410.703—Adjudicatory rules for determining entitlement to benefits.
(a) General.
Section 402(f)(2) of the Act provides that the criteria and standards to be applied to a claim reviewed under section 435 of the Act, for determining whether a miner is or was totally disabled due to pneumoconiosis or died due to pneumoconiosis, shall be no more restrictive than the criteria applicable to a claim filed with the Social Security Administration on or before June 30, 1973, under part B of title IV of the Act. In keeping with this provision, the interim evidentiary rules and disability criteria contained in § 410.490 will be applicable for this review.
(b) Payment provisions.
The DOL has sole responsibility for assigning liability for payment purposes. The DOL regulations relating to the amount of benefits payable, the manner of payment and all other provisions published at 20 CFR part 725 shall be applicable to a claim approved under this subpart.
(c) Date from which benefits are payable.
Benefits for claims reviewed under this subpart G for which entitlement to benefits is established under the BLBRA of 1977 are payable on a retroactive basis for a period which begins no earlier than January 1, 1974.