I have posted before about the new hearing office planned for Fayetteville, NC. This is a matter of considerable interest for me since my firm has many clients in and around Fayetteville. The struggles to open that office may have parallels elsewhere since Social Security is in the process of opening many new hearing offices.
The Fayetteville office was originally scheduled to open earlier this year. Social Security agreed to take space for the office in a building currently under construction. That building will not be ready for occupancy until well into 2011.
The Fayetteville Observer is now reporting that Social Security will open the hearing office in temporary space a few blocks away from the building where it is to eventually locate. It is unclear how much temporary space that the hearing office will occupy or how many employees it will have.
There are rumors going around that no hearings will be held in the temporary space. No one locally seems to know what is going on. I keep hearing hints that there is some budgetary reason to open the office before the end of this federal fiscal year, September 30. I understand why it is important to open the Fayetteville hearing office as soon as possible but I do not understand the significance of opening it before the end of the fiscal year, especially if the office would not be functional for an extended period of time after it is opened.
The Fayetteville office was originally scheduled to open earlier this year. Social Security agreed to take space for the office in a building currently under construction. That building will not be ready for occupancy until well into 2011.
The Fayetteville Observer is now reporting that Social Security will open the hearing office in temporary space a few blocks away from the building where it is to eventually locate. It is unclear how much temporary space that the hearing office will occupy or how many employees it will have.
There are rumors going around that no hearings will be held in the temporary space. No one locally seems to know what is going on. I keep hearing hints that there is some budgetary reason to open the office before the end of this federal fiscal year, September 30. I understand why it is important to open the Fayetteville hearing office as soon as possible but I do not understand the significance of opening it before the end of the fiscal year, especially if the office would not be functional for an extended period of time after it is opened.
It imust be because they have money allocated for it that has to be spent before the fiscal year ends or they loose the money.
ReplyDelete