Proposed Final Regs Fail To Clear OMB In Time To Come Into Effect Before Change Of Administration

     The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has not yet acted on two packets of proposed final regulations submitted by the Social Security Administration. One packet was on Revisions to Rules of Conduct and Standards of Responsibility for Appointed Representatives and the other on Revisions to Rules Regarding the Evaluation of Medical Evidence. Since the Administrative Procedure Act requires a 30 day waiting period before new regulations take effect it's now too late for these proposed regulations to become final before President Obama leaves office. This doesn't mean that these proposed final regulations are dead. The incoming administration will almost certainly put any proposed final regulations pending at OMB or which have been approved but not come into effect through a new review before they can become final. The review of these regulations may not even start until there's a new Commissioner of Social Security. The regulations could be modified or withdrawn as a result of the review.

Student Loan Offset Problems

     The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a 90 page report on the offsets applied to Social Security benefits due to unpaid student loans. Even though the GAO seems to me to try to downplay the problem, it's still clear that it's real and serious. Many people are being thrown into poverty by the offsets as shown by the chart below, even though many of the student loans went to pay for nearly worthless online education.

Click on chart to view full size

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas?

Merry Christmas

Gun Control Regs Now Official

     Social Security is publishing the new regulations that will permit the agency to report claimants with representative payees to the database used to screen gun purchasers. Those with representative payees won’t be allowed to buy guns. This will come into effect before inauguration day. However, Trump can refuse to implement the new regulations. I wonder, though, whether the initial data transfer can be accomplished before inauguration day. Can it be easily removed from the gun control database once it gets in there? 

     By the way, whenever I post about this subject, there are always comments about Social Security appointing representative payees for people who have little or no problem handing money. Balderdash. I think most, if not all, of these comments are coming from paid shills. Don't be naive. There is a lot of right wing money being used to try to affect the political discourse in subtle ways. Don't get misled.

Additional Money For Hearing Backlog

     From the continuing resolution funding the federal government until April:

The fifth provision under the heading ‘Social Security Administration—Limitation on Administrative Expenses’ in division H of Public Law 114–113 shall be applied during the period covered by this Act by substituting ‘shall be used for activities to address the hearing backlog within the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review’ for ‘shall be for necessary expenses for the renovation and modernization of the Arthur J. Altmeyer Building’.

     To explain, P.L. 114-113 was the appropriations bill funding Social Security for the now ended fiscal year (FY) 2016. At the behest of former Senator Mikulski that bill contained $150 million for renovating Social Security's Altmeyer Building. Social Security had not asked for this and was apparently dismayed to have received it instead of a higher operating appropriation. I thought the amount was almost certainly excessive for the project. I'm pretty sure the renovation hasn't started so almost all of the $150 million should still be available. Social Security can now use that money to address the hearing backlog. It might have been better if the money could be used to address all backlogs at the agency but this is still good news.
     I think we should also take this as a sign that Republicans in Congress have some level of concern that the GOP will now be blamed for backlogs at Social Security.