Service Reductions In Michigan

 From the Midland, MI Daily News:

Social Security has cut the number of monthly visitations to the Midland County Contact Station in half.

Midland residents will only be able to meet with a Social Security Administration representative twice a month on the second and fourth Tuesdays ...

The move was made April 19, according to Cynthia Edwards, Social Security public affairs specialist in Flint.

“With more people utilizing Social Security online and our automated telephone services, and visiting the local Social Security offices in both Saginaw and Bay City, there have been fewer visitors to the Midland contact station,” said Edwards, explaining the reduction. “And due to the options provided to the public and the reduction in Midland visitors, the decision to cut back in Midland was made.” ...

Edwards said Midland is not the only city effected by the current budget situation. There have been other Social Security offices in Michigan that have reduced their hours of operation or the days of service to their contact stations.

“It is anticipated this will have little impact on the Midland community,” Edwards said.

 Maybe there's been a decrease in demand in Midland but I'm pretty sure the real reason for this cut was lack of an adequate operating  budget at Social Security. And that crack about "little impact"! I doubt that the good citizens of Midland appreciate that.

Congressional District Statistics

Social Security has released its annual compilation of statistics broken down by Congressional District. You can see, for instance, that Jim Jordan, the Chairman of the Republican Study Committee, which proposed to end Supplemental Security Income (SSI), has 12,872 SSI recipients in his District.

A Couple Of Social Security Factoids

From the York, Nebraska News-Times:

Q: How much has Social Security paid out since it started?
A: From 1937 (when the first payments were made) through 2009, the Social Security program has expended $11.3 trillion.

Q: How much has Social Security taken in taxes and other income since it started?
A: From 1937 (when taxes were first collected) through 2009, the Social Security program has received $13.8 trillion in income.

Most Popular Baby Names

 A press release from Social Security:

Jacob and Isabella are king and queen of the crib for another year.  This is the twelfth year in a row on our list for Jacob and the second for Isabella, although 2010 has a new number two for girls, Sophia.  The only new name to crawl into the top 10 on either list this year is Aiden, which replaces Joshua on the boys’ side. 

For all the top baby names of 2010, go to Social Security’s website www.socialsecurity.gov.  Here are the top 10 boys and girls names for 2010:

Boys:	1) Jacob	Girls:	1) Isabella
	2) Ethan		2) Sophia
	3) Michael		3) Emma
	4) Jayden		4) Olivia
	5) William		5) Ava
	6) Alexander		6) Emily
	7) Noah		7) Abigail
	8) Daniel		8) Madison
	9) Aiden		9) Chloe
	10) Anthony		10) Mia

Effects Of Budget Cuts

I am hearing that there is a near complete hiring freeze across Social Security for the remainder of the fiscal year but some limited overtime. There may be some limited hiring of Administrative Law Judges to replace those leaving.

If you are a Social Security employee, what are you hearing and seeing? What effects are you seeing where you are? What do you expect for the future?

New Ways To View Social Security News

Blogger is now offering five "dynamic views" for its public blogs, such as Social Security News. I don't quite see the point but maybe you will.

• Flipcard
• Mosaic
• Sidebar
• Snapshot
• Timeslide

By the way, I get asked from time to time why I don't allow blog feeds. The answer is that I do. I know it's possible because I've done it. If you have problems with the blog feed, you need to talk with Blogger, not me.

Big Time Fraud Alleged

From the Minneapolis Star-Tribune:

A North Oaks couple who moved here in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina have wrongfully collected more than $430,000 in medical and disability benefits for their children since 2006, according to an affidavit filed in federal court.

James and Cynthia Hood have claimed those benefits -- meant for people with limited financial resources -- despite having a combined retirement portfolio of more than $1 million, more than a dozen bank accounts with a total of nearly $1 million in cash and two homes worth more than $1 million combined. Special Agent Jane Lewis, an investigator for the Social Security Administration, said in an affidavit that the Hoods' extensive assets would have made them ineligible for such aid.

OIDAP Meeting

Social Security's Occupational Information Development Advisory Panel (OIDAP) is holding a meeting today and tomorrow. On the schedule today and tomorrow are several speakers from the Department of Labor and the U.S. Census who will be describing how they have gone about collecting occupational information. The first day will end with this presentation:

Occupational/Medical/Vocational—Initial Claims Review Final Results
Deborah Harkin, Social Insurance Specialist
Office of Vocational Resources Development

Mark Trapani, Social Science Research Analyst
Office of Vocational Resources Development

I wonder what that is.

You can read the entire "public" agenda below.

OIDAP Public Agenda--May 2011