“Focused On Social Security Because It Will Show They’re ’Serious'"

Netroots Nation, a conference of, shall we say, "the Democratic wing of the Democratic Party," is under way. The AFL-CIO Now Blog reports on one session:

One attendee of the Netroots Nation panel provocatively titled “Obama’s Social Security ‘Death Panel’” later told me he had gone into the panel dubious that there is any real threat to Social Security. “But I left mad,” he said, questioning how such an important part of America’s social fabric could be threatened. Yet as the panelists detailed, Social Security is most definitely under attack–and it’s an attack that could fundamentally alter how we understand the program. ...

Robert Borosage of Campaign for America’s Future contrasted the “frightened, timid and cautious leadership” of today with the “confident society” that, following World War II, responded to a much larger deficit (as percentage of GDP) by embarking on a series of spending programs that reshaped the economy and built the middle class.

Today, Borosage said, there is an emerging elite consensus that is “focused on Social Security because it will show they’re ’serious,’ even though it will have no effect on the deficit.” They portray Social Security as being in crisis, then claim that proposed cuts are “saving” the program. ...

Senate Subcommittee Schedules Markup Of Social Security Appropriation

The Subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee which has jurisdiction over Social Security's appropriation has scheduled a markup session for Tuesday, July 27. The corresponding House Committee has already marked up the bill. These are the first steps forward on a legislative journey that may take more than six months.

Astrue Sides With Union

A press release from Social Security:

Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today announced that the agency is submitting legislation to Congress that would prohibit states, without the Commissioner’s prior authorization, from reducing the number of state personnel who make disability determinations for Social Security or the hours they work below the amount the agency authorizes.

“It is long past time that states end these unconscionable furloughs and hiring freezes that needlessly harm citizens with disabilities,” Commissioner Astrue said. “States realize no fiscal savings whatsoever from these actions and this legislation would prevent needless delays in the disability determination process. I am grateful for the President’s support and urge Congress to move quickly to help us make this provision the law of the land.”

More than a dozen states have implemented furloughs and hiring freezes that affect the federally paid state workers who make disability determinations for Social Security. The state agencies that employ these workers in their disability determination service (DDS) components receive 100 percent of their funding from the Federal government. Accordingly, states do not save any money by imposing furloughs and hiring freezes on federally funded employees. Rather, they slow benefits to some of the most vulnerable citizens – for example, furloughs in California in fiscal year 2010 delayed payment of over $11 million in benefits to more than 40,000 citizens with disabilities. State-imposed furloughs and hiring freezes also reduce state income tax revenue and increase unemployment in the state.

“The members of Local 1000 have always believed that furloughing federally funded positions doesn’t make economic sense and that has been proven in California during these past 18 months that Governor Schwarzenegger has imposed furloughs on state employees,” Yvonne Walker, President of Service Employees International Union Local 1000 said. “I applaud Social Security for initiating legislation that would prevent further bad economic policy from going forward. This provision will not only help DDS workers, but the claimants who rely on the services our members provide.”

“We commend the Commissioner for his forceful and dedicated leadership in taking this bold action,” said Susan X. Smith, President of the National Association of Disability Examiners (NADE). “Our members are witness to the impact the current economic recession has had for disabled citizens and we are working hard to meet the dramatic increase in claims for benefits. These furloughs further compound the problems faced by disabled citizens by creating unnecessary delays in the processing of their claims. NADE urges quick action with regards to this legislative proposal.”

Hearing On Board of Trustees Nominations

The Senate Finance Committee has scheduled a hearing for July 29 on the following nominations to Social Security's Board of Trustees:

• Charles P. Blahous III, a Republican who has Republican ideas for Social Security "reform"
  
• Robert D. Reischauer, a Democrat who accepts that Social Security needs "reform"
  

OIG Report On Hearing Backlog Reduction

Senator Claire McCaskill asked Social Security"s Office of Inspector General (OIG) whether Social Security's 2007 "Plan to Eliminate the Hearings Backlog and Prevent its Recurrence" would achieve its goal. OIG took almost a year in getting back to Senator McCaskill with the answer, "We believe SSA will be able to achieve its FY 2013 pending hearings backlog goal if the Agency has reliably projected hearing level receipts, ALJ availability levels, ALJ productivity levels, and senior attorney adjudicator decisions through 2013." The answer begs the question of whether Social Security has accurately predicted future receipts as well as future productivity. However, the signs so far are encouraging.

Proposed Procedural Regs

From today's Federal Register:

We propose to revise the procedures for how claimants who request hearings before administrative law judges (ALJs) may seek further review of their fully favorable revised determinations based on prehearing case reviews or fully favorable attorney advisor decisions. We also propose to notify claimants who receive partially favorable determinations based on prehearing case reviews that an ALJ will still hold a hearing unless all parties to the hearing tell us in writing that we should dismiss the hearing requests.

Wonder How This Story Got In The Times

From the New York Times:

Social Security is paying roughly $50 million a year too much to people who collect state pensions but fail to declare that income, according to the system’s inspector general.

The overpayments go to retirees who have held state jobs and also worked in the private sector — teachers who worked on their summer breaks, for instance, or police officers who retired young enough to form their own companies.

If the workers do not declare their state pension income, they appear to be low lifetime earners in the Social Security system. ...

“This is somebody else’s money they’re playing with,” said Andrew G. Biggs, a former deputy commissioner for Social Security, now an economist with the American Enterprise Institute. “The people who are in the Social Security system who don’t get good state pensions, this is taking money away from them.”

It is odd that I do not remember this report from Social Security's Office of Inspector General nor can I find it online. Was this leaked to Biggs before it was officially released? While not insignificant, in Social Security terms, this is small potatoes.

Some States Look To Social Security

From the New York Times:

Lawmakers in Maine have found an unusual tool for tackling their state’s pension woes: Social Security.

Just as workers in the private sector participate in Social Security in addition to any pension plan at their companies, most states put their workers in the federal program along with providing a state pension.

Maine and a handful of others, however, have long been holdouts, relying solely on their state pension plans. In addition, most states have excluded some workers ...

Now, Maine legislators have prepared a detailed plan for shifting state employees into Social Security and are considering whether to adopt it. They acknowledge it will not solve their problem in the short term but see long-term advantages.

Some variation on this idea could ultimately appeal to other states grappling with their own exploding pension costs and, in extreme cases, quietly looking for help from Washington. ...