Crossing The 70,000 Threshold

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has posted the year end figures for the number of employees at Social Security. Here they are with earlier numbers for comparison purposes.

• December 2010 70,270
• June 2010 69,600
  
• March 2010 66,863
  
• December 2009 67,486
  
• September 2009 67,632
  
• June 2009 66,614
  
• March 2009 63,229
  
• December 2008 63,733
  
• September 2008 63,990
  
• September 2007 62,407
• September 2006 63,647
• September 2005 66,147
• September 2004 65,258
• September 2003 64,903
• September 2002 64,648
• September 2001 65,377
• September 2000 64,521
• September 1999 63,957
• September 1998 65,629

By the way, before anyone claims that the increase in the number of employees at Social Security shows that there is some fat that can be cut, let me just remind everyone that Social Security's workload has been increasing rapidly because of the aging of the baby boomer generation.

What Happens At Social Security In The Event Of A Prolonged Government Shutdown?

Early this morning, the House of Representatives passed a bill to fund government operations for the remainder of the fiscal year. The bill contains massive spending cuts that would cripple the Social Security Administration and many other agencies. It also contains myriad provisions that Democrats find unacceptable, such as a prohibition on use of funds to implement health care reform. Quick agreement with the Senate and the President on a compromise seems unlikely. A government shutdown looms if there is no agreement by March 4.

The most recent time there was a government shutdown, in 1995, most Social Security employees were furloughed but then quickly called back to work on an emergency basis. Social Security employees should not take too much comfort from this history. It is uncertain how many Social Security employees would remain on their jobs if there is a shutdown this year.

There is another issue. March 10 is a payday for federal employees. Even if most Social Security employees stay on their jobs, will they receive a paycheck on March 10 if the impasse is continuing? I am not sure but I think the answer is "yes" for that paycheck since I believe it is for work performed before March 4 but I think that the answer would be "no" for the next payday of March 24 unless Social Security can use funds previously appropriated for construction of a new National Computer Center.

Is it conceivable that this budget impasse would result in a government shutdown that would extend three weeks? I am afraid so.

An extended impasse may also make it impossible for Social Security to pay contractors such as security guard companies. How long will they be able to continue supplying vital services to Social Security without being paid?

House Votes To Suspend EAJA

The House of Representatives has voted to suspend payments of attorney fees under the Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) for six months. EAJA fees are available where the litigation involves government action that is not "substantially justified." In terms of numbers of cases if not dolar amount, Social Security pays more EAJA fees than all other government agencies combined. This is part of the appropriations bill passed early this morning. This is one of many issues presented by this bill which must be resolved.

NADE Newsletter

The National Association of Disability Examiners (NADE), an organization of the personnel who make disability determinations for Social Security at the initial and reconsideration levels, has posted its Winter 2011 newsletter.

Social Security Bulletin Released

Social Security has released the February 2011 edition of the Social Security Bulletin, the agency's scholarly publication.

CBS Story On Disability Benefits

From CBS:

It's always good to see federal employees hard at work. That is, unless they're collecting a check for being totally disabled at the same time. That's fraud. In one case, the double-dipper is a Transportation Security Administration screener in California, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports.

Federal disability -- about $170 billion per year -- is intended for those with medical conditions so severe they can't work at any job. Today, so many people claim to fit that definition, 17.9 million people are getting checks. ...

The head of Social Security, Michael Astrue, wouldn't agree to an interview. Instead of explaining how he's fighting fraud, he criticized the GAO. Last year, he told Congress that the screening tool that detects when someone's gone back to work generates too much information.

"That we can't possibly follow up on 'the leads' that would come from that in any- certainly not in my professional lifetime in the agency," Astrue said on Capitol Hill Aug. 4, 2010.

According to Social Security there are actually 13.3 million people on Social Security disability benefits not 17.9 million and the yearly benefit total is about $105 billion not $170 billion.

The Spit May Be About To Hit The Fan

From The Hill:

House Democrats worried that a bipartisan group of six senators is making progress toward putting the recommendations of President Obama’s debt commission into legislation delivered a message Thursday: Take Social Security out of the mix.

“Divorce this conversation about deficit reduction from Social Security and making it a better program!” Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) told a roomful of Social Security advocates on Capitol Hill on Thursday

Becerra, the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Social Security subcommittee, served on the debt commission but voted against its recommendations. He said the senators’ attempts to include Social Security in their budget fix is the wrong way to go. ...

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.), a member of the group, has said Social Security reform must be addressed in the package or it will be ignored.

Coburn, Senate Budget Committee Chairman Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), Assistant Majority Leader Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sens. Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.) hope to produce a plan within weeks and are aiming to have a draft bill ready at least by the time the nation’s debt ceiling is reached this spring so it can be paired with that vote, sources have said.

AP Picks Up On Social Security Furlough Danger

The Associated Press is picking up on the story of possible furloughs at Social Security.