. Amend § 416.1124 by revising 

paragraph (c)(19) to read as follows: 

§ 416.1124 Unearned income we do not 

count. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(19) Special pay received from one of 

the uniformed services pursuant to 37 

U.S.C. 310; 

* * * * * 

3. Amend § 416.1160 by adding the 

definition of ‘‘Combat zone’’ in 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

§ 416.1160 What is deeming of income? 

* * * * * 

(d) * * * 

Combat zone means 

(i) Any area the President of the 

United States designates by Executive 

Order under 26 U.S.C. 112 as an area in 

which Armed Forces of the United 

States are or have engaged in combat; 

(ii) A qualified hazardous duty area 

(QHDA) Congress designates be treated 

in the same manner as an area 

designated by the President under 26 

U.S.C. 112, provided the member of the 

uniformed services serving in this area 

is entitled to special pay under 37 

U.S.C. 310; or 

(iii) An area where the Secretary of 

Defense or his designated representative 

has certified that Armed Forces 

members provide direct support for 

military operations in an area 

designated by the President under 26 

U.S.C. 112 or a QHDA, provided the 

member of the uniformed services 

serving in the area certified by the 

Secretary of Defense or his designated 

representative is entitled to special pay 

under 37 U.S.C. 310. 

* * * * * 

4. Amend § 416.1161 as follows: 

a. Amend paragraph (a)(23) by 

removing the words ‘‘Hostile fire pay’’ 

and adding the words ‘‘Special pay’’ in 

their place; 

b. Remove the word ‘‘and’’ at the end 

of paragraph (a)(25); 

c. Remove the period at the end of 

paragraph (a)(26) and add a semicolon 

in its place; 

d. Remove the period at the end of 

paragraph (a)(27) and add ‘‘; and’’ in its 

place; and 

e. Add paragraph (a)(28) to read as 

follows: 

§ 416.1161 Income of an ineligible spouse, 

ineligible parent, and essential person for 

deeming purposes. 

* * * * * 

(a) * * * 

(28) Any additional increment in pay, 

other than any increase in basic pay, 

received while serving as a member of 

the uniformed services, if— 

(i) Your ineligible spouse or parent 

received the pay as a result of 

deployment to or service in a combat 

zone; and 

(ii) Your ineligible spouse or parent 

was not receiving the additional pay 

immediately prior to deployment to or 

service in a combat zone. 

* * * * * 

SUBPART L—[Amended] 

5. The authority citation for subpart L 

of part 416 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: Secs. 702(a)(5), 1602, 1611, 

1612, 1613, 1614(f), 1621, 1631, and 1633 of 

the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 902(a)(5), 


cprice-sewell on PRODPC61 with PROPOSALS
27730 Federal Register / Vol. 74, No. 111 / Thursday, June 11, 2009 / Proposed Rules 

1381a, 1382, 1382a, 1382b, 1382c(f), 1382j, 

1383, and 1383b); sec. 211, Public Law 93– 

66, 87 Stat. 154 (42 U.S.C. 1382 note). 

6. In § 416.1202: 

a. Revise the second sentence and 

remove the third sentence of paragraph 

(a); 

b. Add new paragraphs (a)(1), (a)(2), 

and (a)(3); and 

c. Revise paragraph (b)(1). 

The additions and revisions read as 

follows: 

§ 416.1202 Deeming of resources. 

(a) * * * In addition to the exclusions 

listed in § 416.1210, we also exclude the 

following items: 

(1) Pension funds that the ineligible 

spouse may have. Pension funds are 

defined as funds held in individual 

retirement accounts (IRA), as described 

by the Internal Revenue Code, or in 

work-related pension plans (including 

such plans for self-employed persons, 

sometimes referred to as Keogh plans); 

(2) For 9 months beginning with the 

month following the month of receipt, 

the unspent portion of any retroactive 

payment of special pay an ineligible 

spouse received from one of the 

uniformed services pursuant to 37 

U.S.C. 310; and 

(3) For 9 months beginning with the 

month following the month of receipt, 

the unspent portion of any retroactive 

payment of family separation allowance 

an ineligible spouse received from one 

of the uniformed services pursuant to 37 

U.S.C. 427 as a result of deployment to 

or service in a combat zone (as defined 

in § 416.1160(d)). 

(b) * * * 

(1) General. In the case of a child (as 

defined in § 416.1856) who is under age 

18, we will deem to that child any 

resources, not otherwise excluded under 

this subpart, of his ineligible parent who 

is living in the same household with 

him (as described in § 416.1851). We 

also will deem to the child the resources 

of his ineligible stepparent. As used in 

this section, the term ‘‘parent’’ means 

the natural or adoptive parent of a child, 

and the term ‘‘stepparent’’ means the 

spouse (as defined in § 416.1806) of 

such natural or adoptive parent who is 

living in the same household with the 

child and parent. We will deem to a 

child the resources of his parent and 

stepparent whether or not those 

resources are available to him. We will 

deem to a child the resources of his 

parent and stepparent only to the extent 

that those resources exceed the resource 

limits described in § 416.1205. (If the 

child is living with only one parent, we 

apply the resource limit for an 

individual. If the child is living with 

both parents, or the child is living with 

one parent and a stepparent, we apply 

the resource limit for an individual and 

spouse.) We will not deem to a child the 

resources of his parent or stepparent if 

the child is excepted from deeming 

under paragraph (b)(2) of this section. In 

addition to the exclusions listed in 

§ 416.1210, we also exclude the 

following items: 

(i) Pension funds of an ineligible 

parent (or stepparent). Pension funds 

are defined as funds held in IRAs, as 

described by the Internal Revenue Code, 

or in work-related pension plans 

(including such plans for self-employed 

persons, sometimes referred to as Keogh 

plans); 

(ii) For 9 months beginning with the 

month following the month of receipt, 

the unspent portion of any retroactive 

payment of special pay an ineligible 

parent (or stepparent) received from one 

of the uniformed services pursuant to 37 

U.S.C. 310; and 

(iii) For 9 months beginning with the 

month following the month of receipt, 

the unspent portion of any retroactive 

payment of family separation allowance 

an ineligible parent (or stepparent) 

received from one of the uniformed 

services pursuant to 37 U.S.C. 427 as a 

result of deployment to or service in a 

combat zone (as defined in 

§ 416.1160(d)). 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. E9–13621 Filed 6–10–09; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4191–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY 

Fiscal Service 

31 CFR Part 285 

RIN 1510–AB20 

Offset of Tax Refund Payments to 

Collect Past-Due, Legally Enforceable 

Nontax Debt 

AGENCY: Financial Management Service, 

Fiscal Service, Treasury. 

ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. 

SUMMARY: The Department of the 

Treasury, Financial Management 

Service, is proposing to amend its 

regulation governing the offset of tax 

refund payments to collect nontax debts 

owed to the United States. We are 

proposing to remove the ten-year time 

limitation on the collection of debts by 

tax refund offset. This change will allow 

for the use of tax refund offset to collect 

nontax debts owed to the United States 

irrespective of the amount of time the 

debt has been outstanding. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

August 10, 2009. 

ADDRESSES: The Financial Management 

Service (FMS) participates in the U.S. 

government’s eRulemaking Initiative by 

publishing rulemaking information on 

www.regulations.gov. Regulations.gov 

offers the public the ability to comment 

on, search, and view publicly available 

rulemaking materials, including 

comments received on rules. 

Comments on this rule, identified by 

docket FISCAL–FMS–2008–0003, 

should only be submitted using the 

following methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions on the Web site for 

submitting comments. 

Mail: Tom Dungan, Debt Management 

Services, Financial Management 

Service, 401 14th Street SW., 

Washington, DC 20227. 

The fax and e-mail methods of 

submitting comments on rules to FMS 

have been retired. 

Instructions: All submissions received 

must include the agency name 

(‘‘Financial Management Service’’) and 

docket number FISCAL–FMS–2008– 

0003 for this rulemaking. In general, 

comments received will be published on 

Regulations.gov without change, 

including any business or personal 

information provided. Comments 

received, including attachments and 

other supporting materials, are part of 

the public record and subject to public 

disclosure. Do not enclose any 

information in your comment or 

supporting materials that you consider 

confidential or inappropriate for public 

disclosure. 

You may also inspect and copy this 

proposed rule at: Treasury Department 

Library, Freedom of Information Act 

(FOIA) Collection, Room 1428, Main 

Treasury Building, 1500 Pennsylvania 

Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20220. 

Before visiting, you must call (202) 622– 

0990 for an appointment. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Thomas Dungan, Policy Analyst, at 

(202) 874–6660, or Tricia Long, Senior 

Attorney, at (202) 874–6680. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

The Food, Conservation and Energy 

Act of 2008, Public Law 110–234, 

Section 14219, 22 Stat. 923 (2008) (‘‘the 

Act’’) amended the Debt Collection Act 

of 1982 (as amended by the Debt 

Collection Improvement Act of 1996) to 

remove a restriction on the collection of 

debt by offset of nontax payments. Prior 

to this change, nontax payments could 

be offset to collect debt only if the debt 


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