Biggs Leaving

An e-mail from the Commissioner of Social Security:

From: ^Commissioner Broadcast
Sent: Tuesday, January 08, 2008 4:00 PM
Subject: COMMISSIONER'S BROADCAST--01/08/08

A Message To All SSA And DDS Employees

Subject: Dr. Andrew Biggs

I want to let you know that our Deputy Commissioner of Social Security, Dr. Andrew Biggs, has informed me he soon will be leaving the agency to pursue an exciting job opportunity.

Dr. Biggs will become Resident Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI), a prominent Washington think tank, where he will continue his research work on Social Security.

Before his appointment as the Deputy Commissioner, Dr. Biggs served as Associate Commissioner for Retirement Policy as well as Deputy Commissioner for Policy. During his nearly five years at SSA, he has done much to improve the public's understanding of the complexities of the programs we administer. In particular, he has led the Office of Policy's research agenda, which covers all areas of the Social Security program and how it interacts with the economy and affects the well-being of the people we serve.

In addition to being the Secretary to the Social Security Board of Trustees, Dr. Biggs was a member of the Trustees Working Group, which undertakes the staff-level preparation of the annual Trustees Report. Dr. Biggs also has been an important advisor to the President on retirement policy.

On a personal level, let me say what a pleasure it has been to work with Andrew during my time here. Not only is he an intelligent and thoughtful public servant, Andrew is also an extremely nice guy who handles the many challenges of his job with professionalism, grace and humor.

Andrew plans to leave SSA in early February and start at AEI in March. Please join me in wishing him all the best in the future.

Michael J. Astrue

Commissioner

Congress did not defund Biggs' job, but he leaves voluntarily shortly after the appropriations bill passes. Interesting.

Alert At Michigan Office

From the National Terror Alert Response Center (a blog):

A security guard notified authorities after he came across a suspicious package left at the new Social Security office on S. Telegraph Rd. this afternoon.

The area was cordoned off and the public was not allowed to enter the building, which is south of Seventh St. Officials have cleared the scene and the area has since been reopened after a police dog determined the package did not contain explosives, said Monroe County Sheriff’s Sgt. Brian Angerer.

Homeland Security officials were notified since a government building was involved and have reportedly taken away the package and will continue any investigation.

Sgt. Angerer said the parcel was delivered by the post office and reportedly left near or outside the office door. The security guard then became suspicious either based on the way it was left behind or because of the writing on the package.

CBS Item On Social Security Backlogs Coming

The rumor is that the long anticipated CBS story on Social Security backlogs will be appearing on the Evening News next week, perhaps Monday and Tuesday evenings, although the timing could still change.

From The Appropriations Bill

From P.L. 110-161:

Sec. 526. None of the funds appropriated by this Act may be used by the Commissioner of Social Security or the Social Security Administration to pay the compensation of employees of the Social Security Administration to administer Social Security benefit payments, under any agreement between the United States and Mexico establishing totalization arrangements between the social security system established by title II of the Social Security Act and the social security system of Mexico, which would not otherwise be payable but for such agreement. [What is the point? There is no totalization arrangement with Mexico!]

Sec. 527. None of the funds appropriated in this Act shall be expended or obligated by the Commissioner of Social Security, for purposes of administering Social Security benefit payments under title II of the Social Security Act, to process claims for credit for quarters of coverage based on work performed under a social security account number that was not the claimant's number which is an offense prohibited under section 208 of the Social Security Act.

I hope that the provision prohibiting processing claims for credit for quarters of coverage obtained under a fraudulent Social Security number will not cause problems for people who have innocently fouled up their Social Security earnings record by giving an employer a mistaken Social Security number.

I have been unable to find a provision prohibiting payment of a salary to Andrew Biggs, the Deputy Commissioner of Social Security, who is serving under a recess appointment. A provision that would have prevented payment of a salary to Biggs had been in earlier versions of the bill.

Astrue After Bush Leaves Office -- Still Commissioner?

Yes, I know his term runs until January 2013, but he does not have to stay Commissioner if he does not want to. That is the question. Will he want to?

Free Web poll for your Web site - freepolls.com

More Comments On Proposed Procedural Regulations

Again, this is my idiosyncratic choice from the 551 comments posted so far on the proposed regulations online. The comment period has closed, but the Social Security Administration may still be processing faxes and snail mail.

National Association Of Disability Representatives (NADR)
David Traver
Rudolph Patterson
Paul Eaglin
Lyle Lieberman

Fraud Allegation In South Dakota

From the Rapid City Journal:

A Rapid City couple accused of collecting more than $120,000 in illegal Social Security payments now face federal charges.

Lonnie G. Holloman, 54, and Margaret R. Holloman, 52, pleaded not guilty in U.S. Magistrate Court to charges of conspiracy, Social Security fraud, false statement and theft of government funds.

According to federal court documents, the Hollomans are accused of fraudulently collecting $123,333 in Social Security Disability Income payments between November 1998 and July 2006.

Prosecutors say the couple reported to the Social Security Administration that Lonnie Holloman was unable to work because of a back injury in 1991. However, they say Holloman worked 40 hours per week between 1998 and 2001 for Doug Faul Trucking Company as a dispatcher and long-haul truck driver.

Way And Means Committee Opposition To Proposed Procedural Regulations

The letter signed by Charles Rangel, the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, and many other committee chairmen concerning Social Security's proposed changes in its procedural regulations, designed to cut benefits payments by $2 billion, has been out for some time. The depth of Ways and Means Committee opposition to this proposal is becoming clearer. Take a look at the web page created by the Ways and Means Committee devoted just to this issue. I have not seen anything like this before.

The Ways and Means web page on this regulatory proposal contains a link to a New York Times article from 1988 about a proposal at that time that parallels the current proposal. That proposal would have required that all evidence be submitted seven days before a Social Security hearing. It just goes to show that there are no truly new ideas about Social Security. We just endlessly recycle old ideas.

One minor point from the old New York Times article is that it mentioned that Eileen Bradley was under consideration in 1988 to become Commissioner of Social Security during the George H. W. Bush Administration. I am getting a cold shiver just thinking about that twenty year old idea! Is Ms. Bradley still working for the Social Security Administration?

Ohio DDS Endorses End To Disability Waiting Period For Terminally Ill

From the Associated Press:

A state agency that handles Social Security disability claims has asked Ohio’s congressional delegation to back a proposal that would allow terminally ill patients to receive payments quickly.

The seven-member Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission [a state Disability Determination Service or DDS] , which handled 169,392 disability claims in Ohio last year, endorsed the bill proposed by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and called for his Ohio colleagues on Capitol Hill to support the measure, which would waive a five-month waiting period for such patients. ...

The five-month wait reflects a standard back-to-work benchmark and is meant to avoid paying benefits to those who don’t have a long-term disability, U.S. Social Security Administration spokeswoman Carmen Moreno said Friday.

Carmen Moreno knows so little that she should not be a spokesperson for the Social Security Administration. "A standard back-to-work benchmark?" Give me a break. Nobody in the world other than the U.S. Social Security Administration has a five month waiting period for disability benefits. The statute already requires that disability must last at least a year. That excludes shorter term disabilities. The only reason for the five month waiting period is to save money.

Debit Cards Coming To Social Security

From Reuters:

The Treasury Department is set to offer a prepaid debit card for Social Security recipients and has chosen Dallas-based Coamerica Bank as the card issuer, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

The report said the card is targeted at Social Security and Supplemental Security Income recipients who don't have bank accounts, and is also aimed at providing cheaper and more secure payments by shifting away from paper checks.