TN 16 (10-01)

A. Background

The back of the accounting report has space for the payee to explain questionable responses or certain circumstances, which the payee believes that SSA needs to know.

Other items on the back ask the payee to sign and date the form, and indicate his/her relationship to the beneficiary.

B. Policy

The payee must sign the accounting report. If joint guardians are appointed as payee (see GN 00502.183B.3.), one signature is acceptable.

Exception: If the payee is an institution or agency, a stamped signature and title is acceptable. The stamped signature/title usually represents the administrator, business office manager or supervisor.

C. Procedure

Review all statements, including the signature and relationship, on the back of the form to determine if they affect your evaluation of the responses on the front.

1. Remarks

Evaluate all remarks on a case-by-case basis. Take action depending on the situation.

EXAMPLE: The payee indicates that he/she does not want to be payee anymore. Contact the payee to determine the beneficiary's circumstances. Consider appointing a successor payee or making direct payment.

2. Relationship

You do not need to compare the payee's response to this question to the MBR/SSR, or to initiate any corrective action. A future revision to the payee report form will eliminate/revise this question.

3. Guardianship Status

You do not need to compare the payee's response to this question to the MBR/SSR, or to initiate any corrective action. A future revision to the payee report form will eliminate/revise this question.

4. Signature

Decision Factor: Did the proper payee sign the accounting report? (If the payee is an institution or agency, the form should show the signature of an authorized person who may be contacted for clarification on any of the responses; e.g., administrator, superintendent, caseworker.)

• If yes, Approve the response.

• If no, Return the report to the payee with a notice stating that we are unable to process the report because it was not (presumably) completed and signed by the representative payee. Prepare and send the payee an SSA-623-F6 or SSA-6230-F6 to complete.

  NOTE: The Office of Program Benefits will develop standard notice language and include in NL 00703. In the interim, develop local language informing the payee that “We are unable to process the Representative Payee Report recently submitted because it was not completed and signed by the individual or organization appointed to serve as representative payee.”

Diary for 30 days.

SUBSEQUENT ACTION: If the signed report is not received, consider the case a nonresponder and forward to the FO development. FOs should follow nonresponder procedures in GN 00605.085.