79.53—Proof of employment as a miller.

(a) The Department will accept, as proof of employment for the time period indicated, information contained in any of the following records:

(1) Records created by or gathered by the Public Health Service (PHS) in the course of any health studies of uranium workers during or including the period 1942-1990;

(2) Records of a uranium worker census performed by the PHS at various times during the period 1942-1990;

(3) Records of the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC), or any of its successor agencies; and

(4) Records of federally supported, health-related studies of uranium workers.

(b) The Program will presume that the employment history for the time period indicated in records listed in paragraph (a) of this section is correct. If the claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary wishes to contest the accuracy of such records, then the claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary may provide one or more of the records identified in paragraph (c) of this section, and the Assistant Director will determine whether the employment history indicated in the records listed in paragraph (a) is correct.

(c) If the sources in paragraph (a) of this section do not contain information regarding the claimant's uranium mill employment history, do not contain sufficient information to establish employment for at least one year in a uranium mill during the specified time period to qualify under § 79.52(b), or if a claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary wishes to contest the accuracy of such records, then the claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary may submit records from any of the following sources, which the Assistant Director shall consider (in addition to any sources listed in paragraph (a) of this section) in order to determine whether the claimant has established the requisite employment history:

(1) Records of any of the specified states, including records of state regulatory agencies, containing information on uranium mill workers and uranium mills;

(2) Records of any business entity that owned or operated a uranium mill, or its successor-in-interest;

(3) Records of the Social Security Administration reflecting the identity of the employer, the years and quarters of employment, and the wages received during each quarter;

(4) Federal or state income tax records that contain relevant statements regarding the claimant's employer and wages;

(5) Records containing factual findings by any governmental judicial body, state worker's compensation board, or any governmental administrative body adjudicating the claimant's rights to any type of benefits (which will be accepted only to prove the fact of and duration of employment in a uranium mill);

(6) Statements in medical records created during the period 1942-1971 indicating or identifying the claimant's employer and occupation;

(7) Records of an academic or scholarly study, not conducted in anticipation of or in connection with any litigation, and completed prior to 1990; or

(8) Any other contemporaneous record that indicates or identifies the claimant's occupation or employer.

(d) To the extent that the documents submitted from the sources identified in this section do not so indicate, the claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary must set forth under oath on the standard claim form the following information, if known:

(1) The names of the mill employers for which the claimant worked during the time period identified in the documents;

(2) The names and locations of any mills in which the claimant worked;

(3) The actual time period the claimant worked in each mill; and

(4) The claimant's occupation in each mill.

(e) The Program may, for the purpose of verifying information submitted pursuant to this section, require the claimant or any eligible surviving beneficiary to provide an authorization to release any record identified in this section, in accordance with the provisions of § 79.72(c).

(f) In determining whether a claimant satisfies the employment criteria of the Act, the Assistant Director shall resolve all reasonable doubt in favor of the claimant. If the Assistant Director concludes that the claimant has not satisfied the employment requirements of the Act, the claimant or eligible surviving beneficiary will be notified and afforded the opportunity, in accordance with the provisions of § 79.72(c), to submit additional records to establish that the statutory employment criteria are satisfied.

CFR

79.53—Proof of employment as a miller.