From the Trump Administration's detailed budget proposal for fiscal year 2020:
- Simplify administration of the SSI program. The Budget proposes changes to simplify the SSI program by incentivizing support from recipients’ family and friends, reducing SSA’s administrative burden, and streamlining requirements for applicants. SSI benefits are reduced by the amount of food and shelter, or in-kind support and maintenance, a beneficiary receives. The policy is burdensome to administer and is a leading source of SSI improper payments. The Budget proposes to replace the complex calculation of in-kind support and maintenance with a flat rate reduction for adults living with other adults to capture economies of scale. The Budget also proposes to eliminate dedicated accounts for past due benefits and to eliminate the administratively burdensome consideration whether a couple is holding themselves out as married. The proposal saves $648 million over 10 years.
- Exclude SSA debts from discharge in bankruptcy. Debts due to an overpayment of Social Security benefits are generally dischargeable in bankruptcy. The Budget includes a proposal to exclude such debts from discharge in bankruptcy, except when it would result in an undue hardship. This proposal would help ensure program integrity by increasing the amount of overpayments SSA recovers and would save $274 million over 10 years.
- Establish replacement Social Security card fee. The Budget proposes to collect fees on replacement Social Security cards. First-time Social Security cards including cards issued at birth would not be subject to the fee. The new fee would offset some administrative costs of processing Social Security card requests. While having a Social Security Number is required for many public and private sector transactions, individuals rarely need to display the physical Social Security card.
I don't think the plan considers the cost to administer a fee system. Whoever wrote this does not understand how a Field Office actually works. First, in addition to the time to process the card, now you are having to taķe the time to do another transaction with the payment. Lets just say the visitor uses a debit card. Right now the Fee System requires you to add information including the ssn, name, and the address. Then you get the joy of actually trying to coordinate the card reader apperatus to actually work. (Which it rarely does) AND right now most offices only have two and anyone who uses them has to have a special driver loaded first for it to work. Let's now assume SSA addresses the issue of only having two card reading machines. This is still an extra 5 minutes at a minimum of processing time. Let's say the average office sees 30 ss5 apps a day. That is adding another 150 minutes to your public service demands. Every conference call has been stressing public service and FO'S keep being asked to do more with less....how is this supposed to work? I didn't even address if someone wants to pay with a check, or worst yet....does not have the funds to pay for said card. Will we create a policy for finiancial need? Where would the resources come from to administer that? But hey I'm just someone trying to apply FO resources that don't really exist to a bunch of problems I didn't create.
ReplyDeleteThe first item worries me due to lack of specifics. Right now it is possible for adults getting SSI to pay rent to the householder and establish their own household without dealing with ISM. Not sharing, but rent or in some places called a room and board agreement, for their room, some meals and access to the home for a set monthly fee. Concerned that this would upend this approach. Also you can have multiple adult SSI recipients living in a group home, also paying rent for their situation that shouldn't be impacted by such changes. OIG proposed about 6 years ago a change that would have reduced payments to group home situations all under the guise that they would deal with "economies of scale" (i.e., 2 can live more cheaply than 1) and save money. Maybe paying rent in such situations is questionable, but if a corporation can be considered a person, an adult paying rent should be considered a renter.
ReplyDeleteSounds like it will FORCE people to rely on public rent subsidies. IF you want to encourage people to help their friends and relatives on SSI, YOU don't do that by PENALIZING that help! The people who set this up apparently are sadists who want the disabled to live in the worst conditions possible. Or, they don't live in reality. IF you want people on SSI or SSDI to work... These policies, as structured, DISCOURAGE work attempts and limit work as only supplemental. IF you REALLY want people to TRY to work and get off SSI/SSDI, THEN provide a SAFE, REWARDING avenue with NO RISK. If this allowed an easy return to benefits, some might succeed. But, the premise behind the thinking is flawed! That thinking is, "These people just don't WANT to work." I didn't apply until it was clear to me thst I couldn't work. The last 11-12 months I worked (in about 28 months), I simply was unable to perform at a competitive level. My Supervisor went well beyond "reasonable" accommodations... I just was unable to "work."
ReplyDeleteIF you REALLY want people to TRY to work and get off SSI/SSDI, THEN provide a SAFE, REWARDING avenue with NO RISK
ReplyDeleteAnd this is why we are where we are today.
$27 mil a year over 10 years is comically nothing in terms of overall budget/spending/etc.--any way you slice it this amount of money isn't even a rounding error. And the cost to get those relatively nonexistent savings?
ReplyDeleteLeaving folks who obviously are in dire straights because they filed for bankruptcy protection down and out and saddled with more debt. Cool.
It has long been a ludicrous fantasy that someone could actually live on their own just receiving the FBR. The current system is long overdue for simplification. You could fastback SSI recipients for free HUD housing, and then it would really be a choice to live with others (that pretty much only those with wealthy families would take). This of course would require a huge increase in HUD funding. Would be cheaper to just scrap ISM.
ReplyDeleteI have lots of family, however, I have no family that want anything to do with me because of my disability. I'm "too much of a hassle," they "don't want to deal with it", I'm "too expensive to care for"...I've heard it all...and braved the many storms. What then? I don't even want them to know where I am at! Let alone have them be incentivized to help me! I would sincerely hope (and am assuming) they wouldn't just notify a family member of a disabled person that a family member is on SSI, and would request that they help out said disabled family member without the claimant okaying it. @7:46, I didn't know about that for quite a few years before I realized I was my own household, and talked to a field office rep about why I have to tell, essentially, my landlord about all my disabilities and have THEM fill out forms. She told me I didn't have to do that. I established my OWN household. After that, finding housing was a breeze! *eye roll*.
ReplyDeleteOur office does about 60 SS5s/replacement SSNs a day. It would work best if payment could only be by some kind of card, debit or credit. Dealing with cash would be quite burdensome and subject to possible employee thievery. It seems to me it would not be infrequent that the cash balance at the end of the day would be off by a bit just due to counting errors when people pay. Then what? Seems like you'd have to had some change in the office in case someone wants to pay with a $50 or $100 bill. It sounds like a good idea to cut down on folks getting cards every couple of years but not sure it would really be all that efficient. There's a reason there is a waiver tolerance where it's just easier to waive an overpayment vs pursuing collection.
ReplyDeleteHow many people are going to be poor and not be able to afford it when they need it to get a job, get welfare, etc? There would have to be some kind of waiver of fees for at least the welfare cases but what about just people without any money that are looking for a job?
I should note that in many states one can request a replacement SSN online through mySSA if they meet certain conditions.