A Horror Show

      A report by the Library of Congress has interesting tables showing Social Security’s staffing levels by month by state since the beginning of last year. I’d love to reproduce the table here but it’s just too big. It’s  fascinating and horrifying. You’ll have to click on the link to see for yourself.

They Say He Stole From Poor Mentally Ill People

      From Fox News:

… The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced today that a federal grand jury indicted Najee Alexander Corbett, 37, of Baltimore, in connection with a Social Security disability theft scheme. …

As part of the alleged scheme, prosecutors said Corbett targeted SSI claimants diagnosed with mental health disorders and altered claimant records in the SSA database to include bank accounts he controlled and his residential mailing address so he could receive their benefit funds.

Prosecutors also said Corbett changed the date of benefit eligibility payments for selected claimants in the database, generating back payments in the claimants’ names. Authorities said he then caused SSI benefit payments to be transmitted to bank accounts he controlled and mailed to his home.

Federal prosecutors said Corbett received $116,537.62 in SSI disability payments through the scheme and retained $71,304.62. …

Critical Payment Errors

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

An SSA employee initiates a critical payment when an Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance beneficiary or representative payee alerts SSA of a critical case or special situation when SSA is not paying regular monthly benefits, additional benefits are due, or a beneficiary reports they did not receive a monthly benefit. These include dire need, court orders, legislative mandates, and preliminary and expedited payments. …

We reviewed a random sample of 175 critical payments from a population of 3,549 issued in Fiscal Year 2023 …

We estimate SSA employees accurately processed about 44,000 (62 percent) of the 70,980 critical payments and did not accurately process about 27,000 (38 percent)—making over 28,000 errors when they processed the payments. About 2,800 of these errors resulted in the payments being incorrectly documented on beneficiaries’ records. For the remaining errors, we estimate the following. 

• Field office employees improperly paid approximately 6,900 beneficiaries about $1 million, but processing center employees identified the special situations and deductions from payment calculations during their post-payment review and adjusted future benefits due. 

•  About 8,100 of these errors resulted in SSA improperly paying beneficiaries $12 million because employees did not accurately adjust beneficiary records.

• SSA issued approximately 10,500 beneficiaries a Form SSA-1099, Social Security Benefit Statement, with a benefit total that was over- or understated by about $14 million because employees did not manually adjust records for replacement checks. …

Some Changes From SSA

      An announcement from Social Security:

New Developments in Disability Adjudication: Supporting Timely and Fair Decisions

Date: Wednesday, April 15, 2026

Dear Colleague,

We are pleased to share several recent enhancements from Disability Adjudication (DA) that support our mission to deliver timely, policy-compliant decisions for claimants. These improvements reflect our ongoing commitment to efficiency, transparency, and collaboration with the appointed representative and advocacy community.

Good News Highlights:

• New Functionality in Appointed Representative Services (ARS): We have enhanced ARS by adding good cause statements for untimely hearing requests as a selectable option within the existing drop-down menu for representatives. Hearing offices will receive a notification when the statement is submitted. This improvement was developed in response to feedback from the representative community regarding the need to better identify and process these statements earlier in the adjudicatory process. Representatives can electronically submit the statement when filing an untimely request for hearing. Submissions are automatically routed to the appropriate B section and are now labeled within the electronic record, allowing hearing offices to quickly identify and address good cause statements, reducing the risk of unnecessary case scheduling or cases erroneously remaining on the docket.
• Centralization and Optimization of Vocational Expert (VE) Availability:The Scheduling Procedure Assistance and Resource Cadre (SPARC) team continues to improve hearing scheduling efficiency through process enhancements, updated guidelines, and better communication. As part of these efforts, VE availability processing has been centralized, ensuring consistent communication with VEs. This change has led to significantly improved docket coverage.

For general inquiries related to Hearings, please email the designated mailbox for your Hub.

Please share these updates with your colleagues and stakeholders. We appreciate your partnership and continued collaboration as we work together to further enhance the disability adjudication process. 

Regards, 

Jay M. Ortis  

Chief 

Disability Adjudication

More On The Commissioner’s Lawsuit: A Replica Of J.P. Morgan’s Library?

Morgan Library

     From MSN:

Frank Bisignano has two demanding jobs, running the Social Security Administration and serving as the CEO of the Internal Revenue Service during tax season.  

But these days the Trump administration heavyweight has something else to worry about: He’s locked in a fight over a pair of Muhammad Ali’s boxing shorts.  

Eric Inselberg, a sports memorabilia buff and entrepreneur, said he gave the prized gear to his former friend Bisignano years ago as collateral for a $500,000 loan. Inselberg said he settled the debt but Bisignano has nonetheless refused to return the trunks, which he estimates are now worth $800,000. Bisignano countered he was never given the white shorts with black stripes, which Ali wore the last time he fought at Madison Square Garden in 1977. ... 

Inselberg, in a deposition, described Bisignano as an “apex predator” who is holding on to the shorts out of spite. “He’s vindictive,” Inselberg said. “He thinks he can do whatever he wants.” ... 

“He tries to distance himself from the fact he’s a closeted collector, because he doesn’t want to be associated with collectors or fanboys at a convention,” Inselberg said. “He thinks he’s bigger than that, but he is a collector.” ...

In a deposition, Lampson discussed a 2012 dinner that he and Fitzgerald attended at Bisignano’s New Jersey home. The evening stood out for many reasons, he said, especially a tour of a nearby, newly built mansion that Bisignano planned to move into. The residence included a replica of J.P. Morgan’s ornate personal library as well as a urinal in a bathroom. 

 The unusual loo prompted chuckling guests to ask their host why he had it. “I got it because I can have it,” Lampson recalled Bisignano saying.  

“Frank can be a little arrogant about things sometimes,” Lampson added. ...

    I’ve actually been to the Morgan Library. I can’t even conceive of trying to replicate it.  What’s next? Will Musk try to replicate Versailles?

Threat To Understaffed Field Offices

     From Government Executive: 

Officials with the nation’s largest federal employee union on Friday raised concerns that a 2024 law enabling the General Services Administration to offload federal property based on low occupancy rates could mistakenly target busy Social Security Administration field offices for closure.  

In recent months, SSA has implemented a “badge in/badge out” system for measuring how many employees work at the agency’s various offices around the country. That’s part of the federal government’s broader effort to implement the provisions of the 2024 Utilizing Space Efficiently and Improving Technologies Act—USE IT, for short. The USE IT Act requires federal agencies track the occupancy rates of their various buildings, with a goal of at least 60% occupancy. If a particular office consistently fails to hit that threshold, GSA is empowered to take steps to shrink that agency’s physical footprint. …  

AFGE Council 220 President Jessica LaPointe, whose union represents field office and teleservice center employees, told Government Executive that basing whether or not to offload an office solely on employee occupancy data could have unintended consequences at an understaffed agency like SSA. Without additional data, such as non-employee foot traffic or customer demand, a busy but understaffed could be erroneously targeted for closure. …

SSA Appeals Arbitrator Ruling On Telework

      From Federal News Network:

The Social Security Administration is appealing an arbitrator’s decision requiring the agency to restore telework for its employees.

A third-party arbitrator ruled last month that SSA violated its collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees when it indefinitely suspended telework, and ordered the agency to restore workplace flexibilities that had been in place before mid-March 2025.

An SSA spokesperson said in a statement Friday that the agency has appealed the case to the Federal Labor Relations Authority, which has a majority of Trump appointees. SSA is not obligated to comply with the arbitrator’s decision while the case is under FLRA appeal. …

Bisignano Ventures To Brooklyn

      From a Social Security press release:

Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Frank J. Bisignano today visited a Social Security field office in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn joined by Congresswoman Nicole Malliotakis (NY-11). They met with local staff and highlighted historic tax relief measures benefitting seniors and working families across the borough.

Before touring the field office, Commissioner Bisignano and Congresswoman Malliotakis held a press conference to discuss the historic tax relief enacted through President Trump’s Working Families Tax Cuts Act last year, including the enhanced tax deduction for older Americans, ensuring that most retirees are keeping more of their hard-earned benefits. …

     I suppose it goes without saying that no prior Social Security Commissioner would have engaged in such open campaigning for a President’s domestic policy achievement, if this is an achievement. 

Bisignano In Dispute Over Muhammad Ali Trunks

      From Newser:

The trunks that Muhammad Ali wore to his last Madison Square Garden fight in 1977 are now at the center of a long-running feud between a top federal official and a sports memorabilia collector. The Wall Street Journal reports that IRS and Social Security Administration chief Frank Bisignano is battling entrepreneur Eric Inselberg, who says he put the white shorts with black stripes up as partial collateral for a $500,000 loan in 2010, then fully repaid the debt. Inselberg claims the shorts—now pegged by him to be worth about $800,000—never made their way back to him. Bisignano flatly denies ever receiving the trunks and dismisses their supposed value, painting Inselberg as a chronic litigant exploiting a onetime favor.

Bisignano also says he and Inselberg were never friends, as Inselberg has claimed. Inselberg, for his part, who was once indicted (and later cleared) in a fake-memorabilia case involving Giants items, calls Bisignano an "apex predator" and "closeted collector" hanging on to the gear just to drive the screw into Inselberg. "He's vindictive. He thinks he can do whatever he wants," Inselberg notes. The dispute, delayed for a trial in New Jersey until September, may hinge on a mutual friend who says he saw the Ali shorts displayed in Bisignano's "man cave." Bisignano's legal team dismisses that possible testimony, with one attorney noting, "We try cases in the courtroom, not the pressroom. We look forward to prevailing at trial." 

Bisignano To Testify At Congressional Hearing

      The Senate Finance Committee has scheduled a hearing for April 15 at which Social Security’s Commissioner will testify. Bisignano will be testifying in his capacity as CEO of the IRS, a position that doesn’t really exist, but he may get some questions about his official job at Social Security.

“A Maniacal Focus”

      From The Signal of Santa Clarita Valley:

According to Social Security Administration Commissioner and IRS CEO Frank Bisignano, the agency under President Donald Trump is taking major steps to modernize its systems and root out waste and fraud. 

“I would say I’m bringing an operational focus to it that I … honed in all my years of being at the top of the largest financial institutions of the world,” Bisignano told EpochTV’s “American Thought Leaders” host Jan Jekeliek.  …

“Getting payments right is the most important thing, being able to — given the amount of money that we’re flowing — and that’s what we’ve had a maniacal focus on while delivering customer service at a level that they’ve never seen before,” Bisignano said.  …

2% Growth In SSA Workforce Projected But There Are So Many Questions

      From a Government Executive article on what is mostly intended to be staffing cuts at federal agencies:

… The Social Security Administration is looking to grow its workforce by 2% after shedding thousands of employees over the last 15 months. The agency said it will “hire strategically across our organization,” with a particular focus on front-line staff.  …

     How can they increase staffing even modestly with what will amount to a cut in the appropriation when inflation is considered? Are they playing games, assuming Congress will give the agency more than what has been requested? Maybe they just assume theyll have money because they’ll get rid of largely mythical “waste, fraud and abuse.” Maybe it’s a complete fudge. Of course, there’s always the question — why did you force so many experienced productive employees out of their jobs only to hire others who won’t really be productive for months, if not years?

Warning Issued

      From WAVY:

The Social Security Administration Office of the Inspector General is warning people of a scam targeting retirees.

The OIS reports a sharp increase in scam activity, where bad actors are contacting people via email, claiming to have a social security statement ready to download.

Officials warns that clicking any link from a scam could lead to monetary loss, identity theft, or having your data compromised.

“We are seeing a sharp increase in fraudulent emails designed to look like official Social Security Administration communications,” said Michelle L. Anderson, Assistant Inspector General for Audit as First Assistant. “These messages are not from Social Security. Anyone who receives one should delete it immediately and report it.” …

Even More Sought For GPO-WEP People

      From FEDweek:

As many as several million people have not received full back payments related to the repeal of the government pension offset and windfall elimination provision due to how the SSA interpreted the retroactive payment eligibility under the GPO-WEP repeal law, a bipartisan group of senators has said. …

The GPO had reduced, and in many cases eliminated, spousal or survivor Social Security benefits of such persons. The WEP has reduced the personally earned Social Security benefits of such persons based on other earnings—such as employment before, after or on the side during, a federal career—for which they did pay into Social Security (unless those earnings exceeded an annual threshold for at least 30 years). …

The ongoing issue relates to those who had not applied for Social Security benefits while the GPO was in effect because it would have eliminated them. Organizations such as the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association last year encouraged such persons to file for benefits. However, citing a general provision limiting retroactive payments for new Social Security applicants, the SSA said they would be eligible for only six months of retroactive payments at most. …

They urged the SSA to “follow the plain text of the SSFA and provide one-year of retroactivity (beginning in January 2024) to all applicants regardless of application date.”

President’s Budget Calls For Flat Appropriation For SSA

      The President’s budget for the fiscal year beginning on October 1st of this year is out. It calls for a flat appropriation for the Social Security Administration, neither increased nor decreased from the current fiscal year. However, considering inflation, which is heading up significantly over the next year this would amount to a significant cut in the agency’s effective operating budget.

     Don’t get too excited about the President’s budget proposal for it's merely a proposal. It’s up to Congress to pass appropriations acts. The problem with Congress is that Republican Congressional leaders aren’t all that much more interested in adequately funding the Social Security Administration than the President. The silver lining is that there probably won’t be an appropriation act covering Social Security until after the first of next year when a new Congress will be seated. That Congress may be more sympathetic to SSA than the current one.

The Start Of Enlightenment: Go Slowly Until You Know All The Consequences Of Your Plan

      From NEXTGOV/FCW:

The Social Security Administration is delaying its rollout of new systems to centralize claims processing and appointment scheduling and pivoting to a pilot approach, according to internal emails obtained by Nextgov/FCW. 

SSA had intended to debut these new systems early this month. They were expected to be a major shift in how the agency operates, moving from processing claims locally to a national system.

The optics of such a change factored into SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano’s decision to delay the rollout of the new systems — “particularly where customers may expect access to their local office,” read an internal email sent Monday. 

It also outlined the importance of the agency moving slowly to make sure the effects on customer experience are fully understood before the National Appointment Scheduling Calendar and National Workload Management system are implemented broadly. Bisignano had touted the plans as coming improvements to staff just last week in an internal email. …

The decision to pilot the changes will allow the agency to test if the expected efficiencies are realized and “ensure we maintain customer confidence” before a wider launch, the email announcing the change said. Details on the pilot are forthcoming, it said, after the agency has spent months preparing for the national rollout. …

Bisignano Controversial At IRS

     From Politico:

… The unusual nature of [Bisignano’s] role [as “CEO” of the IRS] — one that doesn’t exist in federal law — is raising questions about who’s really in charge of the agency as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent holds the title of acting IRS commissioner. Fueling the scrutiny is the fact that Bisignano also serves as commissioner of the Social Security Administration. …

The unusual nature of Bisignano’s position is at the heart of concerns voiced by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle as well as agency staff over whether he can be a change agent for an agency that’s struggled to improve customer service after dramatic swings in leadership and operations since President Donald Trump returned to office in January 2025. The questions are set to be aired publicly when he appears for the first time before the Senate Finance Committee on April 15, just as the first tax filing season of Trump’s second term comes to a close. …

Six people at the IRS, who were granted anonymity to avoid retribution, described a leader who has claimed credit for others’ work, sown discord and acted as Trump’s lieutenant. …

One IRS official called Bisignano “a fake” and said the only notable recent update to the refund tool was making the service accessible through “individual online accounts,” which happened before he came to the agency. The official said Bisignano’s order for the IRS to review and justify contracts made him a “single person chokepoint for procurement” who impaired the agency’s ability to move forward on efforts like using artificial intelligence to aid with tax collection. …

What Do You Think?

      This is a comment that I allowed to be posted yesterday concerning agency employees saying they were afraid of reporting misconduct:

Doesn't make sense. The agency has an increased emphasis on catching and stopping fraud. My office has been eagerly assisting such efforts. No one is afraid. We wake up motivated each day.

     To my eye that last sentence looks like something that a paid shill came up with, or, perhaps more likely, AI wrote it. I decided to post it since it wasn’t clear. There are others which are far more obvious, even humorous examples, that I quickly blocked

     What do you think I ought to do about these? Allow them to post so there’s a vigorous debate? Reject them if they don’t ring true to me even though I may reject a few genuine comments? Muddle through as best I can? Allow the most ridiculous examples with some attached commentary so you can be amused or angered by them?

Social Security Employees Are Afraid

 

New POMS Section On Relations With Attorneys

Poms

      Social Security has issued an amended section in its POMS manual dealing with disclosures of information to attorneys and others representing claimants before the agency. I see nothing really new here but it certainly deserves close scrutiny. The section still says “Entities may not be appointed as representatives.” This causes severe problems for law firms representing claimants. I don’t think the agency appreciates how difficult the problems are. Perhaps they do and are happy to cause the problems. At least they realize that it’s normal for attorneys to have legal assistants and paralegals working with them.