January 2007
Supporting Statement for Form SSA-2794
Real Property Current Market Value Estimate
OMB No. 0960-0471
A. Justification
1. Section 1631(e)(1)(B) of the Social Security Act (the Act) requires that additional information be obtained, as necessary, to assure that benefits are only paid to eligible individuals (or eligible spouses). The information must be verified from independent and collateral sources. Only those individuals who own resources valued at no more than the statutory amount can be eligible for benefits. Section 1611(a) of the Act discusses the limits on resources.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) uses the information obtained on Form SSA-L2794 to verify, through a local subject matter expert, the current market value of non-home real property owned by an applicant for or recipient of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits or by someone whose resources are deemed to be available to such an applicant or recipient. The information is needed to determine whether individuals meet the resource requirements for eligibility for the SSI program.
3. An electronic version of the SSA-L2794 is now available to SSA employees on eForms. Improved information technology that completely reduces the burden on respondents is not available. However, SSA is utilizing Internet-based sources for determining the market value of real property. As more States and counties put real property information online, SSA may be able to collect more of this information electronically thereby reducing the public burden. Currently Social Security uses Lexis-Nexis Risk Management Solutions Database for the detection of resources.
4. There is no duplication of information being collected. No other form used by SSA collects data similar to that collected on Form SSA-L2794.
This collection of information may involve small businesses. Their responses on the form are voluntary. The form may be completed with information the respondent has readily available, or if no data are available, a best estimate is acceptable. SSA will request this information from an outside source only if the applicant/recipient cannot provide a valid third party knowledgeable source estimate on his/her own. Collection of this information is done very infrequently and this form takes only about 20 minutes to complete. Thus, the economic impact on the public is minimal.
6. SSA will collect the requested information only when an applicant's/recipient's allegation of property value must be verified and the property's tax assessed value, in combination with the individual's other countable resources, would allow eligibility for benefits. Additionally, SSA will only request this information when the applicant for or recipient of benefits cannot provide a third party knowledgeable source estimate on his/her own. To not obtain such information, when needed, would prevent SSA from making accurate determinations of eligibility as required by the statute. Less frequent collections of information would create a high risk of incorrect eligibility determinations and incorrect payments of benefits. Therefore, this information cannot be conducted less frequently. There are no technical or legal obstacles that prevent burden reduction.
7. There are no special circumstances that would cause this information collection to be conducted in a manner that is not consistent with 5 CFR 1320.5.
8. The 60-day advance Federal Register Notice was published on March 15, 2007 at 72 FR 12244 and SSA has received no public comments. The second Notice was published on May 9, 2007 at 72 FR 26443 and there have been no outside consultations with members of the public.
9. SSA provides no payment or gifts to the respondents.
10. The information requested on this form is protected and held confidential 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.
11. The information collection does not contain any questions of a sensitive nature.
12. Form SSA-L2794 is used by approximately 5,438 respondents annually. The estimated response time is 20 minutes for a total of 1,813 burden hours. The total burden is reflected as burden hours and no separate cost burden has been calculated. In the four categories of respondents beginning with the most numerous we estimate that approximately 4,894 respondents (90%) are small business operators in real estate, 490 respondents (9%) are state and local government employees and the 54 (1%) are individuals who are knowledgeable of real estate values in their geographic area. There are virtually no responses from the Federal government. All responses are on paper being responses to mailers received back through the postal system or faxed directly to the field offices.
13. There is no known cost burden to the respondents.
14. The annual cost to the Federal Government is approximately $8,375. This estimate is a projection of printing and distribution costs for the information collection.
There have been no program changes in this form, and there is no change in the public reporting burden. The only change recommended is the removal of the Social Security Number block from the top right hand corner of the form. This would comply with the increasing awareness and protection of personal information.
The results of this information collection will not be published.
17. OMB has granted SSA an exemption from the requirement that the expiration date for OMB approval be printed on its program forms. SSA produces millions of public-use forms, many of which have a life cycle longer than that of an OMB clearance. SSA does not periodically revise and reprint its public-use forms (e.g., on an annual basis). This emption was granted so that otherwise usable editions of forms would not be taken out of circulation because the expiration date had been reached. In addition, government waste has been avoided because stocks of forms will not have to be destroyed and reprinted.
18. SSA is not requesting an exception to the certification requirements.
B. Collections of Information Employing Statistical Methods
Statistical methods are not used for this information collection.
| File Type | application/msword |
| File Title | June 2001 |
| Author | OPB |
| Last Modified By | Kathy |
| File Modified | 2007-06-22 |
| File Created | 2007-01-29 |