Why High Earners Think Social Security Cuts Aren't A Big Deal

From the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

38% Reversal Rate Too High

     Great Britain has introduced a new system to review the cases of those drawing something like U.S. Social Security disability benefits. The result has been lots of appeals. Can you believe it? Thirty-eight percent of those appeals have been successful. To quote a Labour Member of Parliament:

"The department's view that appeals against decisions are an inherent part of the process is unduly complacent," she said.

"The work capability assessment process hits the most vulnerable claimants hardest.

"The one-size-fits-all approach fails to account adequately for mental health conditions or those which are rare or fluctuating."

Franks-Ongoy Appointed To SSAB

     I missed this announcement from last month:

Montana's senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus today selected Bernadette Franks-Ongoy, a leading disability rights advocate in of [sic] Helena, to be a member of the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB)....

Franks-Ongoy is currently executive director of Disability Rights Montana where she advocates for equal rights protection for Montanans with disabilities. ...

A native of Hawaii, Franks-Ongoy graduated from Chaminade University in Honolulu and the University of San Diego School of Law. Her past legal experience includes serving as the Deputy Corporation Counsel for the City and County of Honolulu and the Attorney and Director of Programs for the Protection and Advocacy System in Hawaii.

Astrue Resigning Effective February 13

From: ^Commissioner Broadcast
Sent: Friday, February 08, 2013 11:52 AM
Subject: COMMISSIONER'S BROADCAST--02/08/13

A Message To All SSA And DDS Employees

Subject:  Farewell and Thank You

In a few hours, my family and I will be going to the White House to thank President Obama for his support of the agency and to submit my formal resignation, which will be effective at the close of business on Wednesday, February 13.

The job of Commissioner is a huge responsibility and a huge opportunity.  Thanks to all of you who helped me shoulder that responsibility and worked with me to improve the lives of our fellow Americans.  I leave knowing the agency is in your good hands.

I've enjoyed meeting so many of you and really appreciate the emails you've sent to let me see our agency through your eyes.  Your many recent notes of well wishes have humbled and warmed me.  I hope that you'll keep talking with future Commissioners who will surely benefit from that engagement as I have.

You are the heart of our agency and I thank you for allowing me to lead you.  Please know that I'll be rooting for you from the sidelines.

God Bless.

Michael J. Astrue

Commissioner

OPM Says ALJ Register To Open Soon

     The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued an announcement yesterday saying that it will soon open a new examination for Administrative Law Judges (ALJs). They did not say when this will happen or how long the examination will be open. OPM's use of the term "examination" is misleading since there is no examination in the sense that one might take a calculus exam in college. The ALJ examination is primarily a review of applications submitted by job candidates. 

     In the past, OPM has at times only accepted ALJ applications for ridiculously short periods of time -- like 24 hours. This has been a huge advantage for those who work at Social Security where word spreads quickly. There have been reports of attorneys at Social Security's Office of General Counsel flying out the doors after word spread that OPM was taking ALJ applications. Attorneys rushed home to file their applications before the register closed.

     I'm not sure why OPM is doing this. I don't see how Social Security or any other agency is going to be hiring ALJs in the near future given Republican efforts to prevent adequate funding for government operations. Unless something changes soon, we're more likely to see partial furloughs of Social Security ALJs than new Social Security ALJs being hired.

Bill Bradley On Who Should Be Next Social Security Commissioner

     The Baltimore Sun is running an op ed piece by Bill Bradley, the former N.J. Senator (and University of Maryland basketball player) on the desiderata for a new Social Security Commissioner. No candidate's name is mentioned but the piece seems slanted towards James Roosevelt.

     Correction: I was confusing Bradley with Tom McMillan, who was a Congressman from Maryland. Bradley played his college ball at Princeton.

Obama Social Security Number Craziness Continues

     If you thought the birther litigation about President Obama's allegedly stolen Social Security number was over after the President decisively won a second term, you'd be wrong. I don't think the completion of Obama's second term will stop this nuttiness. A court in the state of Washington has recently fined one of the birthers almost $13,000 for frivolous litigation that alleged that the President has a phony Social Security number.

You Want An Example Of Government Waste?

     I didn't ask for it but someone at the Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB) was kind enough to put me on the mailing list for printed copies of their reports. I just got the printed copy of  Filing for Social Security Disability Benefits: What Impact Does Professional Representation Have on the Process at the Initial Application Level. It's been available online for about three months. Forget the negligible merits of the report. Let's focus on the printing of the report. It's printed on paper that is almost as stiff and slick as the stock my firm uses for our business cards. I don't think I've ever seen a magazine printed on stock this thick. This makes the report so stiff it's a little difficult to even read it. It's slick paper too, slicker than my firm's business cards which are themselves printed on coated stock. At least the report isn't in full color but it does use two colors (black and brown). Even two color printing costs money. Printing like this takes time. That's why it took three months to print it. No one would think of printing such an ephemeral document in this way if they had any concern with cost. Don't blame the Social Security Administration. The SSAB has its own appropriation controlled by its deficit-hating Republican majority.