Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request (VA Form 20-10206), Priority Processing Request (VA Form 20-10207) and Document/Evidence Submission (VA Form 20-10208)

Forms and Documents

Document Name	Status
Form VA Form 20-10206 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request (VA Form 2010206), Priority Processing Request (VA Form 20-10207), Document/Evidence Submission (VA Form 20-10208) Form	New
Supporting Statement (2900-NEW) (FOIA-PriorProc-DocEvid) (Final 04-22-2020).docx Supporting Statement A	2020-04-22
60-DayDraftFRN (2900-NEW) (1).docx Supplementary Document	2020-04-22
30-DayDraftFRN (2900-NEW).docx Supplementary Document	2020-04-22

IC Document Collections

IC ID	Document Title	Status
241472	Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request (VA Form 2010206), Priority Processing Request (VA Form 20-10207), Document/Evidence Submission (VA Form 20-10208) Form	New

ICR Details

OMB Control No: 2900-0877	ICR Reference No: 202004-2900-006
Status: Historical Active	Previous ICR Reference No:
Agency/Subagency: VA	Agency Tracking No: VBA-OMS-NK
Title: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request (VA Form 20-10206), Priority Processing Request (VA Form 20-10207) and Document/Evidence Submission (VA Form 20-10208)
Type of Information Collection: New collection (Request for a new OMB Control Number)	Common Form ICR:  No
Type of Review Request: Emergency	Approval Requested By: 04/29/2020
OIRA Conclusion Action: Approved with change	Conclusion Date: 04/29/2020
	Date Received in OIRA: 04/28/2020
Terms of Clearance: 3 month emergency approval is granted. VA should immediately follow the 30 and 60 Federal Register Notice process described at 5 CFR 1320.10 for use of these forms after that 3 month period. During the Public Health Emergency declared for COVID-19, VA shall, to the extent permitted by applicable law and regulation, accept electronic signatures and shall submit an appropriate non-material/non-substantive change request to the instructions listed on these forms within 15 days of approval. VA may submit a non-material/non-substantive change to require wet signatures after the expiration of the Public Health Emergency declared in response to COVID-19.

	Inventory as of this Action	Requested	Previously Approved
Expiration Date	07/31/2020	6 Months From Approved
Responses	500,000	0	0
Time Burden (Hours)	50,000	0	0
Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0

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Abstract: VA Form 20-10206 will be used by claimants to request access to Federal agency records as long as the record is not exempt from release by one of nine FOIA exemptions. VA Form 20-10207 will be used by claimants to notify VA of an urgent or immediate need due to change in status or circumstance for priority processing of claim. VA Form 20-10208 will be used to identify and associate additional evidence or information in support of claim.

Emergency Justfication: (1) Veteran Ability to submit Claims Impacted Due to COVID-19. Local travel restrictions and COVID-19 mandated health & safety precautions may impact Veterans' and claimants' abilities to file forms, documents, and other responses in connection with VA Claims & Appeals. (2) Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) anticipates a potential increase in the submission of claims during and after the state of emergency for COVID-19. In an effort to address the effects of COVID-19 on claims processing for Veterans and claimants and to provide better, faster, and more efficient services, VBA proposes to align our modernization efforts with the way we currently receive certain types of veteran/claimant information. VBA has identified the need for 3 new forms that will reduce the submission of the current free-text form which does not support our current automation processing. By creating these new forms that do support the existing automation processes we will be able to provide faster and more efficient delivery of service to Veterans and claimants in response to the anticipated increase in claims related submissions that were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. (3) The 3 new forms will also enable VBA to process Veteran data faster due to the use of computerized Optical Character Recognition (OCR) which is the automated process to "read" forms for information upload into VBA systems.

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Authorizing Statute(s): US Code: 38 USC 5102(b) Name of Law: Application forms furnished upon request; notice to claimants of incomplete applications
   US Code: 38 USC 501 Name of Law: Rules and Regulations
   US Code: 38 USC 5101(a) Name of Law: Claims and Forms
  

Citations for New Statutory Requirements: None

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Associated Rulemaking Information
RIN:	Stage of Rulemaking:	Federal Register Citation:	Date:
	Not associated with rulemaking

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Federal Register Notices & Comments

Did the Agency receive public comments on this ICR? No

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Number of Information Collection (IC) in this ICR: 1

IC Title	Form No.	Form Name
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request (VA Form 2010206), Priority Processing Request (VA Form 20-10207), Document/Evidence Submission (VA Form 20-10208)	VA Form 20-10208, VA Form 20-10207, VA Form 20-10206	Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) or Privacy Act (PA) Request ,   Priority Processing Request ,   Document/Evidence Submission

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ICR Summary of Burden

	Total Approved	Previously Approved	Change Due to New Statute	Change Due to Agency Discretion	Change Due to Adjustment in Estimate	Change Due to Potential Violation of the PRA
Annual Number of Responses	500,000	0	0	500,000	0	0
Annual Time Burden (Hours)	50,000	0	0	50,000	0	0
Annual Cost Burden (Dollars)	0	0	0	0	0	0

Burden increases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: Yes

Burden Increase Due to: Miscellaneous Actions

Burden decreases because of Program Change due to Agency Discretion: No

Burden Reduction Due to:

Short Statement: These forms are new collections of information.

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Annual Cost to Federal Government: $22,661,527

Does this IC contain surveys, censuses, or employ statistical methods? No

Does this ICR request any personally identifiable information (see OMB Circular No. A-130 for an explanation of this term)? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     Yes

Does this ICR include a form that requires a Privacy Act Statement (see 5 U.S.C. §552a(e)(3))? Please consult with your agency's privacy program when making this determination.     Yes

Is this ICR related to the Affordable Care Act [Pub. L. 111-148 & 111-152]? No

Is this ICR related to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, [Pub. L. 111-203]? No

Is this ICR related to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA)? No

Is this ICR related to the Pandemic Response? Uncollected

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Common Form ICR:  No

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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:

(a) It is necessary for the proper performance of agency functions;

(b) It avoids unnecessary duplication;

(c) It reduces burden on small entities;

(d) It uses plain, coherent, and unambiguous language that is understandable to respondents;

(e) Its implementation will be consistent and compatible with current reporting and recordkeeping practices;

(f) It indicates the retention periods for recordkeeping requirements;

(g) It informs respondents of the information called for under 5 CFR 1320.8 (b)(3) about:

(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;

(h) It was developed by an office that has planned and allocated resources for the efficient and effective management and use of the information to be collected.

(i) It uses effective and efficient statistical survey methodology (if applicable); and

(j) It makes appropriate use of information technology.

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.

Certification Date: 04/28/2020

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