Overview
Title
Agency Information Collection Activity: Certification of School Attendance-REPS
Agencies
ELI5 AI
The Veterans Affairs Department wants to make sure that kids who get benefits because their parent who was a veteran passed away are going to school full-time. They are asking people to check a form to see if it can be made easier to fill out, and they want feedback from anyone who has ideas on how to make it better.
Summary AI
The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), is seeking public feedback on a proposed information collection under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995. This involves the Certification of School Attendance—REPS (VA Form 21P-8926). The form ensures that beneficiaries of the Restored Entitlement Program for Survivors (REPS), specifically school-aged children of deceased veterans, are enrolled full-time in approved schools to maintain their benefits. The VA Office of Management and Budget (OMB) will consider comments submitted by April 19, 2021, to improve this process and minimize the burden on respondents.
Abstract
Veteran's Benefits Administration (VBA), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), is announcing an opportunity for public comment on the proposed collection of certain information by the agency. Under the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) of 1995, Federal agencies are required to publish notice in the Federal Register concerning each proposed collection of information, including each proposed extension of a currently approved collection, and allow 60 days for public comment in response to the notice.
Keywords AI
Sources
AnalysisAI
The document in question pertains to a notice from the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), which is part of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), seeking public input on their proposed information collection process. The focus is on a particular form, known as the Certification of School Attendance—REPS (VA Form 21P-8926). This form is crucial for verifying the school attendance of children whose benefits under the Restored Entitlement Program for Survivors (REPS) depend on being enrolled full-time in an approved educational institution. The VA is reaching out for feedback in order to comply with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and enhance the collection process.
General Summary
The notice highlights the VA's requirements for public feedback regarding the continued use and potential improvement of a form that helps determine eligibility for survivor benefits under specific circumstances. The form, VA Form 21P-8926, targets beneficiaries who are children of deceased veterans. Such children must verify their full-time status in school to maintain benefits. The VA has invited comments from the public to consider potential changes aimed at minimizing the burden of information collection and improving clarity.
Significant Issues and Concerns
The document has a bureaucratic tone and includes references to specific legal provisions and regulatory codes, such as "38 U.S.C. 5101; 38 CFR 3.812." These could be challenging for the public to comprehend, especially for individuals who are not well-versed in legal terminology. The process for submitting comments, including the necessity to refer to a specific OMB Control Number and use the Federal Docket Management System, can appear overly complicated. Simplifying these instructions would be beneficial in encouraging public participation.
Impact on the Public
Broadly, this collection of information and the solicitation of public comments reflect the government’s obligation to ensure efficiency and transparency in the way public benefits are administered. For the average person, particularly veterans and their families, this notice impacts how they ensure ongoing eligibility for essential benefits. The need for public input suggests an ongoing effort towards making these processes more user-friendly and effective.
Impact on Specific Stakeholders
For affected stakeholders, namely the surviving spouses and dependent children of deceased veterans, this form and the associated process have tangible implications. They are required to comply with the VA's documentation requirements to continue receiving financial benefits. The estimated annual burden of 300 hours and the specified number of respondents illustrate a significant demand for resources, both from the VA's standpoint and potentially from the claimants. While this effort is resource-intensive, improving how the VA collects and manages this data could have a positive impact by streamlining benefit redetermination and reducing wait times for beneficiaries.
In summary, this Federal Register notice emphasizes the importance of public participation in refining and validating processes that have a direct bearing on certain public benefits. By evaluating public comments, the VA aims to ensure that its data collection methods are necessary, practical, and not unduly burdensome, while continuing to meet the needs of its stakeholders effectively.
Issues
• The document contains complex and bureaucratic language that may be hard for the general public to understand, such as 'approval from the Office of Management and Budget' and 'Section 3506(c)(2)(A) of the PRA'.
• The document references specific legal authorities and codes (e.g., 38 U.S.C. 5101; 38 CFR 3.812) without providing a more straightforward explanation, which might be difficult for individuals unfamiliar with such legal terms.
• The information about how the public can submit comments is somewhat detailed and could be simplified to enhance clarity, like the mention of using FDMS and referring to 'OMB Control No. 2900-0394.'
• There is a potential issue with the response time burden on individuals, as the process requires respondents to provide specific information that might not be readily available, potentially causing inconvenience.
• The estimated annual burden of 300 hours and the number of respondents could be seen as high relative to the average burden per respondent (15 minutes), indicating a large-scale data collection effort which could be resource-intensive.