Dingell On Biggs Defunding

John Dingell has written a piece for the Detroit Free Press explaining why he sponsored an amendment to defund Andrew Biggs' position as Deputy Commissioner of Social Security. He quotes Biggs as having said: "Social Security reform featuring personal retirement accounts doesn't just send one liberal sacred cow to the slaughterhouse. It sends the whole herd."

Biggs May Be Defunded

Andrew Biggs has now been nominated three times for a six year term as Deputy Commissioner of Social Security. The first time President Bush sent Biggs' name up was in November or December of last year. The lame duck Congress never considered the nomination. The second nomination was in January after the new Congress convened. Max Baucus, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, refused to have his committee even consider the nomination. President Bush then gave Biggs a recess appointment, good until the end of this Congress, but rather pointlessly also nominated Biggs for a third time.

Why is the Senate so averse to Biggs? He is a big proponent of privatizing Social Security. He campaigned with Bush for privatization in 2005.

The Labor-HHS Appropriations bill is currently being considered by Congress. When the bill came up on the floor of the House of Representatives, Representative John Dingell proposed the following amendment:

None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to pay the basic pay of any individual serving as Deputy Commissioner of Social Security, Social Security Administration, whose appointment to such position has not been confirmed by a vote of the Senate pursuant to section 702(b)(1) of the Social Security Act

The amendment was adopted by a mostly party line vote of 231 - 199. The matter still has to be considered by the Senate and the President has already promised to veto the bill for other reasons.

Man Needing Heart Transplant Denied Social Security Disability

From the Shenandoah [Iowa] Valley News:

Kyle Nelson can't play with his 8-year-old daughter Ashley without becoming winded. So why has the rural Shenandoah man been denied twice for Social Security Disability benefits?

That is the answer Nelson wants to know as he faces hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills waiting for a heart transplant.

Social Security officials told Nelson, who hasn't worked since December 2006, he is capable of returning to work by December 2007, even though two doctors have confirmed Nelson should not be working.

"I just don't know what to do," he said. "I'm behind on all my bills and I'm in the hole about $290,000 from medical bills," said Nelson.

List Of Regulatory Proposals Pending For Social Security At OMB

All federal agencies must submit regulatory changes to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval before publishing them in the Federal Register. Here is the current list of regulatory proposals pending at OMB for Social Security:

Social Security Administration

AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG44
TITLE: Improvements to the Ticket To Work and Self-Sufficiency Program (3377P)
STAGE: Proposed Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: Yes
RECEIVED DATE: 05/02/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG48
TITLE: SSA Implementation of OMB Guidance on Nonprocurement Debarment and Suspension (3382F)
STAGE: Final Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
RECEIVED DATE: 05/16/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG49
TITLE: Amendment to the Attorney Advisor Program (3398I)
STAGE: Interim Final Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
RECEIVED DATE: 05/24/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG36
TITLE: Private Printing of Prescribed Applications, Other Forms, and Publications (530P)
STAGE: Proposed Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
RECEIVED DATE: 06/05/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG50
TITLE: Sixty-Month Period of Employment Requirement for Government Pension Offset Exemption (3022P)
STAGE: Proposed Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
RECEIVED DATE: 06/06/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AF28
TITLE: Revised Medical Criteria for Evaluating Impairments of the Digestive System (800F)
STAGE: Final Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: No
RECEIVED DATE: 07/05/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG52
TITLE: Amendments to the Administrative Law Judge, Appeals Council, and Decision Review Board Appeals Levels (3401P)
STAGE: Proposed Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: Yes
RECEIVED DATE: 07/09/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None
AGENCY: SSA	RIN: 0960-AG53
TITLE: Proposed Termination of the Federal Reviewing Official Review Level, Changes to the Role of the Medical and Vocational Expert System, and Future Demonstration Projects (3394P)
STAGE: Proposed Rule	ECONOMICALLY SIGNIFICANT: Yes
RECEIVED DATE: 07/11/2007	LEGAL DEADLINE: None

Bill Reported By House Ways And Means Committee

A House Ways and Means Committee press release:

Ways and Means Passes Bipartisan
Social Security Number- Identity Theft Prevention Bill
Legislation Approved Unanimously Today

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The House Committee on Ways and Means today approved legislation introduced by Social Security Subcommittee Chairman Michael R. McNulty (D-NY) and Subcommittee Ranking Member Sam Johnson (R-TX) designed to address the growing problem of identity theft. The final vote was 41 to zero.

"After 17 public hearings detailing the terrible consequences of identity theft, the time for talk is over and the time for action is at hand," McNulty (D-NY) said today. "If we are serious about addressing this growing problem, we must stop giving access to our Social Security number to every Tom, Dick, or Harry who seeks it."

During the course of the 17 hearings conducted by the Subcommittee, numerous experts testified that the easy availability of Social Security numbers (SSNs) in the public and private sectors, combined with the number’s widespread use as an individual identifier, greatly facilitates the crime of identity theft. The bill would restrict the sale, purchase and public display of the SSN by government and business, to make it less accessible to identity thieves, while providing exceptions for legitimate and necessary uses of the number.

"We are talking about keeping your private information private! If you have ever had your Social Security number stolen or your personal information compromised, you know how difficult it is to clear your good name and reclaim your credit rating," said Rep. Sam Johnson (R-TX), Ranking Member of the Social Security Subcommittee. "We need to act now to stop the widespread abuse of Social Security numbers, help prevent ID theft, and further protect Americans’ privacy."

New Hires

Here is the text of a Social Security press release:

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced the appointment of three new members of his executive team at Social Security.

Dr. David B. Gray is appointed Deputy Commissioner for Disability and Income Security Programs. Dr. Gray will play a key role in helping Commissioner Astrue implement his plan for reducing the backlog of disability cases. “I look forward to working closely with Dr. Gray to improve Social Security’s outdated medical listings and poorly defined categories of disabilities and advance our vision for more compassionate allowances.”

Prior to his appointment, Dr. Gray was concurrently the Associate Professor of Neurology and Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri. He holds a doctorate from the University of Minnesota, a Master of Psychology from Western Michigan University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Lawrence University in Wisconsin. His extensive work in the field of paralysis and mobility impairments, rehabilitation and human behavior has earned him respect in the research and academic communities both abroad and in the United States.

Margaret A. Hostetler is appointed Deputy Commissioner for Policy and Dr. Jason J. Fichtner is appointed Associate Commissioner for Retirement Policy. “Ms. Hostetler and Dr. Fichtner both bring strong backgrounds in policy analysis and research that will help us continue to study the effects of possible changes to the Social Security program on individuals, the economy and program solvency. I look forward to their wise advice and counsel.”

Ms. Hostetler has a wealth of experience in federal policy-making, having spent more than 20 years in senior Congressional committee staff positions. Her assignments included the House Ways and Means Committee, the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee and the House Budget Committee. Most recently, she was the Senior Legislative Representative with the AARP Economic Affairs Federal Division. She holds a Master of Business Administration from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania and a Bachelor of Science degree from the Pennsylvania State University.

Dr. Fichtner has extensive experience in economic policy and analysis. Prior to his appointment, he was a senior economist with the Joint Economic Committee in the U.S. Congress. In addition, Dr. Fichtner has served as an adjunct assistant professor at the Georgetown Public Policy Institute at Georgetown University. He also has worked for the Internal Revenue Service and as an economic analysis consultant in the private sector. He holds a doctorate in Public Administration and Policy from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, a Master of Public Policy from Georgetown University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan.

I cannot comprehend how Dr. Gray is going to help reduce backlogs at Social Security. No matter how smart he is, he knows essentially nothing about Social Security's disability programs. I fear this appointment proceeds from the widely held belief among the naive that since the Social Security disability programs are a mess, those with experience in these programs must be incompetent and that the best thing to do is to bring in someone from the outside who has new ideas. However, there are no new ideas for Social Security's disability programs other than foolish unworkable ones such as former Commissioner Barnhart brought in. Gray is likely to resurrect old bad ideas or invent new bad ideas of his own. Social Security's disability programs are not badly run. Disability determination is inherently a messy business. Neither Gray nor anyone else can change this. No new ideas are needed; just enough personnel to make the current systems work. By the time Gray figures this out, if he ever does, Michael Astrue will be leaving office.

Stephen Goss Testifies On Capitol Hill

Stephen Goss, Social Security's Chief Actuary, testified on July 17 before the House Budget Committee on the desirability of funding for continuing disability reviews and SSI redeterminations. You can read his prepared remarks online. I do not understand why Goss would have been testifying. He does has more credibility with Congress than any other senior Social Security official. Goss has been around for many years and is well respected by both Democrats and Republicans. While funding this part of Social Security's operations is certainly desirable, one has to contrast this effort to make sure there is funding to cut off benefits, with the half-hearted efforts to get enough funding to put disabled people on benefits. Of course, Goss may have testified because everyone else was on vacation.

Social Security Perspectives Blog

I have established a separate Social Security Perspectives blog as a group blog for those who want to post about Social Security topics. So far, only one person has signed up as a blogger and there are only a few posts. If you are interested in posting on this group blog, please use the feedback button on the right side of the page to e-mail me. I can tell you that there are some people who are already checking Social Security Perspectives on a daily basis. Probably a few hundred readers will check out Social Security Perspectives as a result of this post.