#SSI Reform

[ivygorgon]

An open letter to the U.S. Senate

Improve disabled American's financial stability with S.4102 - SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act

In the words of David Goldfarb on behalf of the Arc of the United States, "…we enthusiastically endorse S. 4102, the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act, which would raise the amount of savings a Supplemental Security Income (SSI) recipient can keep for the first time in over thirty years. The mission of the Arc is to promote and protect the human rights of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and actively support their full inclusion and participation in the community throughout their lifetimes.

"SSI provides an extremely modest cash benefit, a maximum of $841 a month in 2022, for certain individuals with disabilities and older adults. In March 2022, nearly 7.6 million people: 4.3 million working-age individuals with disabilities; 1 million children with disabilities; and 2.3 million older adults relied on the program.

"Many individuals with IDD rely on the SSI program. In 2017, SSA estimated that approximately 19% of working-age SSI recipients possessed an intellectual disability. For many people with IDD, SSI is their only source of income without which they could become institutionalized or homeless.

"Unfortunately, the benefit’s low, outdated resource limit of $2,000 for individuals/$3,000 for couples does not allow people to save for emergencies, such as a leaky roof, car repair, or other unexpected expense. To make matters worse, the $2,000 limit does not adjust for inflation every year, and it has remained the same since 1989.

"The SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act would significantly improve the lives of SSI recipients, including people with IDD, by raising the asset limit to $10,000 per individual/$20,000 per couple. The legislation also adjusts that number for inflation every year, a critical element in 2 today’s inflationary environment. This will allow SSI beneficiaries to use their own savings to address needed emergencies when they arise.

"Thank you again for this critical legislation."

Truly his letter is phenomenal and applicable to many American citizens. I hope you too appreciate his mastery of diction, his compassion for his fellow American, and the truth in his words.

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[cksaksen-blog]

Child Welfare Reforms and SSI Updates – What You Need to Know About the Latest U.S. Welfare Changes

Today, several significant updates have been announced in the realm of U.S. welfare programs, especially surrounding Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and child welfare. Breaking: New SSI Rule Changes Could Impact Millions – Find Out How! 1. Changes to SSI Eligibility Rules Starting from September 30, 2024, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has introduced important changes to SSI…

[mariacallous]

In the United States, eligible older adults are accessing means-tested safety net programs at low rates. Particularly, the participation rates of older adults in Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are exceedingly low. Recent data reveals that less than half of eligible adults ages 60 and older participated in SNAP in 2018. Although the recipiency of SSI among older adults is understudied, estimates indicate that since the program’s inception in the 1970s, their participation rate has hovered around 50%.

Participation rates in these programs are low, even with the existence of many outreach efforts. Examples include the SSI/Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) Outreach, Access, and Recovery (SOAR) model designed to increase participation among individuals who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness, and SNAP outreach that occurs at local food banks and pantries across the United States. Current application, determination, and enrollment processes for these programs involve numerous administrative barriers that, along with other factors, result in many individuals, including older adults, from accessing their entitled benefits. In addition, many program rules further discourage participation.

The financial situation of many low-income older adults, given that their income tends to remain generally constant over time, allows for a unique opportunity to reform application and enrollment processes for this specific population. The provisions outlined in this brief apply to beneficiaries receiving SSDI, in addition to older adults. As previously proposed to reduce Medicare premiums, a more automated approach can be applied to the application processes of SSI and SNAP. This reform would be a radical change from current program operations and is likely to result in higher participation rates in both programs. In this brief, we examine in greater detail the current levels of SSI and SNAP enrollment among older adults, illustrate why participation rates are stubbornly low, and describe a solution to this problem.

[bakafox]

Considering how I've been treated and seen people treated by their close communities- sorry if I just do not understand anarchism etc, but I would much rather fight for reforms where there is an institution/government that takes human rights into account, fight for reforms where the rich are taxed and that money then goes to UBI for all, subsidized healthcare for all, and better handled social security and other safety nets, where right now the problems are lack of funding and unfair gatekeeping as to who gets any help at all and a lot of people falling through the cracks based on race, gender, age, location, perceived income or ability etc-

Than fight for, what is it exactly? Hoping that my immediate community of people don't find reasons to gatekeep and refuse to help or can't afford to help so that people are falling through the cracks based on race, gender, age, perceived income or ability, but it's also more individually networked so that location also becomes even more of a dire reason that folks may fall through the cracks because their local groups just don't have the same resources as the local group down the road- having to pray that the local groups will play nicely when there's no real set of guidelines or rules agreed upon on how to spread the wealth and all the various needs that are rights?

Like, the more territory an agreement/social contract can cover, the more that is distributed, the more people it will help, but by the time you've got social contracts set up so that people in New York City are also seeing to it that there's help for people in Las Cruces and there's an even distribution of what's needed to all, and it's even over time and not just a week by week thing- doesn't that just mean it's basically laws and government?

Like, community action and goodwill towards others is super important, there is NO substitute for it- but it feels like there logically are some serious limitations on what can be done through community action.

In absolutely no universe would UBI at a federal level and probably even reformed medicaid for all and disability payments additional to UBI mean there's no need for volunteers or community, and no room for charity, but I can't see how people who focus solely on direct community action and say no one can depend on institutions and government at all can make up for the stable platform that a larger organization or institution/government can do if directed properly.

Like, current SSI sucks, it isn't really enough with today's cost of living, makes me jump through hoops to keep getting it every year or two, and a lot of people who need it are left out. But once approved for the current cycle, I don't have to go to church, I don't have to limit what types of food I eat beyond what I can afford on it, I don't have to be straight or otherwise seem 'normal', and in theory I could get the same $900 a month if I were black, or if I were older or younger than I am.

It also doesn't matter to SSI that my yard looks like a mess, I don't have to leave my house or stand in lines for it on any regular basis, I can be unshowered and sweaty and be in my worst mental state ever and I'm getting $900 a month even if no one outside of the computers at the SSA know I exist. I don't have to keep networking or be likeable in any way, shape, or form like trying to rely on people's kindness, on private charities or gofundmes.

The hoops I'm forced to jump through for SSI need to be gotten rid of, but even while they're here- they're... more able to be understood and countered and are well known, compared to knowing what it will take to get help elsewhere.

What replaces something like SSI better if it gets torn down, than trying to hammer out the dents, keep it functioning/standing, and making it work more fairly for even more people?

[somerandomg33k]

I don't why I argue with Liberals.

I made a post about "How do I talk to Liberals?" To which a family member asked, "Why do you argue with Liberals?" Which does give me pause to think. I have had political conversations with Liberals a lot in the last 7 years. (I am counting the years since I have been a Leftist. I have been an Anarchist since 2018.)

One thing is that I will end up in a conversation with Liberals at one point or another. After all, they are everywhere. Granted, many of my conversations with Liberals don't involve direct politics. For example, I engage with Steve Shive's community quite a bit. With his monthly Patron/Member hangout and his semi-weekly Ask Away. And since I became an Anarchist, and since Steve Shives started to do his Ask Aways, I wanted to use his platform, or at least my influence in that space, to put out there the Anarchist ideas I have been consuming. And challenges Liberal's ideas about….. well, everything. Noted, I sometimes dread the Patron and Member hangouts on Steve's channel. Because there are times when it gets to politics, it does get heated.

Results have been mixed, to say the least. Steve Shives probably will never become an Anarchist. He just doesn't think Anarchism, Communism, or Socialism is practical at all. He is also not interested at all in Anarchist thought either. And that is probably the same with many of his audience.

But I guess one reason why I often argue with Liberals is because I hate Liberals. Or I hate Liberalism. Liberalism accepts Capitalism as a given. And I hate Capitalism with a burning passion. There are many reasons why I hate Capitalism. The main one I often give is how my disabled friends have to beg online in order to live. I have five or six friends who are disabled and can't work. And whether they are on SSI/SSDI or not, they need money each month or each and every week for various different things.

For the last 7 years, I have made it my personal mission to make sure my friends are taken care of. Even when back in 2019 when there was only one friend that I was helping out, I was thinking about getting a second job just to earn more money to help give to my friends. And that is what I have committed to in recent times. Working as many hours as I can at my current job, getting as much overtime as I can, to make sure my friends are taken care of.

While there is a part of me that wants to do more "OrganizationTM," or work towards, "TheRevolutionTM," I focus mostly on just taking care of my five or six disabled friends as much as I can. Even maintaining my $25,000 worth of credit card debt to do so. I haven't even done the math recently to see how much money I give to my friends. But it is often half of my take-home pay from work.

So, I hate Capitalism. And Liberalism accepts Capitalism as a given. So Liberals represent Capitalism in some way to me. Liberals represented me before I became radicalized and became an Anarchist. So in Liberals, I see my past shelf and think, "They just need to see the light and see how wrong they are about the world and Capitalism." And another thing, I have a really hard time believing we can achieve full worldwide Anarcho-Communism, or at least fully get rid of Capitalism worldwide, if there are a lot portion of people that think, "Capitalism is fine. It just needs some reforms." Or, "This system in the USA is fine. We just need to make some reforms." That is why, in my mind, Liberals need to stop being Liberals and be radicalized. It is not good enough in my mind that they say, "I am Anti-Fascist." Or some say to me, "SomeRandomG33k, you and I want the same thing, a better world." I find those words and platitudes to be hollow. But my vision of a better world requires there to be no more Capitalism at all. Ever. So Liberals to me are soft enemies.

So, since I don't give myself time to "#Organize," or do praxis, and I keep myself clocked in at work for about 60 hours a week, if I can, what way do I have to help radicalize folks to join in the "RevolutionTM?"

For four years now, I determined that it is best for me to not get a second job. Since I don't drive. I don't want to deal with the hassle of commuting between 2 jobs and home via busing, so I have settled on streaming as my second job. It is something I enjoy doing. And a way for me to spread Anarcho-Syndicalist propaganda. It pays pennies but it is better than nothing. And by doing my political streaming, I end up in conversation with Liberals. And many times, open arguments. I figure that conversing with Liberals is bound to happen if I engage in political content on Twitch and YouTube. And social media in general as part of "my brand." Fucking Capitalism.

But also, because I don't organize, because I don't do praxis, I feel the least I can do while at work is spread Anarchist propaganda on social media. Which sometimes also includes conversations with Liberals about Capitalism. And at this point, I don't know if this answers the question of why I argue with Liberals. Maybe for a dopamine rush. Maybe I am just venting my frustration at them. I don't know anymore. I will leave this post as is.

[portmantaur]

I want to try to make a longer/more informative post about this in the near future, but for now, for anyone in the USA who might care about it

there are currently a few bills being processed by congress that are essentially geared at positive SSI reform, namely two

H.R.5408/S.2767 or the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act (link) — a bill that proposes to raise the maximum asset possession for individuals and married couples receiving SSI from 2000/3000 dollars to 10,00/30,000 respectively. As of now, individual SSI recipients cannot have over two thousand dollars in assets (particularly savings) without facing the threat of losing their benefits and/or being required to backpay on said benefits — often in larger numbers than the total excess of that asset limitation. This limit hasn’t been raised in literal decades and has never been adjusted for inflation. This is SUCH an integral and necessary change to the SSI system.

and

H.R.7138 or the Supplemental Security Income Restoration Act (link) — this is a bill that proposes larger-scale reform in several different areas, and while I don’t have the ability right now to detail all of it, and unfortunately there’s no available summary even in the link provided, a good portion of this bill proposes changes in what income/assets should not be counted AT ALL in determining financial eligibility for SSI, providing much more income security for people reliant on these benefits. There are also proposals for less restrictive eligibility requirements in general, as well as proposals for better funding so as to provide more resources to be distributed through the SSI program across the board.

I know this is a bare bones post, but if anyone in the states feels compelled to contact their representatives and/or senators, I would encourage you do to so while citing your interest in having these bills passed. The few sponsors/cosponsors for these bills are all democrats with mostly more progressive records, and committees to which these bills have been/are being sent are deeply conservative both historically and in terms of their current members/chairs. The first bill already seems to have been sort of fast-tracked on the quiet in what looks like a deliberate attempt to squash it without really making any of the public aware of it. That’s pretty par for the course, but it’s especially egregious (imo) for such a small, clear-cut bill that would provide an absolutely necessary change to SSI.

Here is a link (click) to help you find and contact your representative in the house, and here is a link (click) to help you through the process of contacting senators. Both sites have information about relevant committees (Ways and Means for the house, and the Committee on Finance for the senate) and their respective members, if you wish to contact those individual as well.

I know things can and do seem sort of bleak and hopeless much of the time, but even the prospect of knowing their constituents are informed and unafraid to apply direct pressure can have a tangible effect on the behavior of congresspeople. These are two bills that can change things materially for a lot of people, and even just the act of receiving a lot of informed attention could have rippling effects into future legislation. If you can, please, contact your reps/senators and let them know you are invested in voting for individuals who care to support and vote for these bills specifically, and the general improvements represented by bills like these.

Thank you for reading. 🩵

[arctic-hands]

Bye bye any hopes of SSI reform

[slaughterverse]

Y’all just keep acting like Biden is some kind of Patron Saint of all oppressed USamericans.

Anyways.

Biden allowed the defunding of ACP and EBT. In congress there has been no progress on any of the bills to reform SSI and SSDI. Disabled USamericans still are forced to live in poverty and now we can’t afford internet and we can’t afford food. Our food banks are suffering from the economy so we hardly even get food there. The housing crisis continues, the prices of rent are skyrocketing.

Again I will say I do not give a fuck how you vote, whatever you think you need to do I don’t care.

BUT DO NOT LIE ABOUT A SITUATION YOU HAVE NOT LIVED IN!! MY LIFE WILL CONTINUE TO GET WORSE REGARDLESS UNLESS THE SYSTEM IS DECONSTRUCTED.

[funnuraba]

If you're reblogging shit about how great Biden is for increasing SNAP by an average of $36 monthly back in 2021, I mean this so sincerely, you're an ignorant piece of shit with no idea what you're talking about. My entire food budget is food stamps because I'm disabled and live off SSI, and the current maximum is a murderous amount that no human being should be insulted with. It's shit. You are shit. Please suffer. Oh my god.

Have you guys reblogging that bullshit even heard of SSI reform in your life? What exactly has he done on that? Oh, nothing? Just like everyone else? God you people are garbage. Disabled people are being starved to death under every administration, and I'm supposed to suck the Democrats' dicks over $36? Fuck you! Laughing while crying emoji!!!

[jacensolodjo]

Please consider writing to your representatives when it comes to supporting the SSI (Social Security Income) Savings Penalty Elimination Act (S.2767/H.R.5408). It will raise the asset limit from $2,000 to $10,000 for individuals and for couples from $3,000 to $20,000

The Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism has provided a form to fill out to help in this endeavor. It has a pre-filled message but you can edit out parts of it referring to being Jewish if you aren't part of the tribe.

[echthr0s]

that new SSI bill sounds great (genuinely, it does) but when do we get the reform where a non-working disabled person can marry a working person [who is making enough for one (1) person to live on but not two] and keep their benefits

[enterprisewired]

Social Security at 90: America’s Safety Net Faces Funding and Demographic Pressures

Source: incharge.org

As Social Security celebrates its 90th anniversary, the program remains one of the most significant and far-reaching functions of the U.S. government. With nearly every working American contributing through payroll taxes and over 55 million retirees receiving benefits, it serves as a vital lifeline for older adults, the disabled, and survivors. Beyond retirement, the Social Security Administration (SSA) also handles the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program, assisting more than 7.4 million low-income individuals.

Despite its popularity, 79% of Americans in a 2024 Pew survey oppose benefit cuts. Social Security is confronting multiple headwinds. Chief among them is a projected depletion of the retirement trust fund by 2033. The SSA has also seen staff reductions under the Trump administration, with its workforce shrinking to just over 58,000 employees in 2024. These constraints are reportedly impacting its ability to efficiently manage benefits and claims for millions of Americans.

How Social Security Operates and Who It Serves

Social Security is primarily funded through a 12.4% payroll tax, split evenly between employees and employers, or paid in full by self-employed individuals. Most of this revenue, 85.5%, supports retirement and survivor benefits, while the remaining 14.5% goes toward disability payments. In 2023, nearly 183 million Americans, roughly 93% of the workforce, contributed to the system. Social Security also generates income through Treasury bond interest and taxation of some benefits, accumulating a total of $1.35 trillion in 2023.

As of April 2025, 73.9 million Americans were receiving benefits from at least one SSA program. This includes 52.6 million retirees, 7.2 million disabled workers, and 5.8 million survivors, among others. Notably, 86.9% of Americans over 65 and 92.6% of those over 75 received some form of Social Security benefit in 2022. On average, a retired worker received $1,999.97 in April 2025. That year, total annual payments reached $1.38 trillion, 22.5% of all federal spending.

Many Americans depend heavily on these benefits: in 2022, 63.2% of adult beneficiaries relied on Social Security for at least half their income, while 27% depended on it exclusively. While the program reduces senior poverty, only 7.8% of recipients lived below the poverty line compared to 9.7% of nonrecipients. SSI recipients face greater hardship, with one-third living in poverty.

Demographic Shifts and the Road Ahead

Social Security operates on a pay-as-you-go model, meaning current workers fund today’s beneficiaries. However, demographic trends are tipping this balance. In 1965, four workers supported each beneficiary; by 2023, that number dropped to 2.7. Projections estimate just 2.1 workers per beneficiary by century’s end, straining the system further.

Since 2021, the retirement program has paid out more than it collects, using reserves from the trust fund to cover the gap. The retirement trust fund peaked at $2.82 trillion in 2017 and fell to $2.5 trillion by 2024. Depending on economic trends, it could be depleted as early as 2031, though 2033 remains the most likely date. If no reforms are made, incoming revenue would only cover about 79% of scheduled benefits post-depletion.

To avert this, lawmakers could consider changes such as raising payroll taxes, increasing the taxable earnings cap, adjusting retirement age, or modifying cost-of-living formulas. Yet any move to reduce benefits faces stiff public resistance, with eight in ten Americans expressing opposition to cuts. The path forward will demand difficult political decisions to ensure Social Security’s sustainability for future generations.

Visit Enterprise Wired for the Most Recent Information.

[squaredawayblog]

A 1990s reform that toughened eligibility threatens not only the cash benefits but the Medicaid insurance that comes with it.

[cherrypopamore]

I hate to say it, but there's still no true marriage equality in this country as long as anyone with a disability still can't get married without risking losing the benefits they depend on to survive. The way things stand right now, if two people with a disability are in a relationship, and they're both receiving SSI, and they decide they want to get married someday, one of them ends up losing all of their benefits.

SSI as we've come to know it today was a Nixon-Ford era creation, but the monthly payments our government gives to those who qualify haven't budged an inch since the Reagan-Bush years. I get that you can't really put a price on any one person's life, but surely a disabled person's life is worth more than the $2000 in assets our government allows them to have at any one time.

When I'm not doing drag and burlesque, I've been pushing for Social Security reform at the local and federal levels, specifically around increasing assets limits and eliminating the so-called "marriage penalty." i would love to see any real effort made from a legislative standpoint to level the playing field and make things more fair for people with disabilities so that they can engage in the normal everyday life stuff that everyone else does, like marrying and raising a family, if that's something they decide they want to do.

[dragonfruit-daydreams]

Biden signed into law the Postal Service Reform Act, which ended the Postal Services' requirement that they prefund their retirees' health benefits far in advance instead of when they're due, something that no other federal agency has to do. (Remember when everyone was talking about this problem?) He also signed into law the first gun control legislation in 30 years, the biggest expansion in veterans' healthcare in 30 years, the American Rescue Plan, an infrastructure repair bill (which our country's aging infrastructure desperately needed) and the Inflation Reduction Act, or the biggest investment in fighting climate change in our nation's history. It also includes several provisions to lower out of pocket drug costs for Medicare patients, including capping insulin prices for some patients at $35, which caused three pharmaceutical companies that control almost the entire insulin market to cap their monthly insulin copays to $35 for many patients.

The Biden administration has provided nearly $132 billion in student loan debt relief for more than 3.6 million borrowers. This includes people who have been paying on their student loans for at least 10 years, those whose accounts were mismanaged, and public servants. He created the SAVE income driven repayment plan, a very generous and forgiving plan that is the most affordable option for a lot of people. Including me! It's the one I'm on. The administration also rolled out the Fresh Start program to help the nearly 7 million borrowers experiencing default improve their credit and immediately access SAVE.

The Social Security Administration issued a rule preventing food assistance from reducing payments to people who recieve Supplemental Security Income. SSI is for low-income people aged 65 or older or living with a disability. Before the rule, people who recieved it could see their SSI payments cut by as much as a third because friends or family provided meals or bought them groceries. People who recieve SSI are also one of the most food insecure groups in the US, so this change matters a lot.

He pardoned thousands of Americans convicted of simple possession of marijuana on federal lands in 2022 and then did it again for use and simple possession in 2023, making it easier for those folks to rent a home, find a job, or travel.

Under him, the FDA approved the first ever over the counter birth control pill, making the drug more accessible and hopefully affordable. Similarly, the FDA approved over the counter hearing aids for the first time, meaning people no longer have to have expensive hearing exams to access them. He's taken a number of steps on reproductive rights, including issuing an executive order to protect abortion access. He allowed retail pharmacies to dispense mifepristone.

The EPA banned 6 kinds of PFAs from drinking water. These chemicals have been linked to a variety of adverse health effects. The agency also published rules requiring more than 200 chemical plants to reduce toxic emissions that are likely to cause cancer, as well as rules requiring coal-fired power plants to reduce pollution and dramatically slash greenhouse gas emissions or shut down.

The Biden administration finalized rules that bring back protections for animals classified as "threatened" with extinction, clarify that decisions must be made about whether to list species without considering economic factors, and make it easier to designate areas as crucial for a species' survival, even if it is no longer found in those areas. The USDA finalized protections for Tongass National Park, the government halted Trump-era plans to allow logging in Northern Spotted Owl habitat, an endangered bird, and passed the first updated washer and dryer efficiency standards in over 10 years, saving Americans $2.2 billion a year on their utility bills and eliminating 71 million tons of carbon dioxide over 30 years. This is in addition to new standards for stoves, fridges, and freezers, and dishwashers and wine coolers are up next.

His administration also expanded Title IX to prohibit discrimination against LGBT people in federally funded schools and give survivors more legal rights, and the Department of Health and Human Services passed rules that prohibit health providers and insurers that recieve federal funding from discriminating against LGBT people.

He released the first ever national plan to combat anti-semitism, which includes over 100 steps that federal agencies have committed to taking within a year. A rule that went into effect in December could make it easier for workers to unionize. He's appointed 175 federal judges, most of whom are women or people of color, and plans to appoint more. It's crucial that Democrats retake the federal judiciary when judges make crucial decisions about our laws. And this is just the stuff I know of off the top of my head. It may go under-discussed, but he's done a lot of things that have helped a lot of people. No, he's not a good person. Yes, we need to hold him accountable for heinous acts. But voting is harm reduction and it matters.

I really think people have forgotten just how bad things were under the Trump Administration. Literally every day there was news about some service being cut or someone terrible appointed somewhere they shouldn’t be or what have you. He constantly flirted with WW3 and military dictatorship. It was such a blur of badness that there aren’t big standouts for people to point to to make him “the XYZ president.” it was everything. all the time. Why do we not remember this.