Letter to the Honorable John Boehner, Speaker of the US House of Representatives - Protect the Operating Budget of the Social Security Administration

Letter

Today 125 members of the House Democratic Caucus sent a letter to Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) urging him to restore reasonable funding levels to the Social Security Administration (SSA) in the House Republican 2011 budget to avoid shutting down the agency for the equivalent of a month this year. The letter was spearheaded by Reps. Sander M. Levin (D-MI), Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Committee, Xavier Becerra (D-CA), Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee and Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), Ranking Member of the Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies.

Ranking Member Levin: "The Republican proposal to recklessly slash funding to the Social Security Administration jeopardizes its ability to get vital benefits into the hands of seniors and people with disabilities and provide assistance to the public. It is time for Republicans to abandon this irresponsible plan."

Ranking Member Becerra: "The facts are the facts. The Republican job-destroying spending bill will shut down Social Security offices for up to a month this year. That was the warning the Social Security Administration recently communicated to Congress. And if local Social Security offices are closed for business, nearly 700,000 new retirees, widows, disabled workers and children will be put in a backlog as phones go unanswered and claims go unprocessed.

Today we say to Speaker Boehner, restore funding in your budget for the Social Security Administration and cease-and-desist from this plan that would shut it down."

Ranking Member DeLauro: "Social Security ties generations together, providing economic security to millions of American seniors who otherwise might not be able to afford their daily expenses. And yet, it will be one of the first casualties of the Republican's spending bill. The $1.7 billion drop in funding to the Social Security Administration could cause a shutdown of four weeks, leaving current beneficiaries without help should they need it, new retirees without benefits, our current workforce without the knowledge that their wages are being accounted for, and even newborn children without Social Security numbers. Americans of all ages depend on Social Security, and we must stand up to defend it against these reckless Republican cuts."

In a letter to employees last month, SSA cautioned that it may have to furlough workers if cuts to its budget are enacted into law. In their Continuing Resolution, Republicans have proposed cutting SSA's administrative funding by more than 9 percent in 2011, from $11.8 billion in 2010 to $10.7 billion this year. In addition, the Republican proposal provides for $1.7 billion less than SSA needs to keep pace with inflation and rising workloads.

The Honorable John Boehner
Speaker, U.S. House pf Representatives
H-232, The Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Speaker Boehner:

WE are writing to urge that in the upcoming negotiations for a budget bill for Fiscal Year 2011. you as Speaker move the House in the direction of protecting the essential operating budget of the Social Security Administration (SSA). H.R.1, the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations Act, previously passed by the House, cut SSA's operating budget by %1.7 billion below the level needed to provide basic service to the public. SSA estimates that a cut of that magnitude could force it to shut down for up to four weeks. A shutdown of that length would delay SSA's processing of benefit applications for nearly 700,000 new retirees, widows, disabled workers, and children; add to the already unacceptable number of unprocessed disability appeals hearings; and prevent SSA from answering nearly 8 million phone calls from current and future beneficiaries. Social Security didn't cause the current deficits and the services provided by SSA and indispensable.

For nearly 54 million Americans, Social Security is the bedrock of economic security. The benefits are modest, average about $14,000 a year. But for six out of ten recipients, that is more than half of their income. Current Social Security beneficiaries depend on SSA to answer their questions, correct errors in their checks, and make sure their money is sent to the right bank account. The 160 million workers who are paying into Social Security depend on SSA to keep their wage records updated and to process their applications for benefits promptly when they become eligible. Millions of families depend on SSA to issue Social Security numbers to their new babies so that they, too, can receive he family protections provided by Social Security.

In addition to the impact on current and future beneficiaries, the cuts in H.R. 1 would actually cost taxpayers money by failing to fully fund SSA's fight against waste, fraud, and abuse. Although only a very small percentage of beneficiaries are receiving benefits in error or in the wrong amounts, the savings from correcting those overpayments are substantial- a return on investment of $7 to $10 for every dollar we invest. The cuts in H.R. 1 alone would prevent SSA from recovering between $196 million and $280 million in overpayments - money that belongs to the Social Security trust fund and the workers who contribute to it.

Americans of all ages are counting on us to stand up for Social Security and not undermine its ability to pay promised benefits and serve the public,. We ask you join us in taking a firm stand on protecting SSA's ability to provide critical services to Americans.

Sincerely,

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