[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 20, Volume 2]
[Revised as of April 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 20CFR402.170]

[Page 37]
 
                      TITLE 20--EMPLOYEES' BENEFITS
 
               CHAPTER III--SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION
 
PART 402_AVAILABILITY OF INFORMATION AND RECORDS TO THE PUBLIC--Table 
of Contents
 
Sec. 402.170  Fees for providing records and related services for program 
purposes pursuant to section 1106 of the Social Security Act.

    (a) Program purposes described. (1) We consider a request to be 
program related if the information must be disclosed under the Social 
Security Act. For example, section 205(c)(2)(A) of the Act (42 U.S.C. 
405(c)(2)(A)) requires that we provide certain information upon request 
to a worker, her or his legal representative, her or his survivor, or 
the legal representative of the worker's estate. That information is the 
amounts of the worker's wages and self-employment income and the periods 
during which they were paid or derived, as shown by our records.
    (2) We also consider a request to be program related if the 
requester indicates the needed information will be used for a purpose 
which is directly related to the administration of a program under the 
Social Security Act.
    (i) The major criteria we consider in deciding whether a proposed 
use is so related are:
    (A) Is the information needed to pursue some benefit under the Act?
    (B) Is the information needed solely to verify the accuracy of 
information obtained in connection with a program administered under the 
Act?
    (C) Is the information needed in connection with an activity which 
has been authorized under the Act?
    (D) Is the information needed by an employer to carry out her or his 
taxpaying responsibilities under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act 
or section 218 of the Act?
    (ii) We will consider on a case by case basis those requests which 
do not meet these criteria but are claimed to be program related.
    (b) When we charge. If we determine the request for information is 
program related, we may or may not charge for the information. For 
example, as stated in paragraph (a) of this section, we generally will 
not charge you for information needed to assure the accuracy of our 
records on which your present or future Social Security benefits depend. 
In addition, we generally will not charge for furnishing information 
under section 205(c)(2)(A) of the Act. However, if we do charge for a 
program related request (for example, if more detailed information or 
special services are requested) we will use the fee schedule in Sec. 
402.165 if information is being disclosed under the FOIA and the fee 
schedule in 20 CFR 401.95 if access to the information is being granted 
under the Privacy Act. (Exception: If the request is for purposes of 
administering employee benefits covered by the Employee Retirement 
Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), even if the request is covered by 
section 205(c)(2)(A) of the Act, we will charge under Sec. 402.175.)