Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request
| Citation | 86 FR 17664 |
| Record Number | 2021-06962 |
| Published date | 05 April 2021 |
| Section | Notices |
| Court | Social Security Administration |
Federal Register, Volume 86 Issue 63 (Monday, April 5, 2021)
[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 63 (Monday, April 5, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17664-17666]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06962]
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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
[Docket No: SSA-2020-0012]
Agency Information Collection Activities: Comment Request
The Social Security Administration (SSA) publishes a list of
information collection packages requiring clearance by the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) in compliance with Public Law 104-13, the
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, effective October 1, 1995. This notice
includes a revision of an OMB-approved information collection.
SSA is soliciting comments on the accuracy of the agency's burden
estimate; the need for the information; its practical utility; ways to
enhance its quality, utility, and clarity; and ways to minimize burden
on respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology. Mail, email, or fax your
comments and recommendations on the information collection(s) to the
OMB Desk Officer and SSA Reports Clearance Officer at the following
addresses or fax numbers.
(OMB) Office of Management and Budget, Attn: Desk Officer for SSA, Fax:
202-395-6974, Email address: [email protected]
(SSA) Social Security Administration, OLCA, Attn: Reports Clearance
Director, 3100 West High Rise, 6401 Security Blvd., Baltimore, MD
21235, Fax: 410-966-2830, Email address: [email protected]
Or you may submit your comments online through www.regulations.gov,
referencing Docket ID Number [SSA-2020-0012].
SSA submitted the information collection below to OMB for clearance.
Your comments regarding this information collection would be most
useful if OMB and SSA receive them 30 days from the date of this
publication. To be sure we consider your comments, we must receive them
no later than May 5, 2021.
[[Page 17665]]
Individuals can obtain copies of this OMB clearance package by writing
to [email protected].
Electronic Consent Based Social Security Number Verification--20 CFR
400.100--0960-0817. The electronic Consent Based Social Security Number
Verification (eCBSV) is a fee-based Social Security Number (SSN)
verification service that allows permitted entities (a financial
institution as defined by Section 509 of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act. 42
U.S.C. 405b(b)(4), Public Law 115-174, Title II, 215(b)(4), or service
provider, subsidiary, affiliate, agent, subcontractor, or assignee of a
financial institution), to verify that an individual's name, date of
birth (DOB), and SSN match our records based on the SSN holder's
signed--including electronic--consent in connection with a credit
transaction or any circumstance described in section 604 of the Fair
Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b).
Background
We created this service due to section 215 of the Economic Growth,
Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act of 2018 (Banking Bill),
Public Law 115-174. Permitted entities are able to submit an SSN, name,
and DOB of the number holder in connection with a credit transaction or
any circumstances described in Section 604 of the Fair Credit Reporting
Act to SSA for verification via an application programming interface.
The purpose of the information collection is for SSA to verify for the
permitted entity that the submitted SSN, name and DOB matches, or does
not match, the data contained in our records. After obtaining number
holders' consents, a permitted entity submits the names, DOBs, and SSNs
of number holders to the eCBSV service. SSA matches the information
against our Master File, using SSN, name, and DOB. The eCBSV service
will respond in real time with a match/no match indicator (and an
indicator if our records show that the number holder died). SSA does
not provide specific information on what data elements did not match,
nor does SSA provide any SSNs or other identifiable information. The
verification does not authenticate the identity of the number holders
or conclusively prove the number holders we verify are who they are
claiming to be.
Consent Requirements
Under the eCBSV process, the permitted entity does not submit the
number holder's consent forms to SSA. SSA requires each permitted
entity to retain a valid consent for each SSN verification request
submitted for a period of 5 years. The agency permits the permitted
entity to retain the consent in an electronic format.
SSA requires a wet or electronic signature on the consent. A
permitted entity may request verification of a number holder's SSN on
behalf of a financial institution pursuant to the terms of the Banking
Bill, the user agreement between SSA and the permitted entity, and the
SSN Holder's consent. In this case, the permitted entity ensures that
the financial institution agrees to the terms in the user agreement,
which require the SSN verification be used only for the purpose stated
in the consent, and prohibits entities from further using or disclosing
the SSN verification. This relationship is subject to the terms in the
user agreement between SSA and the permitted entity.
Compliance Review
SSA requires each permitted entity to undergo compliance reviews.
An SSA approved certified public accountant (CPA) conducts the
compliance reviews. The compliance reviews are designed to ensure that
the permitted entities meet all terms and conditions of the user
agreement, including that the permitted entities obtain valid consent
from number holders. The permitted entity pays all compliance review
costs through the eCBSV fees. In general, we request annual reviews
with additional reviews as necessary. The CPA follows review standards
established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants
and contained in the Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards
(GAGAS).
This information collection request is for the expanded rollout of
eCBSV. The previous eCBSV clearance was for an initial rollout to 10
selected permitted entities. During the initial rollout, we wanted to
troubleshoot the service and make any necessary adjustments prior to
opening eCBSV to all permitted entities. The respondents to the eCBSV
information collection are the permitted entities; members of the
public who consent to SSN verifications; and CPAs who provide
compliance review services.
Type of Request: Revision of an OMB-approved information
collection.
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Average
Average burden Estimated total theoretical Total annual
Requirement Number of Frequency of per response annual burden hourly cost opportunity cost
respondents response (minutes) (hours) amount (dollars) **
(dollars) *
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(a) Complete eCBSV enrollment process ***... 113 1 120 226 * $37.56 ** $8,489
(a) Configure customer system for ability to 113 1 2,400 4,520 * 37.56 ** 169,771
send in verification requests..............
(a) People whose SSNs SSA will verify-- 1,100,000,000 1 3 55,000,000 * 10.95 ** 602,250,000
Reading and Signing........................
(a) Sending in the verification request, 1,100,000,000 1 1 18,333,333 * 37.56 ** 688,599,987
calling our service, getting a response....
(b) Follow SSA requirements to configure 113 1 4,800 9,040 * 37.56 ** 339,542
application program interface..............
(c) CPA Compliance Review and Report ****... 113 1 4,800 9,040 * 38.23 ** 345,599
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[[Page 17666]]
Totals.................................. 2,200,000,452 .............. .............. 73,356,159 .............. ** 1,291,713,388
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* We based these figures on average Business and Financial operations occupations (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes130000.htm), and Accountants and
Auditors hourly salaries (https://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes132011.htm), as reported by Bureau of Labor Statistics data, and average DI payments, as
reported in SSA's disability insurance payment data (https://www.ssa.gov/legislation/2021FactSheet.pdf).
** This figure does not represent actual costs that SSA is imposing on recipients of Social Security payments to complete this application; rather,
these are theoretical opportunity costs for the additional time respondents will spend to complete the application. There is no actual charge to
respondents to complete the application.
*** The enrollment process is automated within the eCBSV Customer Connection, and entails providing consent for SSA to verify the EIN, electronically
signing the eCBSV User Agreement and the permitted entity certification, selecting their annual tier level, and linking to pay.gov to make payment for
services.
**** There will be one CPA firm respondent (an SSA-approved contractor) to conduct compliance reviews and prepare written reports of findings on the 113
permitted entities.
Cost Burden
The public cost burden is dependent upon the number of permitted
entities using the service and the annual transaction volume. In FY
2019, 10 companies enrolled out of 123 applications received to
participate in eCBSV. We based the cost estimates below on 123
participating permitted entities in FY 2021 submitting an anticipated
volume of 1,100,000,000 transactions. The total cost for developing the
service is $45,000,000, and SSA will recover the cost over a five-year
period, assuming projected enrollments and transaction volumes
materialize.
eCBSV Tier Fee Schedule
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Tier Annual volume threshold Annual fee
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1.................... Up to 1,000.......................... $400
2.................... Up to 10,000......................... 3,030
3.................... Up to 200,000........................ 14,300
4.................... Up to 50 million..................... 276,500
5.................... Up to 2 billion...................... 860,000
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Each enrolled permitted entity will be required to remit the above
tier based subscription fee for the 365-day agreement period and the
appropriate administrative fee. We will charge newly enrolled entities
a startup administrative fee of $3,693. After the initial year, we will
charge the entities a renewal administrative fee of $1,691 each time
the agreement is renewed or amended. Fees are calculated based on
forecasted systems and operational expenses, agency oversight,
overhead, and CPA audit contract costs.
In addition, SSA will periodically recalculate costs to provide
eCBSV services, and revise the tier fee schedule accordingly. We will
notify companies of the tier fee schedule in effect at the renewal of
eCBSV user agreements and via notice in the Federal Register; companies
have the opportunity to cancel the agreement or renew service according
to the new tier fee schedule.
Dated: March 31, 2021.
Eric Lowman,
Acting Reports Clearance Officer, Office of Legislative Development and
Operations, Social Security Administration.
[FR Doc. 2021-06962 Filed 4-2-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4191-02-P
