ERE Down

      I am hearing reports that Social Security’s ERE system that allows attorneys representing claimants access to their clients’ files and the ability to upload medical and other records is down this morning. I don’t know whether it’s working for agency employees.

Advances For My SSA Accounts But Problems Persist

      From NextGov/FCW:

… The Social Security Administration hit its target of reaching 105 million 'my Social Security' accounts — an online portal Americans use to access services — by the end of the month, an agency spokesperson told Nextgov/FCW on Friday. The agency now aims to reach 110 million by the end of next September, per a strategic plan released in August. 

But that 110 million goal is far less lofty than the target SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano told Congress about last year: 200 million online accounts by the end of 2026.

The SSA spokesperson said the agency continues to strive for 200 million my Social Security account holders, but they did not offer a target date. …

Adults generally interact with SSA in very specific moments of their lives, which explains much of the tepid adoption in the younger age bracket, Arabella Crawford, a civic tech consultant and Tech Viaduct contributor, told Nextgov/FCW. Those moments include turning 65, being diagnosed with a disability or changing their legal name, she explained. …

Many [potential claimants] are also not technologically savvy, lack internet access or have disabilities that make it difficult to use technology …

Clients ran into issues using my Social Security accounts’ digital identity verification services, she explained. For example, some clients found it difficult to use video proofing on ID.me — a digital identity validation service used across several agencies — while others had to wait for the government’s in-house option, Login.gov, to send codes through the mail, she said. …

How Much Money Is Paid To MEs And VEs?

      Social Security has posted data showing how much is being paid to each individual or entity providing testimony for the agency as Vocational Experts (VEs) or Medical Experts (MEs) at hearings on disability claims.

     Let me note a couple of things. First, the entities probably include more than one VE or ME. Somebody correct me if I’m wrong but I think some of the VEs and MEs let an entity handle the paperwork for them in exchange for a cut of the fees. Second, don’t take these numbers as gospel. Social Security also posts numbers on payments of fees to attorneys and law firms representing claimants before the agency. I deliberately don’t post links to these numbers since they have always contained inaccuracies that were obvious to me. I know the rough size of some firms and the numbers given for those firms align poorly with what I know. I don’t know about the VE or ME numbers.

Not All Children Paid Properly

      From a report by Social Security’s Office of Inspector General:

… The Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program provides monthly benefits to retired and disabled workers and their dependents as well as the survivors of deceased workers. The minor child of an insured worker may receive Social Securitybenefits until they reach age 18. A child beneficiary may continue receiving benefits after they reach age 18 if they qualify as a student beneficiary. …

We identified 521,393 beneficiaries who were entitled to student benefits for 1 or more months from January 2022 through December 2024. We randomly selected 100 of these beneficiaries to determine whether SSA accurately paid student benefits to eligible beneficiaries.  Of the 100 beneficiaries we reviewed, SSA correctly paid benefits to 71 in accordance with policy. However, SSA did not correctly pay benefits to 17 beneficiaries. In addition, SSA did not retain documentation to support benefit payments to 12 beneficiaries. SSA did not correctly pay benefits to 17 beneficiaries as follows.

 For nine, beneficiaries and school officials did not provide SSA accurate or current school attendance information that affected eligibility for student benefits, and SSA was unaware the information contained errors.

 For eight, SSA employees did not correctly use available school attendance and graduation information to determine the duration of student benefit eligibility.

In addition, SSA employees did not retain completed Forms SSA-1372 for 12 of the 100 beneficiaries, as required. Without evidence, we could not determine whether the individual  were entitled to the student benefits SSA paid them. As a result, SSA improperly paid beneficiaries $49,447 and could not support an additional $93,466 in benefit payments. Based on our sample results, we estimate SSA improperly paid approximately $211 million to about 89,000 beneficiaries. In addition, we estimate SSA made approximately $342 million in unsupported payments to about 63,000 student beneficiaries. …

I Have Never Heard Of This Kind Of Fraud Before

      From Clickon Detroit:

A Detroit-area mother allegedly kept nearly $30,000 in Social Security benefits intended for her son -- even bringing an imposter to a medical appointment to keep the money coming in, according to a federal criminal complaint.

Keshaune Pace, a.k.a. Keshaune Jenkins of Eastpointe, is accused of theft of government funds and Social Security representative payee fraud. The complaint filed Sept. 18 covered the period from July 2021 through October 2024.

Pace began receiving Social Security benefits on behalf of her son after applying for benefits when he was four years old, according to the Social Security Administration’s Office of Inspector General.

The benefits were based on alleged mental disabilities, including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and oppositional defiant disorder. As her son’s representative payee, Pace was required to use the money for his care and report changes that could affect his eligibility, including changes in his living arrangements and income.

Investigators say her son moved out of Pace’s home in or around July 2021, a few months before his 18th birthday. School records later indicated he was living outside his mother’s custody and was considered an unaccompanied homeless youth.

But Pace continued receiving the benefits, the feds said. …

In January 2023, Pace allegedly took someone other than her son to a psychiatric consultative examination required as part of a review of his continuing eligibility for benefits.

The person who appeared at the examination was listed as 6 feet tall, while her son is 5 feet 7 inches, according to the feds. The person claimed to hear voices and said, “I need help for the voices in my head,” court records said. …

When the examiner allegedly asked Pace why there had not been any treatment since her son was 14 years old, Pace said, “It’s hard to get him out. Transportation is hard.”

The examiner questioned the person’s performance and described him as a “very poor historian” who “seemed to be greatly exaggerating.” The examiner also found that the person’s full-scale IQ score of 48 was invalid because it was inconsistent with records showing her son had been in regular education and had not received special education services.

Investigators said Pace eventually admitted the person she brought to the examination was not her son, saying she did it “to keep the benefits from being stopped.” …

More About Punishing Federal Employees

      From Government Executive:

Senate Democrats are warning that new limits on annual leave and sick time at the IRS and the Social Security Administration will push more employees out the door, making it harder for Americans to get assistance from these agencies.  …

In a letter to Frank Bisignano, the IRS chief executive officer and Senate-confirmed commissioner of SSA, Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. and Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. led colleagues in denouncing this new policy as a “cruel and unjustified plan that is likely to drive additional employees out the door, doubling down on the administration’s already disastrous efforts to push out federal employees.”  …

“Your actions give the appearance that this policy is less about improving service delivery, and more about punishing federal employees — and by extension, the American people,” the senators wrote. …

Sound Familiar?

      From Government Executive:

An IRS watchdog is taking a closer look at the agency’s temporary reassignment of mid-career employees to frontline entry-level jobs many of them had no prior experience doing.  … 

The IRS cut tens of thousands of jobs last year — more than a quarter of its workforce — and fell short of its hiring goals for this year’s filing season.  

IRS Chief Executive Officer Frank Bisignano said the IRS carried out a successful filing season this year, despite losing more than 25,000 employees. He told the House Ways and Means Committee in March that “I feel good about the number of employees I have right now.”  … 

Employees placed on these involuntary details are doing jobs several pay grades below the work they were hired to perform, but continue to receive their regular paychecks. In practice, the IRS is paying them double or triple what a normal customer service representative or tax examiner would make.  … 

Several impacted IRS employees told Government Executive that the initial details were involuntary, they have received insufficient training and support for this work, and they have no clear idea what work is available to them at the IRS if they leave these details. 

According to two IRS employees currently on details, the agency is looking for volunteers to remain in taxpayer services for a third 120-day tour of duty. Employees who complete a third stint would be away from their day jobs for nearly a year. But these employees say the agency is giving them few alternatives. Both previously worked in IT roles at the agency, and have been told they cannot return to their former jobs.  … 

In May, IRS Chief Human Capital Officer Alex Kweskin acknowledged that some employees on temporary details were unhappy with their current arrangements, and encouraged them to apply for other roles within the agency. Employees, however, said they have applied for other 2210-classified IT positions at the IRS, only for those job announcements to be cancelled days later.    …

Office Openings On Holidays?

      From Govly:

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is implementing significant changes to workforce scheduling and holiday staffing policies to address operational backlogs and staffing shortages. These changes include offering overtime work on federal holidays with telework options, testing office openings on holidays with holiday pay incentives, and reportedly eliminating credit hours in favor of fixed shifts. These adjustments reflect SSA's efforts to improve operational efficiency amid ongoing workforce challenges and reduced staffing levels.SSA's holiday overtime offerings and potential holiday office openings signal increased demand for flexible staffing solutions and may affect contract labor planning and telework arrangements. …

• The elimination of credit hours and move to fixed shifts at SSA could impact contractor workforce management, requiring adjustments to labor scheduling and compliance with new agency policies.
• Procurement professionals should monitor these evolving workforce policies as they may influence contract performance metrics, labor cost structures, and staffing requirements for SSA and related federal agencies.
• The CECOM pilot program suggests potential future shifts in federal workforce scheduling practices that contractors supporting DoD components should consider in operational planning. …