Fee Payments in 2006

The Social Security Administration has finally posted the final 2006 numbers on payments of fees to attorneys and others for representing Social Security claimants. Normally, Social Security posts these numbers within a few days after the end of a month, but the figures for November and December 2006 were not posted until today. Here are the final 2006 numbers:

Fee Payments
Month/Year	Volume	Amount
Jan-06	18,752	$64,848,326.02
Feb-06	20,426	$70,312.586.15
Mar-06	26,227	$91,045,934.83
Apr-06	23,042	$79,714,961.76
May-06	23,581	$82,015,869.29
June-06	27,771	$97,085,724.60
July-06	21,432	$74,648,883.83
August-06	24,579	$85,528,548.61
Sept-06	28,968	$99,124,616.47
Oct-06	20,246	$71,009,543.75
Nov-06	18,322	$63,636,873.26
Dec-06	20,717	$71,825,808.27

The final total for 2006 was $950,797,676.84. This is an 11% increase over the total for 2005, which was $862,369,764.09, although one should not infer from this that those representing Social Security claimants are enjoying rapidly increasing fees. These numbers are heavily influenced by the advent of withholding of fees in SSI cases and withholding of fees for certain non-attorney representatives. Without those fees being added, the increase would have been far less dramatic. Undoubtedly, there has been some increase in fees over the rate of inflation, but this has come at a cost to those representing Social Security claimants. As the length of time that Social Security takes to adjudicate cases goes up, the fees go up, since they are based upon the amount of back benefits, but so does the work that the attorney or representative must do. The longer the case stays open, the more telephone calls the attorney makes and receives concerning the case, the more medical development the attorney must do and so on.

Job Satisfaction Good At Social Security

The U.S. Office of Personnel Management took a federal human capital survey in 2006. Federal Agencies were ranked on their employees' job satisfaction. Here is the list:

Agency	2006 Ranking
Office of Management and Budget	1
Nuclear Regulatory Commission	2
National Aeronautics and Space Administration	3
National Science Foundation	4
Department of Justice	5
Department of State	6
National Credit Union Administration	7
Social Security Administration	8
US Agency for International Development	9
General Services Administration	10

West Virginia Man Pleads Guilty To Social Security Fraud

The Huntington Herald-Dispatch reports that Jeff David Dotson has pleaded guilty to cashing checks he received from Social Security while incarcerated on two occasions. The amount of money is estimated at more than $26,000.

Message To SSA Employees From Acting Commissioner On Budget

Thursday, February 01, 2007 2:41 PM
Subject: COMMISSIONER'S BROADCAST -- 02/01/07

A Message To All SSA And DDS Employees

Subject: Budget Situation

Yesterday afternoon, I received encouraging news about our fiscal year 2007 funding situation. The House of Representatives voted to approve a $464 billion spending package that will fund agencies currently operating without fiscal 2007 appropriations.

In the measure approved by the House, Congress will restore $200 million in administrative funds to the Social Security Administration. The Senate, whose appropriators worked with the House to draft the joint funding resolution, is expected to take up the matter next week. In a statement, Senator Robert Byrd, Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said “This legislation makes smart investments in national priorities. I hope that Congress approves this funding legislation quickly…”

Senator Baucus, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, has also applauded the action of the House and reminded his colleagues that, “The continuing resolution still doesn’t give Social Security all the operating funds it needs, but at least we won’t see the 10-day staff furlough that was feared.”

Indeed, when approved by Congress and the President, the restoration of funds to SSA will enable us to avoid furloughs.

Linda S. McMahon
Acting Commissioner

Upcoming Meetings and CLE

• February 2, 2007, State Bar of Michigan Social Security Section Meeting, Lansing, MI
• February 6, 2007 Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
  
• February 8-9, 2007 Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Advisory Panel Quarterly Meeting, Atlanta, GA
  
• February 13, 2007, Social Security Advisory Board Meeting, Washington, D.C.
• February 13, 2007, Social Security Section, American Association for Justice [previously known as ATLA] Bring Your File Forum, Miami Beach, FL
  
• March 1-2, 2007, Stetson University CLE March 1-2, 2007, Clearwater Beach, FL
• March 1-3, 2007, NADE Mid-Year Board Meeting, Washington, DC
• March 6, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• March 9, 2007 Ohio Academy of Trial Lawyers CLE, Columbus, OH
• March 25-28, 2007, NADR Conference, Albuquerque, NM
• March 30, 2007, NC Academy of Trial Lawyers, Disability Advocacy Section, Annual Meeting and CLE, Raleigh, NC
  
• April 18-20 2007, NADE Regional Training Conference, Albuquerque, NM
• April 18-21 2007, NOSSCR CLE, Baltimore, MD
• April 25, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• April 27, 2007, Cincinnati Bar Association Social Security Committee CLE, Cincinnati, OH
• May 1, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• May 2-4, 2007, NADE Regional Training Conference, Seattle, WA
• May 5-9, 2007, NADE Biregional Training Conference, Atlanta, GA
  
• May 7-10 2007, NADE Regional Training Conference, Atlanta, GA
• May 14, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• May 16, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• May 18, 2007, State Bar of Michigan Social Security Section Meeting, Lansing, MI
• May 20-23, 2007, National Association of Disability Examiners Meeting, Stowe, VE
• June 8, 2007, Minnesota CLE on Social Security Practice, Rochester, MN
  
• September 15-20, 2007, NADE National Conference, Sioux Falls, SD
• October 17-20, 2007, NOSSCR CLE, St. Louis, MO
• November 30, 2007, Legal Services of New York Legal Support Unit CLE, New York, NY
• April 8-11, 2008 NADE Regional Conference, Austin, TX
• June 4-7, 2008 NOSSCR CLE, Miami, FL
• October 15-18, 2008 NOSSCR CLE, Century City, CA

If you know of one that I have missed, please e-mail me at charles[at]charleshallfirm.com.

Texas School System Employees Loophole Could Cost Billions

Here is an excerpt from a Fort Worth Star-Telegram article about an audit report by Social Security's Office of Inspector General:

The hiring of one-day employees by seven Texas school districts may cost the Social Security Administration $110 million annually in spousal benefits, according to an audit by the agency's inspector general.

The inspector general's report estimated that 19,212 people could receive $2.2 billion in spousal benefits over their lifetimes.

The seven school districts -- Lindale, Kilgore, West, Coleman, Hudson, Premont, and Sweeny -- raised more than $7 million by charging fees to the one-day workers.

The audit dealt with workers who retired before July 1, 2004, when the law was changed.

Before the loophole was closed, retiring teachers and administrators could work one day at another school district that participated in Social Security to obtain spousal benefits.

Most Texas school districts do not participate in Social Security.

The inspector general also urged the agency to review eight other unnamed Texas school districts, which weren't audited but hired 3,285 one-day workers. ...

Joe Fried, who runs the Public Program Testing Organization, a Social Security watchdog group, alerted the inspector general to the one-day worker situation at Texas school districts.

"This was bogus for three different reasons: First, they didn't have the authority to give Social Security; secondly, they wouldn't have the wages to pay them unless they collected the fees; thirdly, they weren't actually needed or didn't have work for them to do," Fried said.

Larry Shaw, executive director of the United Educators Association, a teachers association in Tarrant County, stressed that the practice was legal until 2004.

"I don't know about these individual districts, but I don't think any of these individuals did anything wrong," Shaw said. "I don't think you can take advantage of anything that was legal at the time."

Teachers unions are lobbying Congress to change the law in hopes of making it easier for teachers to receive spousal benefits.

Workers Compensation Offset Errors Estimated At $149 Million

A recent study by Social Security's Office of Inspector General sampled Social Security's worker's compensation offset determinations. In general, Social Security disability benefits are reduced if a claimant is also receiving workers compensation benefits. The computation of the offset can be complicated. The study showed a high level of errors, with most of the errors shortchanging claimants. The amount of money involved is staggering. Here is a table from the study:

Summary of Sampling and Estimation Results for WC Related Errors

Error Category	Sample – Error Claims		Estimate to Population
	Claims	Dollars	Claims	Dollars
Underpayments	19	$118,386	17,858	$111,268,016
Overpayments	8	$40,204	7,519	$37,786,614
Totals	27	$158,590	25,377	$149,054,630

Inspector General Wants Priority Processing For Cessation Cases

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

We found that 53 percent of individuals in our population, who appealed a medical cessation decision and continued to receive payments throughout the appeals process, were overpaid. The overpayments were increased because SSA’s process for deciding medical cessation appeals is not financially efficient. Medical cessation appeals should not be processed in the same manner as cases not receiving payments. Therefore, to the extent possible, appeals that involve benefit payments should be processed separately from those that do not involve payments to avoid or minimize overpayments.

The President’s Management Agenda introduced the initiative of improved financial performance throughout Government agencies. By making SSA’s process for medical cessation determinations more efficient it would be better aligned with the President’s vision. If SSA would develop a process for making decisions on medical cessation appeals in a timely manner, financial performance of the DI program could be greatly increased.For example, if SSA decreased the processing time on medical cessation appeals (both reconsiderations and ALJ hearings) to 165 days, we project overpayments of approximately $30 million could have been avoided for FY 2003 and 2004. Based on the average of these 2 years, we estimate SSA could have avoided about an additional $15 million in overpayments in FY 2005.