The Social Security Administration’s Enforcement of the Earnings Test

Submitting OIG:

Report Description:

Objectives; To determine (1) whether the Social Security Administration accurately and timely paid beneficiaries subject to the earnings test and (2) the administrative costs to enforce the earnings test.

Date Issued:

Friday, February 2, 2024

Agency Reviewed / Investigated:

Social Security Administration

Submitting OIG-Specific Report Number:

A-08-21-51049

Location(s):

Agency-Wide

Type of Report:

Audit

Questioned Costs:

$177,465,869

Funds for Better Use:

$81,069,424

Number of Recommendations:

Report updated under NDAA 5274:

View Document:

Attachment	Size
08-21-51049.pdf	895.6 KB

Related Open Recommendations

Recommendation Number	Recommendation Status	Significant Recommendation
1	Open	No
Where cost effective, expand existing initiatives to obtain earnings information electronically.
2	Open	No
Automate printing applicants’ responses to the earnings-test questions on the application summary SSA provides beneficiaries when they request to start receiving their Old-Age, Survivor, and Disability Insurance benefits.
3	Open	Yes
Revise systems to ensure the Agency requests monthly earnings information from beneficiaries eligible for the monthly earnings test before it assesses an overpayment.
4	Open	No
Add language to overpayment notices informing beneficiaries who are eligible for the monthly earnings test their overpayment may be reduced or eliminated if they had monthly wages below the applicable limit.
5	Open	No
Expand controls to detect potential underpayments based on discrepancies between the Master Beneficiary Record and Master Earnings File.
6	Open	No
Enhance its systems to automate additional enforcement actions.
7	Open	Yes
Implement systems changes to automatically grant earnings-test-related monthly benefit increases at, or closer to, the date they are first allowed by policy.
8	Open	No
Clarify policy to inform employees of criteria that must be met to grant earnings-test-related monthly benefit increases and what actions they must take to release payments to beneficiaries.
9	Open	No
Determine the costs associated with collecting earnings-test overpayments and re-evaluate the threshold established in policy and systems to exclude overpayments from the earnings enforcement process if the estimated cost to recover the resulting overpayment exceeds the potential collections.
10	Open	No
Correct the remaining error cases from the sample reviews.

Recommendation Number

Recommendation Status

Significant Recommendation

Additional Details

Open

Where cost effective, expand existing initiatives to obtain earnings information electronically.

Open

Automate printing applicants’ responses to the earnings-test questions on the application summary SSA provides beneficiaries when they request to start receiving their Old-Age, Survivor, and Disability Insurance benefits.

Open

Yes

Revise systems to ensure the Agency requests monthly earnings information from beneficiaries eligible for the monthly earnings test before it assesses an overpayment.

Open