Social Security: 4 Positive Changes That Could Come With Latest Hierarchy Changes in 2024
Few leadership positions in the U.S. government come with as many challenges as Commissioner of the Social Security Administration, the massive retirement benefits agency that has run into massive headaches in recent years. Martin O’Malley, who took over as commissioner last week, is no doubt aware of the task at hand. He will lead a program that has been rocked by a laundry list of crises, including staff shortages, funding problems that will soon get worse, customer service issues and an overpayment scandal.
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As commissioner, O’Malley will be responsible for administering the Social Security retirement, disability and survivors insurance programs that pay more than $1.4 trillion a year in benefits to about 66 million beneficiaries, according to a Dec. 20 press release. He’ll also lead the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program that provides cash assistance to roughly 7.5 million people with limited income and resources. The SSA has a workforce of 61,000 employees and 1,500 facilities across the country and around the world.
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That’s a lot of responsibility — something O’Malley himself readily acknowledges.
“Social Security is the most far-reaching and important act of social and economic justice that the people of the United States have ever enacted,” he said in a statement. “For tens of millions of Americans across our country, Social Security is the difference between living with dignity or living in poverty.”
O’Malley takes the helm from former SSA Acting Commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi, who has faced blowback from Social Security recipients and lawmakers for the agency’s various stumbles. Social Security advocates welcome O’Malley’s appointment because it marks a major change for the SSA.
Nancy Altman, president of Social Security Works, noted in a recent column for The Hill that O’Malley’s confirmation as commissioner marks the first time in more than 25 years that the U.S. Senate has confirmed a Social Security commissioner nominated by a Democratic president. Commissioners nominated by Democratic presidents have headed the SSA in only eight of the past 40 years.
The hope is that O’Malley, former governor of Maryland, will bolster a program that faces a major funding shortfall in about a decade, along with plenty of other problems. Here are four ways O’Malley can help right the ship in 2024.
More Funding
Over the last 13 years, Congress has trimmed the SSA’s budget by 17% even as the number of Social Security beneficiaries increased by 22%, according to Altman. The program’s Old Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund is expected to run out of money around 2033, which means Social Security will have to be funded solely through payroll taxes — and those currently cover only 77% of benefits. One positive impact O’Malley can have is to successfully advocate for more funding.
Better Customer Service
One result of the SSA’s lack of funding is that its staffing has fallen to the lowest level in a quarter-century. Beneficiaries face long wait times when they call the Social Security customer service number and visit field offices. Many offices have closed their doors. And as Altman noted, people with disabilities often must wait a year or more for an eligibility hearing to receive benefits. Meanwhile, morale among employees is at an all-time low. One of the most positive impacts O’Malley can make is to hire more people and provide better training and resources to improve customer service.
Improved Data
In a separate column for The Hill, economist and retired federal employee David Weaver noted that O’Malley “has become something of a data guru in the years since leaving elective office.” This could prove to be a very useful skill while leading an agency that Weaver said is filled with “junk data” when it comes to making disability decisions.
“Solving this problem will create a virtuous cycle, generating more support from Congress, agency staff, and the public,” Weaver wrote.
Fixing the Overpayment Crisis
Improved data and customer service could help the SSA avoid the kinds of issues that caused it to distribute tens of billions of dollars in overpayments to beneficiaries that the agency is now scrambling to collect. As of Oct. 1, 2023, the SSA had an uncollected balance of $23 billion in overpayments. Some recipients are being asked to repay thousands of dollars they were overpaid through no fault of their own. Implementing systems that can help avoid these mistakes would have a huge positive impact.
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