Open Recommendations

Create an internal control or system edit to ensure Social Security Administration employees contact a beneficiary and complete a Form SSA-455, Disability Update Report, before they mark a continuing disability review mailer as deferred.

Enhance the quality review process to ensure continuing disability review mailers are processed correctly.

We recommend that the Chief Operating Officer require SEAD to periodically evaluate its outreach efforts and makeappropriate changes to its outreach practices.

We recommend that the Chief Operating Officer establish a coordinated effort between the different FSA offices to ensureoutreach is provided to all underserved communities appropriately.

We recommend that the Chief Operating Officer use the additional demographic data from the 2024-2025 FAFSA to makedecisions when identifying and conducting outreach to individuals in underserved communities.

We recommend that the Chief Operating Officer require SEAD to coordinate with partners to understand whichunderserved communities the partner serves.

The Office of Programs should develop and document a comprehensive set of controls over the entirety of the 12(o) lien process and consolidate those controls into a singular location so that they are both easily referenced and tested.

The Office of Programs should implement a comprehensive tracking system for 12(o) liens to ensure that all 12(o) liens are identified, monitored, and collected.

The Office of Programs should develop a system that calculates and tracks the portion of sickness payments subject to be recovered from potential 12(o) liens.

The Office of Programs should develop policies and procedures to validate that employees are accurately differentiating between infirmaries and Railroad Unemployment Insurance Act benefits subject to 12(o) liens and those not subject to 12(o) liens for beneficiaries.

The Office of Programs should develop controls to ensure that Railroad Unemployment Claims System codes are properly updated after the report of settlement.

The Office of Programs should update its policies and procedures to address the two 12(o) lien requirements defined in Code of Federal Regulations Title 20 Section 341.8, Termination of sickness benefits due to a settlement, dated September 8, 2006.

The Office of Programs should formally request that railroads stop using outdated forms in the 12(o) lien process to ensure consistency and accuracy of all transactions with outside entities, and to promote a uniform 12(o) lien process.

The Office of Programs should work with the Bureau of Field Service, to update the Field Operating Manual to correctly reference the financial management system at the time of this audit, Financial Management Integrated System, and remove references to obsolete systems, such as the Program Accounts Receivable System.

The Office of Programs should update the Division of Program Operations Manual to correctly reference the financial management system at the time of this audit, Financial Management Integrated System, and remove references to obsolete systems, such as the Program Accounts Receivable System.

The Office of Programs should develop controls to independently verify the outcome of a claimant’s settlement.

The Office of Programs should update policies to require claims examiners to request additional information when claimants indicate that they were not injured at work, but do not specify whether they are pursuing a settlement in the sickness application.

The Office of Programs should develop a control to require a review of the total lien value established in the agency’s financial system.

The Office of Programs should develop controls to monitor the output generated from the automatic referral system.

The Office of Programs should update their policies to ensure the annual status reports are sent for each case open against a railroad employer for more than three years, in accordance with policies.

The Office of Programs should formalize a training curriculum so employees can correctly handle 12(o) lien casework and maintain the integrity of data and records on file in all 12(o) lien cases, thereby recovering all funds to which the agency is entitled to reimbursement.

The Office of Programs should develop a method for recording the date the Railroad Retirement Board is notified of a 12(o) lien settlement.

The Office of Programs should develop an internal control to ensure that 12(o) lien receivables are established and collected timely, in accordance with applicable criteria.

The Office of Programs should develop an internal control to verify that all debts referenced on the daily lists generated by the RUIA Daily Claims Processing System are transferred to the Financial Management Integrated System by the Railroad Retirement Board’s contracted service provider.

The Office of Programs should update the language in its Division of Program Operations Manual to reflect terminology consistent with the lien reduction process in lieu of the term “waivers.”