From the Baltimore Sun:
The $1.1 trillion spending bill unveiled by congressional leaders early Wednesday morning includes ... $150 million for renovations at the Social Security Administration's headquarters at Woodlawn. ...
The Social Security Administration would receive $150 million for renovations to its 1950's-era Altmeyer Building in Baltimore County. The 10-story building requires "major upgrades" to address health and safety concerns, according to [Senator Barbara] Mikulski's office. The renovation would also allow an additional 350 staff to work from the building. ...I've never been in the Altmeyer Building. It may be in urgent need of renovations. I do know that $150 million for building renovations is probably $150 million less for agency operations. That means fewer new employees, less overtime and less money spent on upgraded software. I know that politicians love to spend money on construction projects. The jobs gained, while temporary, are highly visible and concentrated in one location instead of spread out over the country. Money spent on operations isn't glamorous but it's often more important. I hope this $150 million is well spent.
6 comments:
Unless I'm reading this incorrectly, I'm only seeing $10.6 billion for admin costs. backlog is going to keep piling up
We were told to remove our coffee maker from our break room in Altmeyer as it kept tripping the breakers on our floor and was considered a fire hazard. Needless to say it needs some upgrades.
The building improvements are usually funded from the GSA budget rather than SSA's LAE funds. LAE covers operating costs, rent, travel, etc.
We are hearing from NCCSMA that the $150 million is in fact coming out of LAE. Ridiculous that it isn't coming from GSA. World class service is obviously a subjective term.
It's in the LAE section of the act. I stand corrected.
As one of the few hundred people who works in Altmeyer, let me just say that the planned renovations are long overdue. It looks and feels like it hasn't been updated since the '50s. The HVAC system is constantly breaking down, and it's so old that parts aren't even available for it so it's just a jerry-rigged mess. Like a lot of things with SSA, needed maintenance has been deferred and deferred until it's really a problem. So if it's any consolation for folks in the field, even the center of the SSA universe has been allowed to become pretty dilapidated.
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