The House Social Security Subcommittee has FINALLY scheduled a hearing on Strengthening Social Security’s Customer Service for Thursday, May 17 at 2:00 EDT. Witnesses will be announced later.
Now, if we could just get the House Appropriations Committee to also schedule a hearing, I'd be happier. Ways and Means Committee can provide publicity but better management isn't going to make an appreciable difference in service at Social Security. That's going to take money and the Appropriations Committee holds the key to that. (Of course, I'd also be happy to see Senate Finance Committee and Senate Appropriations Committee hearings!)
3 comments:
I don’t know why you think this is something wonderful. If the senate hearing from a year ago is any indicator, there will be plenty of grandstanding and snark from the representatives. They come prepared to point the finger and drift off into side issues. It is all about having something to trot out at their next re-election campaign.
Case in point - they ranted up and down about the length of the SSI application (as if that is the biggest dealbreaker in customer service delivery). How terrible it is that SSA staff ask all these questions. They pointed the finger at SSA. The questions in the application are all NEEDED to satisfy the requirements in the LAW congress passed. NOWHERE did they reflect on how THEY can DO THEIR DAMNED JOB and take action on all the SSI simplification proposals that have been advanced over the last 20 years. Simplify the requirements on the law, and, magically, the CR in the FO will not have to ask so many questions.
So, I don’t expect much. Will there be talk about helping the agency fulfill its mission, or will it be throwing blame and mud at the people trying to hold things together? History says it will be much of the latter.
8:44 No one I know has ever complained about the length the SSI application. The main complaint is that it cannot be completed online.
Reps don't get to TAKE ACTION on the simplification proposals. There have been many proposals from reps, i.e being able to attach documents to the initial application, pointing out that law firms should be recognized as reps and not only individuals, making all parts of the file accessible below the hearing level, making the payment process for claimants transparent, that have been on the table for years and consistently ignored by the agency.
And a system that has telephones in 2022 and allows them to simply stop functioning for a month when the only means of communicating with them is by telephone is a system that is probably beyond repaid.
6:31
You clearly did not see the Senate Hearing from last year. It was about customer service improvement. One of the invitees talked about the length of the SSI application and one of the senators (Wyden, I believe, who was big on snark and little on solutions) decried how horrible it was.
And, YES, it is the DAMNED JOB of the Congressional representatives and senators to TAKE ACTION on simplification proposals. Congressional hearings should be about leadership and advancing solutions to problems. My point is that there is little leadership on either side of the aisle and these hearings are purely about playing a self interested blame game.
Yes, the phone system is.a piece of crap on so many levels. In the best case scenario, that is going to take months or years to fix. SSI simplification can be easily done, if there were Congressional leadership to ease the administrative burden. This is one of many measures to improve the position of the agency in the here and now.
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