Prehearings Conducted by Adjudication Officers; Testing of New Procedures

The Social Security Administration is announcing the locations and the duration of tests it will conduct under the final rules published in the Federal Register on September 13, 1995 (60 FR 47469). These final rules authorize the testing of procedures to be conducted by an adjudication officer, who, under the Plan for a New Disability Claim Process published in the Federal Register on September 19, 1994 (59 FR 47887), would be the focal point for all prehearing activities. Under the final rules, when a request for a hearing before an administrative law judge is requested, the adjudication officer will conduct prehearing procedures and, if appropriate, issue a decision wholly favorable to the claimant.