Hill: ‘Social Security Administration Waste Costs Arkansans, Americans $20 billion’
Washington,
May 31, 2018
Tags:
Accountability
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman French Hill (R-AR) named the Social Security Administration (SSA) as the latest winner of the Golden Fleece award for overpaying Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries and for permanently waiving overpayment debt. In the letter to the Social Security Administration’s Acting Commissioner Nancy Berryhill, Congressman Hill wrote: May 31, 2018 The Honorable Nancy Berryhill Acting Commissioner Social Security Administration 6401 Security Blvd Baltimore, MD 21235-0001 Dear Commissioner Berryhill: I write to inform you that the Social Security Administration (SSA) is being awarded this month’s Golden Fleece Award for overpaying Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries and for permanently waiving overpayment debt. According to a 2016 Government Accountability Office (GAO) report to Congress, SSA overpaid beneficiaries almost $20 billion and permanently waived over $2.4 billion in overpayment debt between fiscal years 2005 and 2014.[1] The United States is currently more than $20 trillion in debt, and our government agencies must be cognizant of this while spending taxpayer dollars. In their most recent annual report to Congress, GAO reported that this area of concern has not yet been addressed by SSA, stating “To help prevent the loss of billions of dollars, SSA should take steps to prevent overpayments to beneficiaries of the Disability Insurance program and improper waivers of beneficiaries’ overpayment of debt.”[2] I request that you provide responses to the following questions:
2. Has SSA permanently waived overpayment debt since FY2014, and, if so, what is the total of the overpayment debt that has been permanently waived? Our federal agencies must be good stewards of our federal tax dollars, and I am committed to ensuring effective practices at our nation’s federal agencies. Should you require any additional authority from Congress to address these concerns, I urge you to notify Congress as soon as possible. I thank you for your consideration and look forward to working with you to address this important issue. Sincerely, French Hill Member of Congress ________________________________ [1] U.S. Government Accountability Office. GAO-16-375SP. 2016 Annual Report: Additional Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Other Financial Benefits. April 2016. [2] U.S. Government Accountability Office. GAO-18-371SP. 2018 Annual Report: Additional Opportunities to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve Other Financial Benefits. April 2018. |
