In March of 2013, Social Security
announced its intention to award grants to reestablish
community-based protection and advocacy projects in every State,
U.S. Territories, and the Hopi and Navajo tribal nations, as
authorized under Section 1150 of the Social Security Act. Awardees
are the 57 Protection & Advocacy (P&A) organizations
established under Title I of the Developmental Disabilities
Assistance and Bill of Rights Act. The PABSS projects are part of
Social Security's strategy to increase the number of Social
Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security
Income (SSI) recipients who return to work and achieve financial
independence and self-sufficiency as the result of receiving
support, representation, advocacy, or other services. The
overarching objective of the PABSS program is to provide
information and advice about obtaining vocational rehabilitation
and employment services, and to provide advocacy or other services
a beneficiary with a disability may need to secure, maintain, or
regain gainful employment. The PABSS Annual Program Performance
Report collects statistical information from each of the PABSS
projects in an effort to manage and capture program performance and
quantitative data. Social Security uses the information to evaluate
the efficacy of the program, and to ensure beneficiaries are
receiving quality services. The project data is valuable to Social
Security in its analysis of and future planning for the SSDI and
SSI programs. The respondents are the 57 PABSS project sites, and
recipients of SSDI and SSI programs.
The reduction in the public
reporting burden is due to a reduction in the number of responses
per year for PABSS program grantees. We reduced this number from
one collection annually instead of the two collections annually, as
we required under the prior IC. The reason for this change is
twofold. First, we analyzed the data submitted annually and
realized that one collection would meet this need – two collections
was unnecessarily burdensome. Second, the nature of this work is
such that often one case may extend over many months or even a full
year, and one annual collection would provide us with the same or
even more accurate information about performance and activities
undertaken over the 12-month period. The total number of recipients
across the 57 entities is relatively small (5,000) and we felt that
true accomplishments on behalf of these recipients could be more
richly assessed annually rather than semiannually. The Terms and
Conditions of the awards clearly indicated we planned to reduce the
collection to once annually and we informed all the grantees of the
change.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that
the collection of information encompassed by this request complies
with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR
1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding
the proposed collection of information, that the certification
covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a
benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control
number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of
these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked
and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
Addendum - 0768.docx
Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS)--Beneficiaries