Closing Offices

From a press release from Representative Michael Arcuri of Utica, NY:

“During a recent meeting with high-level SSA officials it was made clear to me that without additional administrative funding, the agency would be forced to close field offices around the country”

Arcuri is concerned about the closure of the Auburn, NY Social Security field office. Maybe a lot of Congressmen ought to share Arcuri's concern, because there may be many more field offices threatened with closure.

Memphis Commercial Appeal On Social Security Staff Shortages

The Memphis Commercial Appeal (a newspaper) has a good opinion column on Social Security's staff shortages. Here are some excerpts:

...a problem of immediate interest to thousands of Mid-Southerners has received no attention -- namely, the horrendous delays for those seeking disability benefits. Because of the years it is currently taking to obtain their benefits, it is the Social Security Administration (SSA) that is itself forcing the Americans who depend upon it into insolvency. ...

This means that, in Memphis, from the day that the average claimant files until the day he or she receives a favorable decision from a judge, he or she will have waited for more than two years. Shockingly, this processing time represents one of the most expedient times in the country, with other cities such as Atlanta experiencing an average delay of some four years.

These appalling conditions are the direct result of insufficient funds being allocated to the Social Security Administration. During the past seven years, the president has never requested the full budget recommended by the Social Security commissioner, and Congress has never fully funded the budget requested by the president. The SSA has been forced to work under a hiring freeze that has decimated the support staff that is the backbone of this system. Nationally, the number of support staff in the hearings offices has decreased by 25 percent, representing a loss of approximately 4,000 staff positions.

Reaction To Vote On Defunding Biggs

Bloggers are reacting to the vote in the House of Representatives to prohibit any money being spent to pay the salary of Andrew Biggs, a proponent of privatizing Social Security, who was given a recess appointment as Deputy Commissioner of Social Security.

Michael Tanner of the Cato Institute is appalled by the "partisan idiocy" in Congress. Matthew Yglesias of The Atlantic Online labels the vote "excellent news." The Corner blog at the National Review called the vote a "stunt." Donald Luskin on Poor and Stupid cannot understand why being an advocate for privatizing Social Security should disqualify Biggs. Dave Budge calls it "crap" and a "dangerous precedent."

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."