The Honorable Kay Granger
Chair
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Rosa DeLauro
Ranking Member
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Patty Murray                                          
Chair
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Susan Collins
Vice Chair
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Tammy Baldwin
Chair
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Shelley Moore Capito
Ranking Member
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
United States Senate
Washington, D.C. 20510

The Honorable Robert Aderholt
Chair
Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies
Committee on Appropriations
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Chairs Granger, Murray, Baldwin and Aderholt and Ranking Members DeLauro, Collins, and Capito:

On behalf of the millions of members and supporters of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, I am writing to ask that as you develop legislation – particularly in the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations bill – that funds the federal government for fiscal year (FY) 2024 you prioritize funding for vitally important programs that America’s seniors depend on to meet the needs of their daily lives. Members of the National Committee come from all walks of life and every political persuasion. What unites them is their passion for protecting and strengthening Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and the other programs that are so vitally important to older Americans.

With 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 every day – and the number of seniors projected to double by 2050 – the National Committee hopes that the decisions you make about funding priorities are mindful of the need to safeguard our older Americans now and into the future. What follows are our recommendations regarding funding for these programs for FY 2024.

 Social Security

Social Security represents the foundation of income security for the American people.  Without a solid foundation, other programs designed to protect workers and their families from the ravages of death, disability and old age simply will not be able to adequately fulfill their missions.  The activities of the Social Security Administration (SSA) are at the heart of the administration of the Social Security program.  Congressional leaders of both parties have made a commitment to the American people that Social Security and Medicare will not be cut as part of debt limit and budget deliberations.  This commitment is hollow if families cannot access the benefits they have earned – access that becomes increasingly difficult if SSA funding is shortchanged as part of the FY 2024 appropriations process.  Adequate funding for SSA is vitally important to your constituents and to our millions of members and supporters across the country who either are receiving Social Security or expect to do so in the future, both to ensure that they receive the benefits they have earned and to maintain the public’s support for this essential program.

For this reason, we strongly urge you to fund SSA’s administrative budget to no less than the President’s request of $15.5 billion for FY 2024.  The National Committee applauds the Administration’s budget proposal as a solid first step toward rebuilding the Agency’s ability to provide adequate services to the American people, though we feel compelled to point out the request is well below the $16.5 billion request submitted by Acting Commissioner Dr. Kilolo Kijakazi to the Office of Management and Budget.  Our preference would be for Congress to provide the level of funding the Agency itself believes it will need to provide an adequate level of service to the American people. However, we understand the fiscal constraints Congress faces, especially as the appropriations bill funding the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services traditionally reflects the many difficult choices that must be made to allocate limited resources.  We at the National Committee share this challenge, as we also support numerous programs vital to seniors and their families.

The Social Security Administration has suffered from a serious erosion of funding over the years, which is especially frustrating when one considers that the source of funding for SSA’s operations comes from the Social Security Trust Funds themselves, not general revenue – and that contributions from American workers have built up a $2.8 trillion surplus in these accounts, in addition to about $1 trillion received in Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) contributions each year.  Workers who make their contributions to Social Security with every paycheck have the right to expect that a sufficient portion of their contributions will be dedicated to SSA’s operations, thus ensuring they will receive the customer service they expect and deserve.  As the Agency’s administrative costs remain below 1 percent, ensuring adequate funding is a fiscally responsible investment.  Regrettably, the opposite has been the case.  Since 2010, SSA’s operating budget has declined by about 16 percent adjusted for inflation, while the number of beneficiaries has risen by 22 percent, primarily as a result of the growth in new retirees as the baby boom generation reached retirement age.

The results of this underfunding have been increasingly apparent and have only been exacerbated by the lingering impacts of the pandemic.  The problems with SSA’s outdated and understaffed phone systems are well-known to the public as callers to the Agency receive busy signals much of the time, are kept on hold for hours and, when they do manage to get through, regularly find that their calls are dropped in mid-conversation.  In addition to technical issues with the Agency’s conversion to a modern telephone system, the fact that staffing for the toll-free phone numbers has declined even as call volume has grown over the years has clearly been a contributing factor.  Inadequate funding has led to staffing shortages agency-wide.  SSA ended FY 2022 with the lowest staffing level in over 25 years, especially in the Agency’s field offices, teleservice centers, processing centers, and state Disability Determination Services (DDS).  Recruiting new employees is becoming increasingly challenging, and the lack of adequate training has resulted in a noticeable reduction in the accuracy of answers callers receive to technical inquiries they submit to SSA when they are finally able to speak to staff.  Finally, the backlogs that have developed in both the Disability Determination Services and the Offices of Hearings Operations are persistent and growing, resulting in thousands of applicants dying while waiting for their appeals to receive a hearing.

While we welcome the additional $785 million in SSA funding that Congress provided in FY 2023, we note that this was barely sufficient to keep up with fixed-cost increases, staffing losses, and increased workloads.  If the President’s budget request is approved by Congress, SSA intends to continue ongoing efforts to re-build its workforce, thus allowing SSA to process increasing numbers of disability claims, reduce wait times on the national toll-free number and begin to address the pending backlogs.

Conversely, should Congress opt to cap FY 2024 discretionary spending at the FY 2022 enacted level, this would result in approximately a six percent cut in funding from the FY 2023 enacted level.  This cut would significantly affect SSA’s ability to serve the public and undermine the Agency’s core mission – producing longer wait times for benefits and to reach SSA representatives, as well as reduced access to in-person services. According to SSA, it would be forced to close field offices and shorten hours open to the public, institute a hiring freeze (resulting in a reduction of over 5,000 employees), furlough staff for 4 weeks and lay off about 6,000 employees, and eliminate overtime pay.  All of these actions would result in a significant increase in wait times and a serious deterioration in services.

Cuts deeper than six percent would be catastrophic for the Agency and for the people who depend on Social Security programs to support their daily needs.  According to SSA, for every $100 million additional cut in funds, the Agency would be forced to lay off an additional 1,000 employees – the equivalent of closing over 40 field offices.  We strongly urge Congress not to impose such a hardship on your constituents; instead to fund SSA at the Administration’s request level.

In addition to the issue of adequate funding, we urge Congress to include language related to the production and mailing of hard-copy Social Security statements.  SSA has consistently followed their plan to limit the distribution of statements only to individuals who are 60 or older rather than sending them to all workers 25 and older every year as required by Section 1143 of the Social Security Act.  Annual statements help ensure accuracy by allowing workers to know what earnings are reported to SSA and to correct any errors in a timely way.  This task becomes increasingly difficult as years pass, employers change or go out of business, and the documentation to prove income is lost.

Statements also help workers plan for their retirement by providing a starting point for the income they can expect to receive, helping them plan for how much they need to save in the future.  Finally, annual statements are invaluable to inform workers of the types of benefits provided by Social Security, and to build and strengthen public confidence that the program will be there when they need it.  According to the Congressional Justification for the President’s request for FY 2024, it would cost approximately $82 million to provide statements to all workers who are not receiving Social Security benefits. We urge you to include an earmark within SSA’s administrative budget requiring that section 1143 of the Social Security Act be fully funded.

Discretionary Programs Affecting Older Americans

The Older Americans Act (OAA) supports a range of home and community-based services, such as home delivered meals and other nutrition programs, in-home services, transportation, legal services, elder abuse prevention and caregiver support. Up until recently, however, the Act’s broad and critical mission has been undermined by inadequate funding.  Over the past 20 years, the OAA has lost ground due to federal funding that has not kept pace with either inflation or growth in the older population.

Annual OAA discretionary funding declined over the 10-year period from FY 2009 to FY 2019, and funding levels each year remained below the FY 2010 level when funding was at its highest level ($2.328 billion). However, for FY 2020, total OAA funding, including supplemental funding to respond to the needs of seniors during the COVID pandemic, reached its highest level ($3.220 billion) in the Act’s 55-year history. This trend continued into FY 2021 with an increase of $96 million, but slowed in FY 2022 with a nominal boost of $28 million.

The National Committee supports recommendations in the President’s budget to further increase funding – by 18.5 percent in FY 2024 – for Older Americans Act programs, including:

  • $1.284 billion for nutrition programs, a $218 million or 20 percent increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • $500 million for support services, a $90 million or 22 percent increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • $249.9 million for the National Family Caregiver Support Program, a $45 million or 22 percent increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • $70.2 million for Native American nutrition and supportive services, a $32 million or 83 percent increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • $14.2 million for the Lifespan Respite Program, a $4.2 million or 42 percent increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • $55.2 million for the Medicare State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP), equal to the FY 2023 enacted level. SHIPs offer Medicare-eligible individuals, their families, and caregivers unbiased counseling to make informed health insurance decisions that optimize access to care and benefits.

Block Grant Programs

The National Committee urges you to prioritize funding for the following block grant programs that help to fund Older Americans Act home-delivered meals and other programs to help seniors:

  • Community Development Block Grant (CDBG): At least $4.2 billion.
  • Social Services Block Grant (SSBG): At least $1.7 billion.
  • Community Service Block Grant (CSBG): At least $770 million.

Other Programs Important to Seniors

  • Alzheimer’s/dementia research funding at the National Institutes of Health: At least $3.87 billion, a $321 million increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): At least $5.1 billion, a $1.1 billion increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • Section 202 Housing for the Elderly: At least $1.675 billion, a $600 million increase over the FY 2023 enacted level.
  • The Senior Corps Programs (Retired and Senior Volunteer Program, Foster Grandparents Program and Senior Companions Program): At least $270 million, a $33.35 million increase over the FY 2023 enacted level, including:
  • $63 million for the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program.
  • $143.45 million for the Foster Grandparents Program.
  • $63.81 million for Senior Companions Program

Conclusion

While I recognize that you have challenging choices to make within the limited resources allocated to the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services Appropriations bill, the National Committee respectfully asks you to prioritize the programs that help seniors live independent and dignified lives. Without your investment in these discretionary initiatives, the valuable services that protect older Americans against poverty, hunger, isolation, poor health, neglect, abuse, unemployment and other challenges will fail to reach the aging population in need of these services. Under your leadership, the National Committee hopes that for FY 2024, all of these programs will be funded at levels that enable them to meet a rapidly growing demand for services. Thank you for your consideration, and we look forward to working with you to ensure sustained investment in programs and agencies crucial to seniors.

Sincerely,

Max Richtman
President and CEO