SSA Releases Monthly Stats

Social Security has released its monthly statistical packages for February for Title II (benefits based upon earnings records) and Title XVI (SSI) cases. The number of Title II disability benefits recipients went up from 6,546,000 to 6,812,000 over the twelve months, an increase of 4%. SSI disability benefits recipients went up from 5,942,324 to 6,076,191, an increase of 3%. These increases, which are enormous for one year, occurred despite terrible backlogs at Social Security that delayed many claimants from going on benefits. This is a strong sign of the demographic wave of disability claims hitting the Social Security Administration.

NTEU And AFGE Battle

The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), a union, represents many of Social Security's employees. The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), represents many federal employees who work at agencies other than the Treasury, including many of Social Security's attorneys. These have been some signs of tension between the two unions at Social Security. Now, the two unions are openly battling, although not at Social Securit, as reported on Fedblog:

Looks like the National Treasury Employees Union and the American Federation of Government Employees are back in a state of open warfare. ... [As the two unions fight to establish themselves with Transportation Security Administration employees, the AFGE put out a public statement.] Here's a sampling of the phrases employed by the AFGE folks to characterize NTEU's move:

• "amusing and appalling"


• "imitation is flattering"


• "they have been nowhere in sight"


• "NTEU should be ashamed"


• "demeaning and offensive"


• "pitiful farce"

SSA Seeks Help Writing Decisions

The Social Security Administration has posted decision writing software for free downloading. The software can be used to help in writing decisions for Administrative Law Judges. The obvious idea is that those representing Social Security claimants will write the decisions for Social Security, removing some workload from the agency. However, there has no corresponding effort to adjust the cap on what may be paid those who represent claimants. That has not been adjusted in five years and has been eroded significantly by inflation.

Homelessness And Social Security Disability

You have to wonder why the media had little interest in reporting on this issue until Democrats tok control of Congress. Some excerpts from a New York Times article:

When a biting winter storm descended on the Coney Island Boardwalk one afternoon last month, whipping sand and trash into the air, a flock of seagulls lost no time in taking wing. But Patrick Garbiras, a gaunt, shambling, 51-year-old homeless man, could only do what he has been doing ever since filing his claim for Social Security disability benefits 440 days earlier: seek shelter in slow motion.

If Mr. Garbiras were capable of scurrying, he probably would have done so. But a seizure disorder and three operations over the past 14 months, including an open-heart surgery, have left him feeble.

Since becoming homeless in late 2005, Mr. Garbiras has often spent his nights on the subway ...

But as he struggled, it was not the elements Mr. Garbiras cursed. It was the Social Security Administration. ...

John Shallman, a regional spokesman for Social Security, said the agency does not comment on individual matters. But while in Mr. Garbiras’s case, poorly updated agency records and his homelessness have complicated the process, the biggest obstacle is the 503 days it takes, on average, for hearings of disability appeals to be conducted in Brooklyn — 37 days more than the national average.

Results Of Last Week's Unscientific Poll

What effect do you expect EDIB to have upon Social Security productivity?

Dramatic improvement in productivity (4)	5%
Good improvement in productivity (20)	23%
Minor improvement in productivity (20)	23%
No effect upon productivity (8)	9%
Mild reduction in productivity (18)	21%
Significant decrease in productivity (9)	10%
Dramatic decrease in productivity (8)	9%

Total Votes: 87

An Image From 1997

Upcoming Meetings and CLE

• April 5, 2007, Illinois Institute For CLE, CLE Webcast only?
  
• April 11, 2007, Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Advisory Panel Meeting, Arlington, VA
  
• April 18-20 2007, NADE Regional Training Conference, Albuquerque, NM
• April 18-21 2007, NOSSCR CLE, Baltimore, MD
• April 19, 2007, SSAB Meeting, Washington, DC
• 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, 2007, Indiana CLE, Indianapolis, IN
  
• 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
• July 12, 2007, PBI CLE, Pittsburg, PA
• July 23, 2007, Legal Aid Society, Nashville, TN
  
• September 10-15, 2007, International Social Security Association General Assembly, Moscow, Russia
  
• 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.

Martin Gerry's Departure From SSA

I try not to post based upon anonymously posted information, but this is too good to pass on. I cannot vouch for it. It is possible that it is a complete fabrication. If it is, please let me know. Read this reply to a post I made yesterday about Martin Gerry's apparent firing. Gerry was the right hand man of former Commissioner Jo Anne Barnhart. Gerry made the surprising decision to try to stay on at Social Security after Barnhart's term ended. He recently left his job at Social Security in what appeared to be an abrupt manner that strongly suggested he had been fired. Former Commissioner Barnhart wanted everyone to love her. If this post is true, Commissioner Astrue wants everyone to fear him. That would be a dramatic change for upper level Social Security personnel.