Trump Wants To End FICA?

     From the Associated Press:

President Donald Trump has scrapped the tax plan he campaigned on and is going back to the drawing board in a search for Republican consensus behind legislation to overhaul the U.S. tax system. ... 

One circulating this past week would change the House Republican plan to eliminate much of the payroll tax and cut corporate tax rates. This would require a new dedicated funding source for Social Security. ... 

This approach would give a worker earning $60,000 a year an additional $3,720 in take-home pay, a possible win that lawmakers could highlight back in their districts even though it would involve changing the funding mechanism for Social Security, according to the lobbyist, who asked for anonymity to discuss the proposal without disrupting early negotiations. ... 

Write About What You Know

     A Washington Post editorial is calling for "reform" of Social Security disability benefits. I don't know how to characterize the editorial other than to say they thing "something" must be done. That "something" must encourage disabled people to work. The Post seems unfamiliar with the extensive work incentives that already exist in the Social Security Disability programs. It's a really incoherent editorial.

Why Isn't The President's Photo Posted In Federal Offices?

     A newspaper in Wilmington, NC is asking why Donald Trump's picture isn't posted in federal offices, including Social Security, in that city. Is it some dark plot by Democrats? What I'm hearing is that it's not just Wilmington. The photos haven't yet been distributed. It hasn't been that long since Inauguration Day.

     By the way, whether it's a Democrat or a Republican in the White House, I don't see the point of posting the President's photo in federal offices. At best, it's a needless expense.

NADE Newsletter

     The National Association of Disability Examiners (NADE), an organization of the personnel who make initial and reconsideration determinations on disability claims for Social Security, has issued its Spring 2017 newsletter.

Wait Until Trump Hears About This -- Social Security Helping Foreigners Work In U.S.

     From the Cape Cod Times:

The Social Security Administration will have satellite locations set up in Orleans and Provincetown starting Wednesday to help J-1 and H-2B seasonal workers finalize their applications before they begin working at local businesses. ...   

“Seasonal workers must obtain a Social Security number before working in the United States, and the Cape Cod Chamber (of Commerce) has worked on behalf of its member businesses to implement special remote locations to assist with their overall business operations and the time it takes to travel to Hyannis to fulfill Social Security requirements,” a statement from the chamber says.

Three Pinocchios For OMB Director Who Said Social Security Disability Is "Very Wasteful"

     The Washington Post gives Mick Mulvaney, the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), three Pinocchios for his statement that Social Security disability is "very wasteful."

ODAR Numbers

     Below is the Workload and Performance Summary for Social Security's Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR) for the month ending February 24, 2017. Click on it to view it full size. The National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR) published this in its newsletter, which isn't available online.
     I noticed a number of things:

• New appeals are declining
• Overtime went up greatly starting in December
• Backlogs are going up
• Senior attorney decisions are minimal (see the footnote of the summary)

Nine Year Sentence For Stealing Social Security Checks

     From the Tampa Bay Times:

A former U.S. Postal Service mail handler was ordered to serve nine years in prison Wednesday for stealing close to $3 million in Social Security checks from a St. Petersburg mail-processing facility.

Stacy Darnell Mitchell, 48, once worked at the St. Petersburg Processing and Distribution Facility, where over the course of several months in 2012, he stole more than 3,000 checks....