WASHINGTON, D.C. - Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Chairman Michael R. McNulty (D-NY) delivered the following opening statement during today’s subcommittee hearing on the performance of the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) hearing offices:
“The Subcommittee will come to order.
“Before addressing the topic of today’s hearing, I want to acknowledge a very sad loss for all of us. This will be our first Subcommittee hearing since the untimely passing of one of our valued Members, Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones.
“Stephanie was an active and concerned Member of this Subcommittee. The disability claims backlog, in particular, was an issue that she cared deeply about, and she worked tirelessly to address the problems affecting her constituents in Ohio. I know she would have very much wanted to be here with us today, and we will miss her greatly.
“Now I will turn to today’s hearing, which focuses on the performance of SSA’s hearing offices.
“SSA’s unprecedented backlog of disability claims has caused great suffering. The waits are longest for the more than 765,000 Americans who have requested a hearing on their case. These individuals now wait an average of 532 days - almost 18 months - and some wait much longer. I think we all agree that this is completely unacceptable.
“Addressing the backlog has been a top priority of this Subcommittee throughout the Congress. Our hearings have shown that the primary cause of the backlog is prolonged underfunding, which has resulted in too few staff to process claims, even as workloads have increased. Last year Congress began to reverse this trend by providing SSA with $150 million above the level of funding that the President had requested. We must continue to provide SSA with the funding needed to completely eliminate the backlog.
“But we must also ensure that these resources are managed effectively. SSA’s Inspector General (IG), who will testify today, recently issued a report on ALJ and Hearing Office Productivity. I was pleased to learn that from fiscal year 2005 to 2007, hearing office productivity increased by 13 percent. Judges last year issued an average of 474 decisions each.
“The report did find that some judges issued very few decisions. However, it turns out that most of these ALJs were in fact not assigned to adjudicate cases full time - for example, they had management responsibilities, or had retired during the year. The IG did find that a few ALJs - about 1 percent - were assigned full-time to adjudication duties but still had productivity rates that were far below average.
“At the same time, about 2 percent of ALJs issued dispositions at a rate so far above the national average that it could raise concerns about the quality of such decision-making. Both extremes are troubling.
“I understand that SSA has begun to address the performance of the extremely low-producing ALJs as well as those whose productivity is below average. I am pleased to hear that these efforts have already begun to produce results.
“We must be clear, however, that a small number of ALJs are not the cause of the backlog. The problem is far too large and complex to be laid at the door of a few individuals. We must avoid the temptation to allow concern about a handful of poor performers to distract us from addressing the primary issues: ensuring that SSA has the resources it needs, and that these are managed effectively.
“In addition, it is essential that we understand that SSA’s hearing process is a team effort. SSA’s ALJs must rely on staff to prepare the case before the hearing and to draft a detailed decision afterwards based on the judge’s instructions. The IG’s report states that lack of staff is a key factor in reduced productivity - a problem that has been identified repeatedly by numerous sources.
“I was particularly concerned to learn from the IG’s report that a number of ALJs said they regularly have fewer hearings scheduled than they had requested, due to insufficient staff to prepare the cases. With a backlog of more than 765,000, we absolutely cannot afford to have judges sitting idle because there are not enough staff.
“Finally, as we take a closer look at SSA’s management of its hearing offices and ALJs, it is critical that we remember the overriding importance of ensuring that ALJs can make decisions free from political interference. In passing the Administrative Procedures Act, Congress sought to strike a balance between protecting the right to a fair hearing with an impartial decision-maker, and providing a reasonable means of disciplining judges who exhibited unacceptable conduct. Changing that balance risks interfering with a disability claimant’s right to a fair hearing, and thereby hurting the very claimants we are trying to help.
“I know that SSA has undertaken a wide-ranging series of initiatives to improve hearing office performance, and am pleased that we are seeing some initial signs of success. Today we will learn more about the challenges SSA is facing.
“We will hear from many perspectives, including SSA, the Inspector General, the Social Security Advisory Board, those who work on the front lines in hearing offices, and disability claimants. I look forward to hearing their views on what can be done to improve the productivity of hearing offices without compromising claimants’ essential due process rights."
