SSAB Nominations Advance

     The Senate Finance Committee has scheduled a hearing for January 31 on four nominations, including these three to the Social Security Advisory Board:

• Andrew G. Biggs, of Oregon
• Kathryn Rose Lang, of Maryland
• Sharon Beth Lewis, of Oregon

Officially On The Job

      Martin O’Malley was sworn in as Commissioner on Wednesday.

     He has no leave built up yet so I guess he’ll be on the job every workday other than Christmas Day itself.

O'Malley Nomination Spurred Few Passions

     From Politico:

... The vote [on the nomination of Martin O'Malley to become Commissioner of Social Security] was 50-11, with 39 senators absent for the chamber's first vote the week before Christmas as lawmakers continue working on an international aid and border security supplemental package.

Longtime Senate reporters and procedural experts called it the worst attendance for a vote that they could recall for at least the last two decades. ...

Senate Schedules Vote Today On O'Malley Nomination

     According to the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over the matter, there's been unanimous consent in the Senate to vote on Martin O'Malley's nomination today.

    Update: The vote is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. today.

    Update: Martin O’Malley has been confirmed by the Senate.

O'Malley Nomination Reported Out Of Committee

     From the New Hampshire Bulletin:

Former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley moved one step closer Tuesday to becoming the next Social Security commissioner, a role that would become increasingly difficult as the program inches closer to insolvency during the next decade.

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee voted, 17-10, to send O’Malley’s nomination to the floor, though it’s not clear how soon the entire chamber will vote on confirmation. All the panel’s Democrats and Republican Sens. Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, and Thom Tillis of North Carolina voted to advance his nomination. ...

Senate Hearing On O'Malley Nomination

   

     I listened to yesterday's Senate Finance Committee hearing on the nomination of Martin O'Malley to become Commissioner of Social Security. There seemed to be only limited Republican opposition. When a Republican Senator mentioned that he didn't like the firing of Andrew Saul, the Chairman of the Committee was prepared to politely mention that Republicans were hoist on their own petard. They were the ones who brought the lawsuits that led to the President's ability to fire people like Saul -- who richly deserved it!

    I liked one thing that O'Malley did. Whenever a Republican Senator complained about backlogs and delays and poor service generally, O'Malley had the numbers and could talk about the staffing cuts in the Senator's home state, which were in the 20-30% range for the field offices and DDS. That seemed to mute the complaints. Don't let them "cut it until it bleeds and then complain about the bloodstains."

 

Update: Another take on the nomination hearing.

   

O'Malley Nomination Hearing Today

    The Senate Finance Committee hearing on the nomination of Martin O'Malley to become the Commissioner of Social Security is scheduled for 10:00 Eastern today. You can watch it online.

Grassley Undecided On O'Malley Nomination

     From Radio Iowa:

The Democrat who finished third in the 2016 Iowa Caucuses is now being considered for the post of commissioner of Social Security. Former Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley will go before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee this week for his nomination hearing, and Republican Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley will be among the lawmakers asking him questions.

“I did meet with him in my office a month ago and I thought it was a very worthwhile meeting,” Grassley says. “I think his heart is in the right place, but I’m going to wait until the hearing’s over to decide whether to vote for him.”

The long-term viability of Social Security is the subject of much concern, but Grassley says they likely won’t be talking with O’Malley about that topic during the hearing on Thursday.

“I think we’re going to be more concerned about how he runs the Social Security Administration,” Grassley says, “and is he going to get people from remote work back into the offices around the country so they can serve the people better?” ...

Proposed Regs On Consideration Of Past Work Advance

     The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) -- the most important government agency you've never heard of -- has approved proposed Social Security regulation changes with the title, Intermediate Improvement to the Disability Adjudication Process: Including how we Consider Past Work. There's no way to know for sure at this point since we have no more than vague descriptions of what's included but the proposed regulations will likely reduce the number of years of past work considered in determining disability.

    The proposal will now be published in the Federal Register and the public will be able to comment. Social Security must consider the comments before publishing the regulations in final form so they go into effect. This process will take months at the least.

    When I posted about this proposal going to OIRA there were several comments posted here by those who felt this proposal would hurt Social Security disability claimants. If you think this is the case, don't make comments here on Social Security disability issues. You don't have enough knowledge to offer meaningful comments. If this proposal reduces the time frame considered from 15 years to, let's say, 5 years, that's a modest improvement from the point of view of disability claimants. And, no, this isn't some controversial loosening of standards.  I don't think that 15 years ever made sense. It certainly doesn't make sense now. With a nomination for Social Security Commissioner pending, the agency and OIRA are being extremely careful to avoid doing anything the least bit controversial. That's probably an important reason why I've had so little Social Security news to post lately. This proposal wouldn't be going forward now if it were controversial.

SSAB Supports O'Malley Nomination

     The four members of the Social Security Advisory Board, two of them Democratic appointees and two of them Republican appointees, have written to the Chairman and Ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee recommending swift approval of Martin O'Malley's nomination to become Commissioner of Social Security. 

    They also recommended that the six year terms for Social Security Commissioners end and that they serve at the pleasure of the President. I think it is beyond dispute that six year terms for Social Security Commissioners has been a bad idea which has led to the near impossibility of confirming Commissioners. In any case, due to recent Supreme Court rulings, Commissioners, in effect, serve at the pleasure of the President anyway.

    Let's get on with it. Endless Acting Commissioners aren't good for the agency.

More Union Support For O'Malley Nomination

     From Government Executive:

A coalition of 35 labor unions that represent federal workers last week joined the chorus of stakeholders endorsing former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley to serve as commissioner of the Social Security Administration and urged senators to move quickly to confirm him to his post.

The Federal Workers Alliance, which consists of a variety of labor groups collectively representing more than 550,000 federal workers and postal employees, including the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers, the National Federation of Federal Employees and the National Treasury Employees Union, announced their support in an Aug. 25 letter to senators. ...

AFGE Backs O’Malley Nomination

      It comes as no surprise but the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the largest union representing Social Security employees, has announced its support for the nomination of Martin O’Malley to become Commissioner of Social Security.

A Message To Staff From The Acting Commissioner

Sent: Wednesday, July 26, 2023 1:57 PM

To: A Message to All SSA and DDS Employees

Subject: President to Nominate Martin O'Malley as SSA's Commissioner

Today, President Biden announced his intent to nominate the Honorable Martin O’Malley as SSA’s Commissioner.  Governor O’Malley’s previous public service positions include the Mayor of Baltimore and the Governor of Maryland.  If confirmed by the Senate, Governor O’Malley would bring a wealth of experience in running a large and complex government agency. 

I will remain the Acting Commissioner through the confirmation process.  I look forward to continuing to lead this amazing agency and making progress on service improvements.

As always, thanks for all you do.

Kilolo Kijakazi, Ph.D., M.S.W.
Acting Commissioner

O'Malley Nominated To Be Commissioner Of Social Security

     From the Washington Post:

President Biden announced Wednesday that he will nominate former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley to lead the Social Security Administration, as the agency faces enhanced scrutiny over new management failures.

O’Malley, who ran for the Democratic nomination for president in 2016, would oversee an embattled agency...

Now How About A Commissioner Nomination?

     The President has nominated Kathryn Lang to became a member of the Social Security Advisory Board. Lang is Director of Federal Income Security at Justice in Aging, a national non-profit legal organization that fights against senior poverty. She has worked with Social Security and SSI issues.

Biggs And Lewis Renominated

     The President has renominated Andrew Biggs and Sharon Beth Lewis to serve on the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB). Biggs is only renominated because the President essentially has to nominate him. Certainly, he would not be nominated otherwise. As a Social Security employee -- a Social Security employee! -- he campaigned with then President George W. Bush for the partial privatization of Social Security. It's understood that Social Security Commissioners don't do this sort of thing. It's way beyond the pale for underlings. What Biggs did was quite a few years ago but it's not been forgotten. Remember, though, that the SSAB has only a limited role. Biggs on the SSAB doesn't move us one inch closer to privatizing Social Security.

Could We See A Commissioner Nomination Next Year?

     Democrats will have 50 Senators in the new Congress and Republicans 49. Senator Sinema will continue her effort to be the most complete flake possible as an Independent. She may or may not caucus with Democrats but this still leaves Democrats with a majority without needing the Vice President’s vote. That doesn’t sound like much of a difference from the current Congress but the Washington Post reports that the extra Senator makes plenty of difference, particularly with confirmation of nominations. Will President Biden finally nominate a new Commissioner of Social Security next year?

Nominate A Commissioner Already

      From a press release:

Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) today joined his colleagues led by Senators Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) in a letter to President Biden, urging him to nominate a Commissioner and Deputy Commissioner to serve at the Social Security Administration. The Social Security Administration has been without permanent leadership for over a year, making it difficult to address longstanding challenges that the agency faces in providing service to Americans who rely on these benefits. …

Joining Senator Markey in signing the letter led by Senators Van Hollen and Brown were Senators Carper (D-Del.), Padilla (D-Calif.), Baldwin (D-Wis.), Casey (D-Pa.), Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Markey (D-Mass.), Cardin (D-Md.), Murray (D-Wash.), Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Sanders (I-Vt.), Warren (D-Mass.), Schatz (D-Hawaii), Feinstein (D-Calif.), and Blumenthal (D-Conn.). …

    I’ve never heard why Biden is delaying the nomination. My guess is that Republican Senators have vowed to delay any nomination because they’re still miffed that Biden fired Andrew Saul. They can’t prevent confirmation but they can slow down the Senate at a time when Biden wants to get other things accomplished. Anybody else have a theory? 

Lewis Nominated To SSAB

      The President has nominated Sharon Beth Lewis of Oregon to become a member of the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB). Here's some biographic info on Lewis:

Lewis is a Principal at Health Management Associates, where she consults with government entities, providers, and advocates to advance opportunities for people with disabilities to fully participate in all aspects of their communities. Before that, Lewis served nearly six years in presidentially appointed roles at the Department of Health and Human Services. There, she was one of the chief architects of the Administration for Community Living and worked to improve access to quality integrated home and community-based services by working with states, stakeholders, and other federal agencies, including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Social Security Administration, and the Departments of Labor, Education, Transportation, and Justice.

Before joining the Obama administration, Lewis worked as a Senior Disability Policy Advisor to the House Committee on Education & Labor and as a Kennedy Public Policy Fellow for the Senate HELP Subcommittee on Children and Families. Lewis is the recipient of the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Chairman’s Award and is a graduate of Washington University in St. Louis.

It’s Time

      Andrew Saul was removed as Commissioner of Social Security on July 9, 2021. There has not yet been a nomination of a new Commissioner. I have no prediction for when the nomination will come but I think it’s time.