Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) sent a letter today to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) urging adequate funding for the administrative expenses of the Social Security Administration (SSA) when preparing its fiscal year (FY) 2015 budget recommendation.
Automatic cuts to the federal budget, known as sequestration, have negatively impacted the SSA's ability to serve our aging U.S. population's demand for Social Security services.
"We have not succeeded in doing more with less," said Congresswoman Fudge. "The reality is that mandated reductions to the Social Security Administration's operating budget have resulted in less service for the 69 million Americans who rely on Social Security benefits, including 179,000 constituents of my district."
In her letter to OMB Director Sylvia Mathews Burwell, Congresswoman Fudge noted that due to budget cuts, in 2013 individuals had to wait twice as long for telephone service, 40 percent longer in a field office without an appointment and a month longer for a decision on their disability claims as compared to 2012.
The letter also addresses the increased value for taxpayers when Social Security has adequate resources to effectively administer its programs. For example, the SSA estimates that over a 10-year period, $9 in program savings will occur for every dollar spent on medical Continuing Disability Reviews, and the federal government will save $5 for every dollar spent on Supplemental Security Income redeterminations. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) recognized these savings when it scored the President's FY2014 budget request.
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