Supporting Statement for Form SSA-2001-F6
Representative Payee Report-Special Veterans Benefits
20 CFR 408.665
OMB No. 0960-0621
A. Justification
Introduction/Authoring Laws and Regulations
As per Title VIII of the Social Security Act (Act), the Social Security Administration (SSA) must provide benefits to certain qualified World War II veterans who reside outside the United States. Section 807(a) of the Act states that if SSA determines it is not in the best interest of the beneficiary to receive benefits directly, SSA may certify payments to a relative, another person, or organization interested in or concerned about the welfare of the beneficiary. We call these individuals or organizations representative payees. Section 807(h) of the Act requires the Commissioner of Social Security to establish a system of accountability monitoring for representative payees. Section 20 CFR 408.665 of the Code of Federal Regulations requires representative payees to account for the use of a beneficiary’s benefits.
Description of Collection
SSA uses the information on Form SSA-2001-F6 to determine whether the representative payee used the certified payments properly, and continues to demonstrate strong concern for the beneficiary’s best interests. Representative payees who receive Special Veterans Benefits on behalf of beneficiaries residing outside the United States must complete the SSA-2001-F6 annually. We also require representative payees to complete the form any time we have reason to believe they could be misusing the benefit payments. The respondents are individuals or organizations serving as representative payees who receive Special Veterans Benefits on behalf of beneficiaries living outside the United States.
Use of Information Technology to Collect the Information
Form SSA-2001-F6 is in paper form only and is not available as a print-only PDF on SSA’s website. SSA did not create an electronic version of form SSA-2001-F6 under the agency’s Government Paperwork Elimination Act plan because of the low volume of respondents who are required to complete the form.
Why We Cannot Use Duplicate Information
The nature of the information we are collecting and the manner in which we are collecting it preclude duplication. SSA does not use another collection instrument to obtain similar data.
Minimizing Burden to Small Respondents
This collection does not affect small businesses or other small entities.
Consequences of Not Collecting Information or Collecting It Less Frequently
SSA collects the information annually to determine the continuing suitability of the representative payee. The regulatory requirement is a result of a class action suit filed against SSA; thus, if SSA did not collect the information, we would be in violation of the regulatory requirement. Therefore, we cannot collect the information less frequently. There are no technical or legal obstacles to burden reduction.
Special Circumstances
There are no special circumstances that would cause SSA to conduct this information collection in a manner inconsistent with 5 CFR 1320.5.
Solicitation of Public Comment and Other Consultations with the Public
The 60-day advance Federal Register Notice published on April 2, 2015, at 80 FR 17817, and we received no public comments. SSA published the second Notice on June 19, 2015, at 80 FR 35423. If we receive comments in response to the 30‑day Notice, we will forward them to OMB. We did not consult with the public in the revision of this form.
Payment or Gifts to Respondents
SSA does not provide payments or gifts to the respondents.
Assurances of Confidentiality
SSA protects and holds confidential the information it collects in accordance with 42 U.S.C. 1306, 20 CFR 401 and 402, 5 U.S.C. 552 (Freedom of Information Act), 5 U.S.C. 552a (Privacy Act of 1974) and OMB Circular No. A-130.
Justification for Sensitive Questions
The information collection does not contain any questions of a sensitive nature.
Estimates of Public Burden
Approximately 50 respondents take 10 minutes each to complete Form SSA-2001-F6 each year. Accordingly, the burden is 8 hours. This figure represents burden hours, and we did not calculate a separate cost burden.
Annual Cost to the Respondents (Other)
There is no known cost burden on the respondents.
Annual Cost to the Federal Government
The annual cost to the Federal Government is approximately $240. This estimate is a projection of the costs for printing and distributing the collection instrument and for collecting the information.
Program Changes or Adjustments to the Information Collection Request
The burden decrease stems from a decrease in the amount of respondents from 100 to 50. We expect the burden to decrease further in the future, as the beneficiaries for the Special Veterans Benefits are a dying population, and, as they decrease, so does their need for representative payees.
Plans for Publication Information Collection Results
SSA will not publish the results of the information collection.
Displaying the OMB Approval Expiration Date
OMB exempted SSA from the requirement to print the OMB expiration date on its program forms. SSA produces millions of public-use forms with life cycles exceeding those of an OMB approval. Since SSA does not periodically revise and reprint its public-use forms, (e.g., on an annual basis), OMB granted this exemption so that SSA would not have to destroy stocks of otherwise useable forms with expired OMB approval dates, avoiding Government waste.
Exception to Certification Statement
SSA is not requesting an exception to the certification requirements at 5 CFR 1320.9 and related provisions at 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods
SSA is not using statistical methods this information collection.
| File Type | application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.wordprocessingml.document |
| Author | Bobbitt, Karen L. |
| File Modified | 0000-00-00 |
| File Created | 2021-01-25 |