[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 178 (Friday, September 15, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 43415-43416]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-19629]


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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 
Employee Annuity Under the Railroad Retirement Ac; OMB 3220-0002.
    Section 2(a) of the Railroad Retirement Act (RRA) provides for 
payments of age and service, disability, and supplemental annuities to 
qualified employees. An annuity cannot be paid until the employee stops 
working for a railroad employer. In addition, the age and service 
employee must relinquish any rights held to such jobs. A disabled 
employee does not need to relinquish employee rights until attaining 
Full Retirement Age, or if earlier, when their spouse is awarded a 
spouse annuity. Benefits become payable after the employee meets 
certain other requirements, which depend on the type of annuity 
payable. The requirements for obtaining the annuities are prescribed in 
20 CFR 216 and 220.
    To collect the information needed to help determine an applicant's 
entitlement to, and the amount of, an employee retirement annuity the 
RRB uses Forms AA-1, Application for Employee Annuity; AA-1d, 
Application for Determination of Employee Disability; G-204, 
Verification of Workers Compensation/Public Disability Benefit 
Information, and electronic Forms AA-1cert, Application Summary and 
Certification, and AA-1sum, Application Summary.
    The AA-1 application process obtains information from an applicant 
about their marital history, work history, military service, benefits 
from other governmental agencies, railroad

[[Page 43416]]

pensions and Medicare entitlement for either an age and service or 
disability annuity. An RRB representative interviews the applicant 
either at a field office, an itinerant point, or by telephone. During 
the interview, the RRB representative enters the information obtained 
into an on-line information system. Upon completion of the interview, 
the on-line information system generates Form AA-1cert, Application 
Summary and Certification, or Form AA-1sum, Application Summary, a 
summary of the information that was provided for the applicant to 
review and approve. Form AA-1cert documents approval using the 
traditional pen and ink ``wet'' signature, and Form AA-1sum documents 
approval using the alternative signature method called Attestation. 
When the RRB representative is unable to contact the applicant in 
person or by telephone, for example, the applicant lives in another 
country, a manual version of Form AA-1 is used.
    Form AA-1d, Application for Determination of Employee's Disability, 
is completed by an employee who is filing for a disability annuity 
under the RRA, or a disability freeze under the Social Security Act, 
for early Medicare based on a disability. Form G-204, Verification of 
Worker's Compensation/Public Disability Benefit Information, is used to 
obtain and verify information concerning a worker's compensation or a 
public disability benefit that is or will be paid by a public agency to 
a disabled railroad employee.
    The RRB proposes to add the following two new items--``Are you 
expecting a newborn?'' and its possible ``Yes'' response--``Expected 
Date'' to Form AA-1. A comparable revision will be made to the 
electronic equivalent forms (AA-1, AA-1cert and AA-1sum). This 
information will help determine if the applicant can potentially 
receive an additional benefit amount. The RRB also proposes the 
implementation of an Internet equivalent version of Form AA-1 that can 
be completed by the applicant and submitted through the RRB's Web site 
at www.rrb.gov. The RRB proposes no changes to Forms AA-1d or G-204.
    One response is requested of each respondent. Completion of the 
forms is required to obtain/retain a benefit.

                                      Estimate of Annual Respondent Burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                      Annual
                            Form No.                                 responses    Time (minutes)  Burden (hours)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
AA-1 (without assistance).......................................              35              62              36
AA-1cert (with assistance)......................................           7,050              30           3,525
AA-1sum (with assistance).......................................           2,415              29           1,167
AA-1 (Internet) (without assistance)............................           3,220              45           2,415
AA-1d (with assistance).........................................           2,600              60           2,600
AA-1d (without assistance)......................................               5              85               7
G-204...........................................................              20              15               5
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total.......................................................          15,345  ..............           9,755
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    Additional Information or Comments: To request more information or 
to obtain a copy of the information collection justification, forms, 
and/or supporting material, contact Dana Hickman at (312) 751-4981 or 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#4f0b2e212e6107262c24222e210f1d1d0d61080019"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="87c3e6e9e6a9cfeee4eceae6e9c7d5d5c5a9c0c8d1">[email protected]</span></a>. Comments regarding the information collection 
should be addressed to Brian Foster, Railroad Retirement Board, 844 
North Rush Street, Chicago, Illinois 60611-1275 or emailed to 
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#eeac9c878f80c0a8819d9a8b9cae9c9c8cc0898198"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e4a6968d858acaa28b97908196a4969686ca838b92">[email protected]</span></a>. Written comments should be received within 60 
days of this notice.

Brian D. Foster,
Clearance Officer.
[FR Doc. 2017-19629 Filed 9-14-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 7905-01-P


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