SSI Regulatory Proposal Hung Up At OMB

     Before publishing proposed new regulations in the Federal Register for public comments, agencies must obtain the approval of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) at the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). On February 8, some seven months ago, Social Security asked OIRA for approval of proposed regulations that would omit food from consideration as in-kind support and maintenance in computing Supplemental Security Income benefits. This is a not insignificant proposal. The proposal is still pending. That's a long time for a proposed regulation coming from Social Security to stay pending at OIRA. 

    I have no idea what is causing the delay. I don't think this would be a complicated proposal. Anything that would help SSI claimants would be a big deal, though. For decades, Congress has failed to update SSI income and resource limitations.

Democrats Pound Ron Johnson On Social Security

     I hate to keep harping on it but it's becoming obvious that Senator Ron Johnson's (R-WI) expressed desire to sunset Social Security is becoming a major focus of Democratic efforts to retain control of the Senate after this November's election. See these pieces from Huffpost and Bloomberg.

Kafkaesque Indeed

 

Kafka

    Mark Betancourt has written a piece for Mother Jones magazine titled Inside The Kafkaesque Process For Determining Who Gets Federal Disability Benefits.

     The use of the term “Kafkaesque” may be more apt that Mr. Betancourt realizes. Frans Kafka’s day job was in the related field of what would today be called workers compensation claims.

Happy Labor Day

 

Nevertheless The Lines Are Still There

      From a House Ways and Means Committee press release:

In response to a request from Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) and Ranking Member Kevin Brady (R-TX), the Social Security Administration (SSA) has outlined the urgent action field offices have taken to protect visitors from the summer heat. …

In its response, SSA reports that it has already taken a number of steps to address Congress’s concerns about maintaining the health and safety of visitors waiting in lines outside Social Security offices, including:

• Increasing in-person staff and service options to reduce waiting times at the busiest offices;
• Assigning some workloads to other offices, to free up the busiest offices for in-person service;
• Reconfiguring waiting areas to allow more people to enter climate-conditioned waiting areas; and
• Providing outdoor canopies, fans, and access to bathrooms and water fountains for those waiting outside of offices in the heat. 

An Answer To A Burning Question: What Was Superman's Social Security Number?

     From Electricsistahood:

...  I got to wondering to myself, does Superman have a Social Security number? Moreover, does his alter-ego Clark Kent have a Social Security number. And does this require Kal-El to have two Social Security numbers? Beyond that, the questions become endless.

So I started doing some research into the subject. Answering the question, does Clark Kent have a Social Security number, is easy. That was answered way back in 1966 in Action Comics -- his Social Security number is 092-09-6616. Turns out that it was the same number used by a man named Giobatta Baiocchi, who died the year before. ...

    Which means, Superman got his Social Security Number in the  state of N.Y.

We Don't Talk About Social Security

    Ramesh Ponnuru, a fellow at the right wing American Enterprise Institute, has written an opinion piece for Bloomberg, giving advice to Republicans on how to handle Social Security issues during this election season. He makes it clear that he believes that Social Security must be cut. That's the first thing he talks about. However, he acknowledges that this is wildly unpopular and extremely unlikely to happen. Thus, he basically advises Republicans to shut up about Social Security.

    That's not completely reassuring. Republicans would be better advised to permanently forget about cutting Social Security. That will never, ever be anything other than political suicide for the Republican party. Never, ever. People like Ponnuru are part of the problem for Republicans. They keep up a slow, pointless drumbeat for cutting Social Security that makes some in the GOP think it is actually something that can and should happen and which gives many Americans good reason to believe that they can't trust Republicans on Social Security.

A Labor Day Poll

 

online polls

OIG Report On Agile Software Development

     Social Security's Office of Inspector General (OIG) has issued a report on Agile Software Development at the Social Security Administration. The report is a major snore as far as I'm concerned. Those directly involved may have other opinions. Mostly, I'm posting about it because OIG is getting so few reports out these days.  Also, news is very slow in Social Security world as we approach Labor Day.

Elections Have Consequences

     From Government Executive:

The Social Security Administration has plans to restore a few key parts of its national agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees.

After months of ongoing discussions, SSA and AFGE reached an agreement on July 25 to reinstate previous levels of official time for union activity, and the union’s use of SSA facilities, that existed in an earlier iteration of the national contract from 2012. ...

And, there are more negotiations still on the table — SSA and AFGE have agreed to reopen six other contract articles, Couture said. The SSA spokesperson added that the agency looks forward to partnering with AFGE in the upcoming contract negotiations, in part, to try to resolve ongoing challenges with staffing and employee satisfaction. ...

    Actually, AFGE shouldn't need an election win to get this sort of thing. The problem is that the Republican Party has gone nuts in many ways and one of them is its strident hostility towards federal employee  unions. I know the union can be a pain in the neck. I know it can make impossible demands. I know that it is little concerned with service to the public but the Trump Administration policies towards federal employee unions were over the top by almost any standard.