Social Security Administration 2016 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Social Security Administration is providing notice of its adjusted maximum civil monetary penalties. These amounts are effective beginning January 15, 2017. These figures represent an annual adjustment for inflation. The updated figures and notification are required by the Federal Civil Penalties Inflation Adjustment Act Improvements Act of 2015 (the 2015 Act).\1\

We are revising our rules so that more of our procedures at the hearing and Appeals Council levels of our administrative review process are consistent nationwide. We anticipate that these nationally consistent procedures will enable us to administer our disability programs more efficiently and better serve the public.

In accordance with the Privacy Act we are issuing public notice of our intent to establish a new system of records entitled, Anti-Harassment & Hostile Work Environment Case Tracking and Records System (60-0380), hereinafter referred to as the Anti-Harassment System. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) requires agencies to implement anti-harassment policies and procedures separate from the Equal Employment Opportunity process. As a result of implementing those policies and procedures, SSA is creating the Anti- Harassment System, which will capture and house information regarding allegations of workplace harassment filed by SSA employees, including SSA contractors, alleging harassment by another SSA employee or SSA contractor. The Anti-Harassment System supports our efforts to prevent harassment from occurring, to stop it before it becomes severe or pervasive, and to conduct prompt, thorough, and impartial investigations into allegations of harassment, thus supporting our obligation to maintain a work environment free from discrimination, including harassment.

We published a document in the Federal Register revising our rules on September 26, 2016. That document inadvertently included incorrect amendatory instructions to appendix 1 to subpart P of 20 CFR part 404, removing section 114.00I and redesignating section 114.00J as section 114.00I. This document corrects the final regulation by removing that amendatory instruction.

These rules finalize the rules we proposed in our notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), published on May 11, 2016. In these rules, we remove some of the requirements for evaluation of an unsuccessful work attempt (UWA) that lasts between 3 and 6 months, allow previously entitled beneficiaries to apply for expedited reinstatement (EXR) in the same month they stop performing substantial gainful activity (SGA), and provide that provisional benefits will begin the month after the request for EXR if the beneficiary stops performing SGA in the month of the EXR request. These changes will simplify our policies and make them easier for the public to understand.

On August 22, 2012,\1\ we announced in the Federal Register a schedule of standardized administrative fees we charge to the public. We charge these fees to recover our full costs when we provide information and related services for non-program purposes. We are announcing an update to the previously published schedule of standardized administrative fees.\2\

In accordance with section 812 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 (BBA section 812), these rules explain how we will address evidence furnished by medical sources that meet one of BBA section 812's exclusionary categories (excluded medical sources of evidence) as described below. Under these new rules, we will not consider evidence furnished by an excluded medical source of evidence unless we find good cause to do so. We identify five circumstances in which we may find good cause. In these rules, we also require excluded medical sources of evidence to notify us of their excluded status under section 223(d)(5)(C)(i) of the Social Security Act (Act), as amended, in writing each time they furnish evidence to us that relates to a claim for initial or continuing benefits under titles II or XVI of the Act. These rules will allow us to fulfill obligations that we have under BBA section 812.

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 amended section 234 of the Social Security Act, which authorizes us to plan and implement new demonstration projects that waive certain Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) program requirements in order to evaluate strategies for improving work outcomes for SSDI beneficiaries and applicants. This request for information (RFI) seeks public input on possible demonstration projects designed to improve employment and earnings outcomes for individuals with musculoskeletal impairments. The input we receive will inform our deliberations about the possible design of a future demonstration project using the section 234 authority.

We are giving notice that an agreement coordinating the United States (U.S.) and Hungarian social security programs will enter into force on September 1, 2016. The agreement with Hungary, which was signed on February 3, 2015, is similar to U.S. social security agreements already in force with 25 other countriesAustralia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea (South), Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Slovak Republic, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Section 233 of the Social Security Act authorizes agreements of this type. Like the other agreements, the U.S.-Hungarian agreement eliminates dual social security coverage. This situation exists when a worker from one country works in the other country and has coverage under the social security systems of both countries for the same work. When dual coverage occurs, the worker, the worker's employer, or both may be required to pay social security contributions to the two countries simultaneously without such agreements in force. Under the U.S.- Hungarian agreement, a worker who is sent by an employer in one country to work in the other country for five or fewer years remains covered only by the sending country. The agreement includes additional rules that eliminate dual U.S. and Hungarian coverage in other work situations. The agreement also helps eliminate situations where workers suffer a loss of benefit rights because they have divided their careers between the two countries. Under the agreement, workers may qualify for partial U.S. benefits or partial Hungarian benefits based on combined (totalized) work credits from both countries. Persons who wish to obtain copies of the agreement or want more information about its provisions may write to the Social Security Administration, Office of International Programs, Post Office Box 17741, Baltimore, MD 21235-7741 or visit the Social Security Web site at www.socialsecurity.gov/international.

We are announcing the extension of tests involving modifications to disability determination procedures authorized by 20 CFR 404.906 and 416.1406. These rules authorize us to test several modifications to the disability determination procedures for adjudicating claims for disability insurance benefits under title II of the Social Security Act (Act) and for supplemental security income payments based on disability under title XVI of the Act. This notice is our last extension of the ``single decisionmaker'' test, as we will phase out the test until elimination in 2018. This notice also extends the separate ``prototype'' test.

In accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act, as amended, this notice announces a renewal of an existing computer matching program that we are currently conducting with DoD.

On July 12, 2016, we published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) for Ensuring Program Uniformity at the Hearing and Appeals Council Levels of the Administrative Review Process. We provided a 30-day comment period ending on August 11, 2016. We are extending the comment period for 15 days.

In accordance with the Privacy Act (5 U.S.C. 552a) we are issuing public notice of our intent to modify an existing system of records entitled, Electronic Freedom of Information Act (eFOIA) System (60-0340), last published at 70 FR 3571 (January 25, 2005). This notice publishes details of the proposed updates as set forth below under the caption SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.

We provide fee-based Social Security number (SSN) verification service to enrolled private businesses and government agencies who obtain a valid, signed consent form from the Social Security number holder. We originally published a notice announcing the CBSV service in the Federal Register on August 10, 2007. Based on the consent forms, we verify the number holders' SSNs for the requesting party. The Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a(b)), section 1106 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1306) and our regulation at 20 CFR 401.100, establish the legal authority for us to provide SSN verifications to third party requesters based on consent. The CBSV process provides the business community and other government entities with consent-based SSN verifications in high volume. We developed CBSV as a user-friendly, internet-based application with safeguards that will protect the public's information. In addition to the benefit of providing high volume, centralized SSN verification services to the business community in a secure manner, CBSV provides us with cost and workload management benefits. New Information: To use CBSV, interested parties must pay a one- time non-refundable enrollment fee of $5,000. Currently, users also pay a fee of $1.40 per SSN verification transaction in advance of services. We agreed to calculate our costs periodically for providing CBSV services and adjust the fees as needed. We also agreed to notify our customers who currently use the service and allow them to cancel or continue using the service at the new transaction fee. Based on the most recent cost analysis, we will adjust the fiscal year 2017 fee to $1.00 per SSN verification transaction. New customers will still be responsible for the one-time $5,000 enrollment fee.

We are revising the criteria in the Listing of Impairments (listings) that we use to evaluate disability claims involving neurological disorders in adults and children under titles II and XVI of the Social Security Act (Act). These revisions reflect our program experience; advances in medical knowledge, treatment, and methods of evaluating neurological disorders; comments we received from medical experts and the public at an outreach policy conference; responses to an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM); and public comments we received in response to a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) and a Federal Register notice that reopened the NPRM comment period.

We are extending for one year our pilot program that authorizes the agency to set the time and place for a hearing before an administrative law judge (ALJ). Extending the pilot program continues our commitment to improve the efficiency of our hearing process and to maintain a hearing process that results in accurate, high-quality decisions for claimants. The current pilot program will expire on August 12, 2016. In this final rule, we are extending the effective date to August 11, 2017. We are making no other changes.

In accordance with the provisions of the Privacy Act, as amended, this notice announces a renewal of an existing computer matching program that we are currently conducting with CMS.