Annual Report 

of the

Supplemental

 Security

 Income Program

Social Security Administration

May 2007
.
SOCIAL SECURITY

The Commissioner

May 30, 2007

President George W. Bush

The White House

Washington, D.C.

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi

Speaker of the House of Representatives

Washington, D.C.

The Honorable Richard B. Cheney

President of the Senate

Washington, D.C.

Dear Mr. President, Madam Speaker, and Mr. Cheney: 

It is my pleasure to submit to you the 2007 Annual Report of the Supplemental Security Income

Program (the eleventh such report), in compliance with section 231 of the Personal

Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.

Sincerely,

Michael J. Astrue

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION BALTIMORE MD 21235-0001
.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-193),

the Congress required the Commissioner of Social Security to report annually to the President and to the

Congress on the status of the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. A required element of these

reports is to provide projections of program participation and costs through at least 25 years. This report is

the eleventh of such reports, and following are its major highlights and findings. 

Highlights of the SSI Program

 • The SSI program is a nationwide Federal assistance program administered by the Social Security

Administration (SSA) that guarantees a minimum level of income for needy aged, blind, or disabled

individuals. It acts as a safety net for individuals who have little or no Social Security or other income

and limited resources.

 • In January 2007, 7.0 million individuals

received monthly Federal SSI payments averaging $435 versus 6.9 million with an average

payment of $422 in January 2006.

 • Federal expenditures for cash payments under

the SSI program during calendar year 2006

increased 4.9 percent to $37.8 billion, and the

cost of administering the SSI program in fiscal

year 2006 increased 4.6 percent to $3.0 billion. In calendar year 2005 the corresponding

Federal program expenditures and cost of

administering the SSI program were $36.0 billion and $2.8 billion, respectively.

Major Findings of the Report

 • By 2031, the end of the 25-year projection

period, the Federal SSI recipient population is

estimated to reach 9.2 million. The projected

growth in the SSI program over the 25-year period is largely due to the overall growth in the U.S.

population. The rate of participation is projected to vary somewhat by age group, with the overall participation rate of the 65 or older age groups projected to decline and the participation rate of the under

65 age groups projected to increase slightly.

 • Expressed as a percentage of the total U.S. population, the number of Federal SSI recipients increased

slightly from 2.25 percent in 2005 to 2.27 percent in 2006, and is projected to increase gradually to

2.52 percent of the population by 2031 due largely to the changing age distribution of the population. 

 • Federal expenditures for SSI payments in calendar year 2007 are estimated to increase by $2.2 billion

to $40.0 billion, an increase of 5.9 percent from 2006 levels.

 • In constant 2007 dollars, Federal expenditures for SSI payments are projected to increase to $51.5 billion in 2031, a real increase of 1.2 percent per year.

 • When compared to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Federal SSI expenditures are projected to

decline over time, from the current level of 0.29 percent of GDP in 2006 to 0.24 percent of GDP by

2031. 

Disabled 65

or older

8.4%

Aged

11.4%

Disabled

under 18

18.4%

Disabled

18-64

61.8%

 SSI Federal Payments, Calendar Year 2006

$37.8 billion

(VII)

CONTENTS

I. INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

II. HIGHLIGHTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

A. RECENT PROGRAM EXPERIENCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

B. SSI LEGISLATION SINCE THE 2006 ANNUAL REPORT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

C. CURRENT ISSUES FACING THE SSI PROGRAM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

D. KEY RESULTS FROM THE 25-YEAR PROJECTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

III. THE SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

A. BACKGROUND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

B. THE BASIC PLAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

C. UNIFORM STANDARDS AND OBJECTIVE CRITERIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

D. ASSISTANCE OF LAST RESORT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

1. Income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

2. Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

3. Filing for Other Benefits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

4. Eligibility Issues for Residents of Public Institutions or Medical Facilities . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

5. Personal Needs Allowance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

6. Deeming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

a. Spouse-to-Spouse Deeming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

b. Parent-to-Child Deeming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

c. Sponsor-to-Alien Deeming. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

E. INCENTIVES FOR WORK AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REHABILITATION . . . . . . . . . 15

1. Earned Income Exclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

2. Impairment-Related Work Expense Exclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

3. Work Expenses of the Blind Exclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4. Student Earned Income Exclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

5. Plan to Achieve Self-Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

6. Special Provisions for Disabled People Who Work. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

7. Vocational Rehabilitation/Ticket to Work Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

8. Expedited Reinstatement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

F. ADMINISTRATION OF THE SSI PROGRAM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

1. Application Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

2. Determination of Eligibility for Benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

3. Payment of Benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4. Ensuring Continued Eligibility for Benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

5. Representative Payees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

6. Appeal Rights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

7. Fees for Attorneys and Non-attorney Representatives. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

8. Advance Payments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

a. Emergency Advance Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

b. Presumptive Disability or Blindness . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

G. STATE SUPPLEMENTATION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

1. Optional State Supplementary Payment Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

2. Mandatory State Supplementary Payment Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

3. Administration of State Supplementary Payments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

4. Passalong Provisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
(VIII)

H. COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

1. Windfall Offset. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

2. Medicaid Determinations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

3. Food Stamp Applications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4. Interim Assistance Reimbursement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

IV. ESTIMATES OF PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AND FEDERAL EXPENDITURES

UNDER THE SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM, 2007-31 . . . . . . . . . 27

A. DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC ASSUMPTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

B. NUMBERS OF PARTICIPANTS IN THE SSI PROGRAM . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

C. FEDERAL PAYMENTS UNDER SSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

D. FEDERAL SSI PAYMENTS AS A PERCENTAGE OF GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT . . 49

E. THE SSI PROGRAM’S SHARE OF SSA’S ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS 

AND BENEFICIARY SERVICES COSTS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

V. APPENDICES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

A. HISTORY OF PROVISIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

1. Basic Eligibility Requirements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

2. Other Eligibility Provisions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

a. Citizenship and U.S. Residency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

b. Other Benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

c. Drug Addiction and Alcoholism (DA&A). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

d. Institutionalization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

e. Vocational Rehabilitation and Treatment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

f. Continuing Disability Reviews and Eligibility Redeterminations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

g. Deeming of Income and Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

3. Federal Benefit Payments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

a. Windfall Offset. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

b. Proration of Benefit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

c. Retrospective Monthly Accounting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

d. Uncashed Checks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

e. Rounding of Payment Amounts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

f. Penalties for False or Misleading Statements or Withholding of Information. . . . . . . . . 61

g. Installment Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

4. Federal Benefit Rates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

5. Exclusions from Income. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

a. General Exclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

b. Special Exclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

6. Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

a. General Exclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

b. Special Exclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

c. Transfer-of-Resources Penalties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

7. Presumptive and Emergency Payments and Interim Assistance Reimbursement . . . . . . . . 71

a. Presumptive Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

b. Emergency Advance Payments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

c. Interim Assistance Reimbursement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

8. Medicaid Eligibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

9. State Supplementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

10. Overpayment Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

B. INCOME AND RESOURCE EXCLUSIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

1. Earned Income Exclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

2. Unearned Income Exclusions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
(IX)

3. Resource Exclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

C. HISTORICAL ALLOWANCE DATA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

1. Technical Notes on the Disability Research File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

2. General Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

D. HISTORICAL REDETERMINATION AND CONTINUING DISABILITY REVIEW DATA 87

1. Redeterminations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

2. Continuing Disability Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

E. INCENTIVES FOR WORK AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REHABILITATION . . . . . . . . . 96

1. Work Incentives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

a. Numbers of Participants in Work Incentive Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

b. Average Earnings of Participants in Work Incentive Programs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

2. Vocational Rehabilitation/Ticket to Work Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

F. INVOLVEMENT OF SSI RECIPIENTS IN OTHER PROGRAMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

G. RESEARCH ON RELATED TOPICS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

1. Ongoing Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

a. Analyses Using Survey of Income and Program Participation Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

b. National Survey of SSI Children and Families . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

c. Evaluation of the Ticket to Work Program. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

d. Homeless Outreach Projects and Evaluation (HOPE) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

e. Youth Transition Demonstration (YTD) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

f. Disability Program Navigators (DPNs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

g. Pediatric Medical Units (PMUs) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

2. Bibliography of Recent Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

H. GLOSSARY. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

ADDITIONAL STATEMENT BY THE SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD

(XI)

TABLES

III.H1 SSI State Supplementation and Coordination with Other Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

IV.A1 Historical and Projected Population in the Social Security Area based on the 

Intermediate Assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report, as of July 1, 1974-2031. . . . 28

IV.A2 SSI Federal Benefit Rate Increases and Levels: Historical and Projected on the Basis of

the Intermediate Assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report, 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . 29

IV.B1 SSI Federally-Administered Applications, Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

IV.B2 SSI Federally-Administered New Recipients, Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33

IV.B3 SSI Federally-Administered Terminations Due to Death, Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . . . 35

IV.B4 SSI Federally-Administered Terminations Due to Reasons Other Than Death, 

Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

IV.B5 SSI Federally-Administered Terminations for All Reasons, Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . 37

IV.B6 SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as of December, 1974-2031 38

IV.B7 SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as a Percentage of 

Selected Social Security Area Population Totals, as of December, 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

IV.B8 SSI Recipients with Federally-Administered State Supplementary Benefits Only,

in Current-Payment Status as of December, 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

IV.B9 SSI Recipients with Federally-Administered Benefits in Current-Payment Status 

as of December, 1974-2031. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

IV.C1 SSI Federal Payments in Current Dollars, Calendar Years 1974-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

IV.C2 SSI Federal Payments in Current Dollars, Fiscal Years 1978-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

IV.C3 SSI Federal Payments in Constant 2007 Dollars, Calendar Years 1974-2031 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

IV.C4 SSI Federally-Administered State Supplementary Payments in Current Dollars, 

Calendar Years 1974-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

IV.D1 SSI Federal Payments as a Percentage of GDP, Calendar Years 1974-2031. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

IV.E1 Selected SSI Administrative Costs, Fiscal Years 1978-2007 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

V.A1 Federal Benefit Rates Set by Legislation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

V.C1 Disabled Adult Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing and Level of Decision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

V.C2 Disabled Child Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing and Level of Decision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

V.D1 SSI Redeterminations Completed, Fiscal Years 1986-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

V.D2 SSI Disabled Adult Reviews: Disposition of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by

Fiscal Year of Initial Decision and Level of Decision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

V.D3 SSI Disabled Child Reviews: Disposition of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by

Fiscal Year of Initial Decision and Level of Decision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
(XII)

V.E1 SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Working Recipients as of

December, 1987-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

V.E2 SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Individuals with SSI Recipient

Status Participating in Other Work Incentives as of December, 1990-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

V.E3 Average Monthly Earnings of SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Working 

Recipients, as of December, 1987-2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

V.E4 Vocational Rehabilitation Reimbursement Claims Allowed, Fiscal Years 1987-2006 . . . . . . . 101

V.F1 Percentage of SSI Federally-Administered Recipients in Current-Payment Status with

Participation in Selected Programs Based on SSA Administrative Records,

December, 2006. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102
(XIII)

FIGURES

IV.B1 SSI Federally-Administered Applications by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035 . . . . . . 32

IV.B2 SSI Federally-Administered New Recipients by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035 . . . . 34

IV.B3 SSI Federally-Administered Terminations by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035 . . . . . . 38

IV.B4 SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status, by Age Group, 

as of December, 1975-2035. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

IV.B5 SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as a Percentage of 

Selected Social Security Area Population Age Groups, as of December, 1975-2035 . . . . . . . 41

IV.C1 SSI Federal Payments, by Age Group, in Constant 2007 Dollars, Calendar Years 1975-2035 46

IV.D1 SSI Federal Payments, by Age Group, as a Percentage of GDP, Calendar Years 1975-2035. . 49

V.E1 SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Working Recipients 

as of December, 1987-2006. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
.
1

I. INTRODUCTION

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program was established by Congress in 1972, with payments

beginning in January 1974. It is administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA). SSI replaced

the former Federal-State programs of Old-Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the Blind (AB), and Aid to the

Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD) in the 50 States and the District of Columbia. Residents of the

Northern Mariana Islands became eligible for SSI in January 1978.

Under the SSI program, each eligible person living in his/her own household and having no other countable income is provided in 2007 a monthly Federal cash payment of $623 ($934 for a couple if both members are eligible). Since 1975, these Federal SSI benefit rates have been increased by applying the same

cost-of-living adjustment that has been applied to benefits under the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability

Insurance (OASDI) program. In addition to setting a Federal benefit standard, the legislation establishing

SSI also permitted individual States to supplement the Federal payment with an additional monthly

amount. As described in section III, these State supplementary payments can be either voluntary at the

option of the individual States or, in certain cases, mandatory under requirements in effect when the SSI

program began.

Under section 231 of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, the

Commissioner of Social Security is required to submit a report on the SSI program to the President and

Congress no later than May 30 of each year. This is the eleventh annual report on the SSI program. The

legislative mandate requires that the report include:

 • A comprehensive description of the SSI program;

 • Historical and current data relating to (1) claims intake and dispositions at all levels of decision making; (2) demographic information about recipients, including program cost and prior enrollment in

other public benefit programs; (3) redeterminations, continuing disability reviews, and utilization of

work incentives; (4) administrative costs; and (5) State supplementation program operations; 

 • 25-year projections of future participation rates and program costs; 

 • A historical summary of statutory changes to title XVI of the Social Security Act; and

 • Summaries of any relevant research on the SSI program by SSA or others.

In addition, the legislation specified that the report may include views of the SSI program by the Social

Security Advisory Board.

Much of the required information is the subject of extensive ongoing research. In responding to each of the

specific requests for information, every effort has been made to provide the best information available at

this time. SSA will continue to make improvements upon such information, in order to provide the President and Congress with the input necessary to effectively manage this important part of our society’s

social safety net.
2007 SSI Annual Report

2

II. HIGHLIGHTS

The Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program is a nationwide Federal assistance program administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA) that guarantees a minimum level of income for needy

aged, blind, or disabled individuals. This section presents highlights of recent SSI program experience, a

summary of important changes to the program in the last year, a discussion of current issues facing the SSI

program, and a summary of the key results from the 25-year projections.

A. RECENT PROGRAM EXPERIENCE

SSI program experience during the past year included the following:

 • During calendar year 2006, 1.9 million individuals applied for SSI benefits based on blindness or disability, a decrease of 1.5 percent over 2005. An additional 150,000 applied for SSI benefits based on

age, a decrease of 4 percent from 2005. In 2006, 849,000 applicants were awarded SSI benefits, a

decrease of 1 percent as compared to the 854,000 awarded benefits in 2005.

 • On average during calendar year 2006, 6.9 million individuals received Federal SSI benefits on a

monthly basis. This group was composed of 1.1 million aged recipients, 5.7 million disabled recipients, and 69,000 blind recipients. Of the 5.8 million blind or disabled recipients, 0.7 million were

aged 65 or older. During the year, 7.8 million aged, blind, or disabled individuals received at least 1

month’s Federal SSI benefit.

 • Federal expenditures for payments under the SSI program in calendar year 2006 totaled $37.8 billion,

up from $36.0 billion in 2005.

 • On average during calendar year 2006, 2.3 million individuals received Federally-administered State

supplementary payments on a monthly basis. This group was composed of 0.6 million aged recipients, 1.6 million disabled recipients, and fewer than 50 thousand blind recipients. During calendar

year 2006, 2.5 million individuals received at least 1 month’s Federally-administered State supplementary payment.

 • State expenditures for Federally-administered supplements, excluding fees for Federal administration,

totaled $4.2 billion in calendar year 2006, which is basically unchanged from 2005.

 • The percentage of SSI recipients participating in direct deposit reached 56 percent in fiscal year 2006.

SSI recipient participation in direct deposit has increased gradually in recent years after experiencing

a period of sharp growth when it more than doubled from 24 percent in 1995 to 49 percent in 2000. 

 • The cost of administering the SSI program in fiscal year 2006 was $3.0 billion, which was roughly

7 percent of total Federally-administered SSI expenditures.

 • In January 2007, 7.3 million individuals received Federally-administered monthly SSI benefits averaging $467. Of these, 7.0 million received monthly Federal SSI payments averaging $435, and

2.3 million received monthly State supplementation payments averaging $157.

B. SSI LEGISLATION SINCE THE 2006 ANNUAL REPORT

Since the 2006 SSI Annual Report was transmitted to the President and Congress on May 30, 2006, the

following legislative change was made to the SSI program:
3

2007 SSI Annual Report

Public Law 109-432, enacted December 20, 2006

Extends consideration of combat pay as earned income for Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) purposes for

one additional year (for taxable years ending before January 1, 2008). For SSI purposes, EITC payments

are excluded from income, and are not a countable resource for 9 calendar months following the month of

receipt.

C. CURRENT ISSUES FACING THE SSI PROGRAM

Thirty-five years after the enactment of the original Supplemental Security Income legislation, the SSI

program continues to play a pivotal role in the lives of low-income Americans, helping the aged, blind,

and disabled meet their basic needs. SSI provides these individuals with a safety net—a means to achieve

some measure of economic independence—while also providing incentives to enter or return to the workforce. To the extent the program meets these needs, SSI continues to provide the very important “lastresort” assistance intended by Congress. As of January 2007, SSI Federally-administered payments were

being made to more than 1.2 million aged individuals and over 6 million blind or disabled individuals.

However, the SSI program continues to face challenges related to limited Agency resources and to structural constraints that affect program effectiveness. For example, how can SSA maintain, let alone improve,

SSI payment accuracy in an environment where budget restrictions limit the funding available for program

integrity reviews? Additionally, how well does the program reach its intended recipients when resource

limits have remained static since 1989? Both the accomplishments and the challenges of current program

structure must be properly assessed as SSA continues efforts to improve program efficiency and build

upon SSI program successes. 

Program simplification efforts

Perhaps the longest-running challenge of the SSI program is complexity. Complexity is inherent in the

process of evaluating eligibility and payment levels for any means-tested assistance program, and in

assessing the accuracy of payments that have already been made. In an effort to streamline program policy,

SSA has published within the past year the following final regulations1 related to consideration of income

and resources. 

 • Infrequent or Irregular Income consideration has been simplified by changing the evaluation

period from a monthly to a quarterly basis. Previously income received in a month that in total did not

exceed $10 of earned income or $20 of unearned income was excluded, if the income was received

only once in a calendar quarter from a single source, or if the SSI recipient could not have reasonably

expected the income. Under the new regulations, the first $30 of earned or $60 of unearned infrequent

or irregular income received in the calendar quarter is excluded.

 • Interest and Dividend Income generally is no longer considered for program purposes. SSA experience has been that SSI recipients generally have very limited resources, and that documentation of

such income very rarely leads to changes in eligibility or payment amounts. The program change

streamlines the evaluation process by eliminating the need to document such income. 

 • Gift Income Used to Pay Tuition, Fees or Other Necessary Educational Expenses is now

excluded, providing the same exemption for gift income that applies to grants, scholarships and fellowships used for such purposes. Gift income for educational expenses is now also an exempt

resource for 9 months after the month in which the income is received. 

1 Final rules regarding these changes were published on August 9, 2006 (71 FR 45375), based upon legislative changes made in sections 430, 435, and 436

of the Social Security Protection Act of 2004 (P.L. 108-203).
2007 SSI Annual Report

4

 • Wages and Unearned Income Received by Uniformed Service Members can now be considered

in the month earned instead of the month received, if such income treatment would allow for more

effective administration of the SSI program. Income for SSI purposes is traditionally considered in

the month received, but uniformed service members are paid twice per month, receiving one Leave

and Earnings Statement per month (that reflects prior-month earnings). This new option for income

consideration removes the need for SSA to use a complex formula to determine countable income for

service members. 

An additional consideration in any evaluation of SSI program complexity is the appropriateness of such

complicated standards. While SSA continues efforts to streamline and consolidate elements of the program, the basic framework of SSI is the same today as it was in 1972. Payment eligibility and amounts due

are based upon the fluctuating needs of millions of low-income individuals. Every month is a new set of

individual circumstances that may require a new determination.

However this inherent complexity, and the administrative challenges that go along with this complexity,

are not in themselves evidence of a problem that must be resolved. SSA has studied SSI simplification

proposals for many years, and has found that only limited modifications can be made without adversely

affecting SSI beneficiaries or program administration or adding substantial program cost. In a meanstested program, benefit amounts are determined by the degree of an individual’s (or couple’s) needs. Thus

the program must take into account all income and resources that an individual has, or can, access. Such

accounting is labor-intensive, but not without merit. In comparison to the array of State assistance programs that existed before SSI, with varying eligibility requirements and disproportionate payment levels,

the current program is a considerable improvement. And when large-scale simplification proposals are

considered in relation to increased program costs or diminished eligibility, the existing SSI structure

appears more reasonable. 

Helping beneficiaries return to work

Another crucial goal of the Agency’s SSI program evaluation is the return to work of individuals who are

capable of rejoining the workforce. To this end, SSA has updated regulations related to the duration of a

plan to achieve self-support (PASS).1 The PASS provisions contained in the original SSI legislation contained specific time frames that generally limited the plan’s duration to 36 months. The new final regulations2 tie this duration period more directly to the employment goals rather than to a specific number of

months, allowing SSA to consider individual needs. They clarify that a PASS must always have a feasible

employment goal and a viable plan to reach that goal, while also keeping with Congressional intent to provide every opportunity and encouragement for the blind and disabled to return to gainful employment. 

Automation initiatives have also assisted SSA’s efforts to make work attempts less burdensome on the SSI

recipient. The Agency’s new SSI Monthly Wage Verification (SSIMWV) application provides field

employees with an efficient means of recording and posting monthly wages for SSI recipients. The

SSIMWV reporting process allows these SSA employees to input pay stubs, produce receipts, post earnings to multiple SSI records, and archive records of work reports—all through one computer application.

While this new tool will assist in prevention of the overpayments that can result when recipients return to

work, the efficient and accurate processing of wage reports afforded by the new program is perhaps its

greatest benefit.

Legislative efforts

In efforts to address emerging issues within the SSI program, the Agency has also pursued legislative remedies—most notably through a proposal within the President’s FY 2008 Budget. Current law allows for a

1 The PASS rules are explained in section III(E), Incentives for Work and Opportunities for Rehabilitation.

2 Final rules regarding the PASS change were published on May 16, 2006 (71 FR 28262).
5

2007 SSI Annual Report

7-year maximum period of SSI eligibility for refugees and certain other noncitizens. Beyond the 7-year

period, these individuals become ineligible for SSI unless they have attained U.S. citizenship. The FY

2008 Budget proposal would temporarily extend this eligibility to 8 years effective October 1, 2007

through September 30, 2010, acknowledging that many such individuals need additional time to complete

the naturalization process. The plight of these individuals is significant because these immigrants often

arrive in the United States with little or no immediate means of support. 

Program integrity challenges

For more than 70 years, SSA has been committed to paying the right benefit to the right person at the right

time. The challenge in meeting this goal is especially apparent in the administration of the SSI program

because payment eligibility and amounts are so closely tied to the fluctuating circumstances of individual

recipients. In spite of these obstacles, the Agency consistently maintains a high degree of program accuracy. In FY 2005, 93.6 percent of SSI outlays were free of overpayment errors, and 98.6 percent were free

of underpayment errors. While this payment accuracy rate is commendable, the difficulty in maintaining

and building upon this success remains a consistent challenge.

As first described in last year’s report, SSA gained an important program integrity resource through the

extension of the pre-effectuation review (PER) process from Social Security disability to SSI initial adult

disability claims.1 In the second year of its 3-year phase in, quality reviews are currently being performed

on 40 percent of initial adult disability and blindness claims that are approved by a State Disability Determination Services (DDS).2 SSA projects that these PER verifications could potentially save up to $490

million over a 10-year period. However, it should also be noted that the savings attainable through the process can only be realized if funding is available to conduct such reviews. 

Another extremely valuable tool in the maintenance of payment accuracy is the network of computer

matching programs that SSA uses to verify eligibility and payment amounts. By establishing a process

which provides for periodic (usually monthly) computer matches with financial institutions, social service

agencies, and other entities, SSA has built an extensive means of verifying the income and resources

reported by SSI recipients:

 • SSA can frequently identify SSI recipients who have been recently hired, received wages, or become

eligible for unemployment through computer matching with the Office of Child Support Enforcement

(OCSE).

 • A web-based application called the Internet-Electronic Death Registration (I-EDR) allows a State’s

Bureau of Vital Statistics to verify decedent Social Security numbers. Participating jurisdictions

notify SSA, allowing the Agency to follow-up on the information, and stop benefits if necessary. 

 • SSA field personnel use the SSA Access to State Records Online (SASRO) to verify an SSI recipient’s

receipt of State-administered benefits, including Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF), unemployment and workers’ compensation.

Other important computer matching programs include information exchanges with the Department of Veterans Affairs, law-enforcement agencies, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the

Department of Homeland Security (DHS). 

1 The PER process for initial SSI adult disability claims was established with the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (P.L. 109-171) which became law on February 8, 2006. SSI initial disability claims involving concurrent Social Security disability claims were already subject to PER.

2 The 40 percent review rate is effective for 2007. In 2008, at full phase in, the review rate becomes 50 percent—the same rate that is currently applicable

for Social Security initial disability claims. 
2007 SSI Annual Report

6

Another Agency effort to prevent improper payments focuses on potential residency violations. SSI recipients are generally ineligible for benefits when outside the United States; thus SSA has taken a number of

steps to verify that individuals currently on the rolls are within the country (or within the Northern Mariana Islands). In one review, Agency employees examined images of SSI checks, looking for any that were

endorsed by a financial institution outside the U.S. In another program to double-check U.S. residency,

SSA matches SSI beneficiary data with DHS records of deported individuals. SSA also has entered into

agreements with a number of States (including Arkansas, California, Iowa, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, and in 2006, Maine, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Wyoming) regarding the possible

use of State Medicaid Investigators to conduct home visits for SSI recipients. 

While these oversight mechanisms are all important parts of SSA’s program integrity agenda, the most

valuable payment accuracy tools available to the Agency are redeterminations—both nondisability redeterminations and continuing disability reviews (CDRs). Nondisability redeterminations are periodic

reviews that verify living arrangement, income levels, and other factors related to SSI eligibility. The frequency of the reviews is based on the probability that changes affecting eligibility may occur. CDRs are

reviews conducted to ensure that recipients are still disabled according to Agency rules. As with the redetermination policy, the frequency of CDRs is dependent upon the likelihood that a recipient’s medical condition will change. 

Both review programs are enormously cost-effective. Redeterminations are estimated to save 7 program

dollars for every 1 dollar spent on processing. CDRs have an even higher return on investment, saving an

estimated 10 dollars for every 1 dollar spent in processing. These tools are so effective because they are

the best way to ensure that SSI recipients do not receive payments for which they are ineligible, and

because they prevent future improper payments. In FY 2006, the Agency processed over 1 million SSI

redeterminations, and over 1.3 million CDRs.1

While these numbers are impressive, it is important to note that in recent years, as stewardship funding has

waned, the number of redeterminations and CDRs processed has steadily decreased. Budget limitations

have required the Agency to focus resources on front line service (such as field office personnel for new

claims) as opposed to stewardship initiatives (such as eligibility reviews). In FY 2006, SSA performed 25

percent fewer CDRs than in FY 2001. Perhaps more importantly since CDR savings result primarily from

full medical reviews, in FY 2006 SSA performed over 60 percent fewer full medical reviews than in FY

2001. Within that same period, redeterminations have also decreased dramatically—by more than 50 percent. 

An alternative method to ensure resource availability for these important integrity reviews is through dedicated funding. During the 7-year period of FY 1996 through FY 2002, SSA had the authority2 to increase

discretionary spending caps on administrative expenses, when it performed program integrity functions.

The President’s Budget for FY 2008 contains a provision that would once again provide such authority. If

enacted, this separate funding mechanism would allow SSA to prevent and recover more overpayments.

Without such funding, however, improper payments may well increase faster than program outlays.

Sufficiency of benefits

Another very important issue regarding the SSI program is that of sufficiency itself. To what extent does

the current program meet the needs of our lowest-income individuals who by definition are disabled,

blind, or elderly? 

1 FY 2006 performance data is from SSA’s Performance and Accountability Report, November 2006.

2 Granted through the Contract With America Advancement Act (P.L. 104-121), March 1996.
7

2007 SSI Annual Report

 • The 2007 Federal Benefit Rate of $623 (for an individual) is equal to about 73 percent of Federal Poverty Guidelines. 

 • Approximately 36 percent of American families that received an SSI payment (or other cash public

assistance) during 2005 lived below the poverty level. In single female parent families, 54 percent

lived below the poverty level.1

These statistics, in combination with SSI countable resource limits that have remained unchanged for over

20 years, would indicate a gap between the current program payment rates and the “safety net” envisioned

by Congress 35 years ago. However, an analysis of these statistics yields some relevant qualifiers:

 • SSI payment levels have historically approximated 70–75 percent of Federal Poverty Guidelines for

an individual.2 This may indicate that the SSI program was not intended as a full income subsidy, in

much the same way as a Social Security benefit was not designed to fully replace income received

during a beneficiary’s working years. 

 • Many SSI recipients are also eligible for State Supplementary Payments.3 These supplementary payments, where available, can substantially increase the value of total monthly benefits. In 2007, for

example, SSI recipients in California receive a combined monthly payment equal to just over 100 percent of Federal Poverty Guidelines for an individual. 

 • SSI recipients are frequently eligible for additional Federal and State assistance, such as Food Stamps,

Medicaid, and subsidized coverage under the new Medicare Part D prescription drug program. 

While the question of sufficiency has been a subject of ongoing Agency and external review, it is nonetheless an important issue to revisit as the Congress, the Executive Branch, and SSA continue efforts to

improve the SSI program. And while challenges are an inevitable part of any program as large and as situationally specific as SSI, modifications to the current program should be made with careful consideration

of the effectiveness of existing SSI structure, as well as these challenges of the future. 

D. KEY RESULTS FROM THE 25-YEAR PROJECTIONS

The major findings in the 25-year projections prepared for this report are summarized below:

 • Following small declines in the SSI recipient population in the late 1990s due to the combined impact

of Public Law 104-121 and Public Law 104-193, modest growth in the SSI rolls resumed in 2000, and

is expected to continue throughout the projection period largely due to the growth in the U.S. population. By 2031, the Federal SSI recipient population is estimated to reach 9.2 million. Expressed as a

percentage of the total U.S. population, the number of Federal SSI recipients is projected to increase

slightly from 2.27 percent of the population in 2006 to 2.52 percent by 2031 due largely to the changing age distribution of the population. 

 • Federal expenditures for SSI payments in calendar year 2007 are estimated to increase by $2.2 billion

to $40.0 billion, an increase of 5.9 percent from 2006 levels. In constant 2007 dollars, SSI program

outlays are projected to increase to $51.5 billion in 2031, a real increase of 1.2 percent per year. 

 • When compared to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), Federal SSI expenditures are projected to

decline over time, from the current level of 0.29 percent of GDP in 2006 to 0.24 percent of GDP by

2031.

1 “Poverty Status in the Past 12 Months of Families,” 2005 American Community Survey, U.S. Census Bureau.

2 Couple rates have been slightly higher (just over 80 percent) as a percentage of Federal Poverty Guidelines.

3 See table III.H1 for a breakout of State Supplementary payment programs. 
2007 SSI Annual Report

8

III. THE SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM 

This section presents a brief history and comprehensive description of the SSI program. This section also

includes information on the administration of the program and coordination with other programs.

A. BACKGROUND

Federal entitlement programs for the aged, blind, or disabled have their roots in the original Social Security Act of 1935. That Act established an old-age social insurance program to be administered by the Federal Government and an old-age means-tested assistance program to be administered by the States. Similar

programs for the blind or disabled were added to the Act in later years. Means-tested assistance provided a

safety net for individuals who were either ineligible for Social Security or whose benefits could not provide a basic level of income.

This means-tested assistance comprised three separate programs—Old-Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the

Blind (AB), and Aid to the Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD). Despite substantial Federal financing, these programs were essentially State programs. Federal law established only broad guidelines for

assistance. The Federal Government provided matching funds to support whatever payment levels the

States established, with no maximum or minimum standards. Consequently, each State was responsible for

setting its own standards for determining who would get assistance and how much they would receive.

Beginning in the early 1960s, this State-operated, Federally-assisted welfare system drew criticism that

was directed at the “crazy quilt” eligibility requirements and payment levels. Other criticism centered on

specific requirements, such as lien laws and provisions that required certain relatives to bear responsibility

for the maintenance of needy family members.

Responding to these concerns, Congress passed and the President approved the SSI program in 1972,

reversing the Federal and State roles with regard to adult assistance. Under the new arrangement, SSI

would provide a uniform Federal income floor while optional State programs supplemented that floor. The

new program was historic in that it shifted from the States to the Federal Government the responsibility for

determining who would receive assistance and how much assistance they would receive. 

B. THE BASIC PLAN

The main objective of the SSI program is to provide the basic financial support of needy aged, blind, or

disabled individuals. Congress designed the SSI program based on the following principles:

 • Eligibility requirements and benefit standards that are nationally uniform and eligibility determinations based on objective criteria;

 • An assistance source of last resort for the aged, blind, or disabled whose income and resources are

below specified levels;

 • Incentives and opportunities for those recipients able to work or to be rehabilitated that would enable

them to reduce their dependency on public assistance;

 • An efficient and economical method of providing assistance;

 • Inducements to encourage States to provide supplementation of the basic Federal benefit and protection for former recipients of State adult assistance programs who were converted to the SSI program;

and
9

2007 SSI Annual Report

 • Appropriate coordination of the SSI program with the food stamp, medical assistance, and other programs.1

C. UNIFORM STANDARDS AND OBJECTIVE CRITERIA

Prior to the SSI program, the eligibility of aged, blind, or disabled individuals for Federally-funded adult

assistance depended on the State in which they lived. Benefit amounts varied from State to State. The SSI

program replaced the State-run programs with a national program with uniform standards and objective

eligibility criteria. These standards include:

 • A uniform limitation on the dollar amount or value of income and resources that an individual can

have and still qualify for SSI assistance. The countable income limits for individuals and couples are

equal to their respective Federal benefit rates2 and hence are increased annually according to changes

in the cost of living. Effective January 1, 2007, the Federal benefit rate is $623 a month for individuals and $934 a month for couples. The resource limit is $2,000 in countable resources for individuals

and $3,000 for couples.

 • A uniform standard of 65 as the minimum age requirement for assistance based on age.

 • A uniform definition of disability and blindness. The definitions for individuals age 18 or older are

the same as those used for the Social Security Disability Insurance program. In order to be considered

disabled, an individual must have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment which is

expected to last or has lasted at least 12 continuous months or is expected to result in death and (1) if

age 18 or older prevents him/her from doing any substantial gainful activity3 or (2) if under age 18

results in marked and severe functional limitations. However, individuals for whom addiction to

drugs or alcoholism is a contributing factor material to the determination of their disabilities are not

eligible for benefits. In order to be considered blind, an individual must have central visual acuity of

20/200 or less in the better eye with the use of a correcting lens or have tunnel vision of 20 degrees or

less.

 • Uniform standards for citizenship and residency. In order to be eligible for SSI, an individual

must be a citizen (or national) of the United States, an American Indian born in Canada

who is under section 289 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an American Indian

born outside the United States who is a member of a Federally recognized Indian tribe under section 4(e) of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, a noncitizen who was

receiving SSI benefits on August 22, 1996, or be a qualified alien in one of the following categories:

 — Certain noncitizens who are blind or disabled and were lawfully residing in the United States on

August 22, 1996;

 — Refugees (eligibility generally limited to the 7-year period after their arrival in the United

States);

 — Asylees (eligibility generally limited to the 7-year period after the date they are granted asylum);

1 For example, as explained in section III.H, SSI recipients in most States are also automatically eligible for Medicaid, which generally provides for their

medical needs.

2 See table IV.A2 for historical and estimated future Federal benefit rates.

3 “Substantial gainful activity” (SGA) is used to describe a level of work activity that is both substantial—i.e., involves the performance of significant

physical and/or mental duties which are productive—and gainful—i.e., performed for remuneration or profit. SGA rules do not apply to the SSI blind. Generally earnings from work activity of over $900 a month is evidence of ability to engage in SGA. If an SSI applicant is earning over $900 a month, he/she

generally would not be considered disabled. However, if an SSI recipient is earning over $900 a month, he/she could continue to be eligible for SSI. (See

“Incentives for Work and Opportunities for Rehabilitation” section III.E.) The SGA level of $900 was increased from $860 effective January 1, 2007 (71 FR

62641). Yearly increases in the SGA level are based on increases in the national average wage index.
2007 SSI Annual Report

10

 — Noncitizens who have had their deportations withheld under section 243(h) of the INA as in

effect prior to April 1, 1997, or who have had their removals withheld under section 241(b)(3) of

the INA (eligibility generally limited to the 7-year period after the date that deportation or

removal is withheld);

 — Cuban and Haitian entrants as defined by Federal statute, including: 1) Section 501(e) of the

Refugee Education Assistance Act of 1980; 2) former parolees and other aliens who became residents under the Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966; 3) aliens who became permanent residents

under the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act; and 4) aliens who became permanent

residents under the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act (eligibility for these categories is

generally limited to the 7-year period after the date that entrant status is granted);

 — Amerasian immigrants admitted pursuant to section 584 of the Foreign Operations, Export

Financing, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, 1988, and subsequent amendments (eligibility generally limited to the 7-year period after their arrival in the United States);

 — Noncitizen active duty Armed Forces personnel, honorably discharged veterans, and their

spouses and dependent children; or

 — Lawful permanent residents who have earned, or can be credited (from their spouses or parents)

with, 40 qualifying quarters of earnings.

Qualified alien status includes noncitizens (or their parents or children) who have been battered or

subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by a spouse or parent (or a member of the spouse’s

or parent’s family) with whom they live, and who have an approved petition, or have a petition pending, setting forth a prima facie case for adjustment of their immigration status. A complete list of noncitizens who are considered qualified aliens can be found in the Glossary under “Qualified Alien”.

However, to be eligible to receive SSI benefits, these noncitizens also must be in one of the categories

listed above.

Finally, certain noncitizens may be eligible for SSI regardless of their immigration status if they have

been determined to be victims of trafficking in persons in the United States1. Such individuals are

treated for SSI purposes as refugees. That is, they are eligible for SSI for 7 years after a determination

is made that they are trafficking victims.

In addition to having to be a U.S. citizen (or national) or in one of the potentially eligible noncitizen

categories, an individual must reside in the 50 States, the District of Columbia or the Northern Mariana Islands. An individual also must be physically present in the United States2 for 30 consecutive

days, if he/she had been outside of the United States for 30 or more consecutive days. There are two

exceptions to the residency and physical presence requirements: 

 — Blind or disabled children who are citizens of the United States may continue to be eligible for

payments if they are living outside the United States with a parent who is on duty as a member of

the U.S. Armed Forces. This exception also applies to blind and disabled children of military

personnel who are born overseas, become blind or disabled overseas or applied for SSI benefits

while overseas.

1 Generally defined as the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services through the use of force, fraud, or

coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.

2 Fifty States, the District of Columbia or the Northern Mariana Islands.
11

2007 SSI Annual Report

 — Students studying abroad for not more than 1 year also may continue to be eligible for payments

if the studies are sponsored by a U.S. educational institution but could not be conducted in the

United States.

D. ASSISTANCE OF LAST RESORT

As a means-tested program, SSI takes into account all income and resources that an individual has or can

access. The amount of an individual’s countable income and resources are the measure of his/her need for

assistance.

1. Income

The amount of an individual’s income is used to determine both eligibility for, and the amount of, his/her

SSI benefit. As countable income increases, an individual’s SSI benefit amount decreases. Generally, ineligibility for SSI occurs when countable income equals the Federal benefit rate plus the amount of applicable Federally-administered State supplementary payment (State supplementation is discussed later).

The monthly Federal benefit rate1 is reduced dollar-for-dollar by the amount of the individual’s “countable” income—i.e., income less all applicable exclusions. Countable income is determined on a calendar

month basis. The result of this computation determines SSI eligibility and the amount of the benefit payable. These benefit rates are adjusted annually (in January) to reflect changes in the cost of living. 

When an individual lives in the household of another and receives support and maintenance in kind (i.e.,

generally room and board) from the householder, the Federal SSI benefit rate is reduced by one-third in

lieu of counting the actual value of the support and maintenance as unearned income. The value of food or

shelter-related items the individual receives in kind from persons other than the householder (including inkind assistance from outside the household in which he/she lives) is counted as unearned income.2 However, the amount that is countable is limited to an amount equal to one-third of the applicable Federal benefit rate plus $20.

SSI law defines two kinds of income—earned and unearned. Earned income is wages, net earnings from

self-employment, remuneration for work in a sheltered workshop, royalties on published work, and honoraria for services. All other income is unearned including, for example, Social Security benefits, other pensions, and unemployment compensation. The distinction between earned and unearned income is

significant because different exclusions apply to each type of income. 

However, not everything an individual receives is considered to be income. Generally, if the item received

cannot be used as, or to obtain food or shelter, it will not be considered as income. For example, if someone pays an individual’s medical bills, or offers free medical care, or if the individual receives money from

a social services agency that is a repayment of an amount he/she previously spent, that value is not considered income to the individual. In addition, some items that are considered to be income are excluded when

determining the amount of an individual’s benefit.

1 See table IV.A2 for historical and estimated future Federal benefit rates.

2 SSA simplified the SSI program (70 FR 6340) by generally eliminating clothing from the definition of income and from the definition of in-kind support

and maintenance effective February 7, 2005.
2007 SSI Annual Report

12

Income Exclusions1

The principal earned income exclusions are: 

 • The first $65 per month plus one-half of the remainder; 

 • Impairment-related work expenses of the disabled and work expenses of the blind; 

 • Income set aside or being used to pursue a plan to achieve self-support (PASS) by a disabled or blind

individual; and 

 • Infrequent or irregularly received income (the first $30 received in a quarter). 

The principal unearned income exclusions are: 

 • The first $20 per month;2

 • Income set aside or being used to pursue a PASS by a disabled or blind individual; 

 • State or locally funded assistance based on need; 

 • Rent subsidies under the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) programs;

 • The value of food stamps; and 

 • Infrequent or irregularly received income (the first $60 received in a quarter). 

2. Resources 

The value of an individual’s resources is used to determine whether he/she is eligible for SSI in any given

month. SSI law states that eligibility is restricted to individuals who have countable resources, determined

monthly, that do not exceed $2,000 ($3,000 for a couple). The law does not define what resources are, but

does stipulate what items are not considered resources.

Regulations stipulate that a resource is cash or other liquid asset or any real or personal property that individuals (or their spouses) own and could convert to cash to be used for their support and maintenance.

This definition is consistent with the general philosophy of the SSI program that only items that can be

used for an individual’s food or shelter should be used in determining his/her eligibility and benefit

amount. Not all resources an individual owns are counted. The value of an item may be totally excluded or

counted only to the extent that its value exceeds specified limits.

If an individual disposes of resources at less than fair market value within the 36-month period prior to

his/her application for SSI or at any time thereafter, he/she may be penalized. The penalty is a loss of benefits for a number of months (up to a 36-month maximum) obtained by dividing the uncompensated value

of disposed-of-resources by the Federal benefit rate plus the maximum State supplementary payment, if

any, applicable to the individual’s living arrangement. The penalty does not apply if, among other things,

the individual can show that the resources were disposed of exclusively for a purpose other than establishing SSI eligibility.

1 A complete list of the SSI income exclusions can be found in section V.B.

2 Any portion of this $20 amount not used to exclude unearned income may be used to exclude earned income.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

Resource Exclusions1

The principal resource exclusions are:

 • The home and land appertaining to it, regardless of value;

 • Life insurance policies whose total face value does not exceed $1,500;

 • Burial funds not in excess of $1,500 each for an individual and spouse (plus accrued interest);

 • Household goods, if needed for maintenance, use and occupancy of the home, and personal effects;2

 • An automobile, if used to provide necessary transportation;3

 • Property essential to self-support;

 • Resources set aside to fulfill a PASS; and

 • Amounts deposited into either a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or “Assets for

Independence Act” individual development account (IDA), including matching funds, and interest

earned on such amounts.

3. Filing for Other Benefits 

As the “program of last resort,” SSI benefits are provided to eligible individuals only to the extent that

their needs are not met by other sources. That is, after evaluating all other income and resources, SSI pays

what is necessary to bring an individual to the statutorily prescribed income “floor.” In keeping with this

principle, SSI law requires that SSI applicants and recipients file for other payments for which they may

be eligible, such as annuities, pensions, retirement or disability benefits, worker’s compensation, and

unemployment insurance benefits. 

SSA must provide an individual with written notice of potential eligibility for other benefits and of the

requirement to take all appropriate steps to pursue these benefits. The individual has 30 days from receipt

of the notice to file for the benefits involved. 

4. Eligibility Issues for Residents of Public Institutions or Medical Facilities 

State and local governments—rather than the Federal Government—traditionally have taken the financial

responsibility for residents of their public institutions. The SSI program continues this long-standing public assistance policy. People who are residents of public institutions for a full calendar month are generally

ineligible for SSI unless one of the following exceptions applies:

 • The public institution is a medical treatment facility and Medicaid pays more than 50 percent of the

cost of care, or in the case of a child under age 18, Medicaid and/or private health insurance pays

more than 50 percent of the cost of care—in these situations, the SSI payment is limited to $30;

1 A complete and more detailed list of the SSI resource exclusions can be found in section V.B.

2 The $2,000 value limit on household goods and personal effects was removed effective February 7, 2005 (70 FR 6340).

3 SSA also changed the evaluation of automobiles as an excludable resource, effective February 7, 2005 (70 FR 6340). Under the old rules, one automobile

could be excluded (regardless of value) if necessary for employment, medical treatment or essential daily activities. If not excludable under this criteria, one

automobile could be excluded to the extent its current market value did not exceed $4,500. The revised exclusion, applicable to any one automobile used for

transportation, simplifies the evaluation of this resource.
2007 SSI Annual Report

14

 • The public institution is a publicly operated community residence which serves no more than

16 residents; 

 • The public institution is an emergency shelter for the homeless (payments are limited to no more than

6 months in any 9-month period);

 • The recipient was eligible under section 1619(a) or (b)1 for the month preceding the first full month in

the public institution and is permitted by the institution to retain any benefits (payable for up to 2

months); or

 • A physician certifies that the recipient’s stay in a medical facility is likely not to exceed 3 months and

continued SSI eligibility is needed to maintain and provide for the expenses of the home to which the

individual will return. In these situations, the recipient may continue to receive the full benefit for any

of the first 3 full months of medical confinement if all other conditions for payment are met.

5. Personal Needs Allowance 

When individuals enter medical treatment facilities in which more than half of the bill is paid by the Medicaid program, their monthly Federal payment standard is generally reduced to $30, beginning with the

first full calendar month they are in the facility. In the case of an individual under age 18, the $30 payment

standard is also applicable if more than half of the bill is paid by private insurance or a combination of

Medicaid and private insurance. The theory behind this provision is that the individual’s basic needs are

being met by the medical facility. In these cases, the SSI program provides up to $30 a month, which is

intended to take care of small comfort items not provided by the institution. 

6. Deeming 

In certain situations the income and resources of others are counted in determining whether an individual’s

income and resources fall below the levels established by law. This process is called “deeming” and is

applied in cases where an eligible individual lives with an ineligible spouse, an eligible child lives with an

ineligible parent, or an eligible noncitizen has a sponsor.2 In concept, the practice takes into account the

responsibility of the spouse, parent, or sponsor to provide for the basic needs of the eligible individual. 

a. Spouse-to-Spouse Deeming 

When an eligible individual lives in the same household with a spouse who is not eligible for SSI, the ineligible spouse’s income and resources are deemed to be available to the eligible individual. In determining

the amount of income and resources available to the eligible individual, all applicable exclusions are used.

In addition, a living allowance is provided for the ineligible spouse, as well as any ineligible children

under age 183 living in the household. The allowance reduces the amount of income to be deemed.

Spouse-to-spouse deeming is intended to result in the same amount of income available to the couple as

would be available if both members of the couple were aged, blind, or disabled and eligible for SSI.

Deeming does not apply when the eligible individual is not living in the same household as the ineligible

spouse. However, if the ineligible spouse’s absence is temporary or is due solely to an active duty assignment as a member of the U.S. Armed Forces, deeming would continue to apply. 

1 See section III.E.6 of this report for a description of the special section 1619 provisions for disabled individuals who work.

2 Deeming also applies to an individual who lives with an essential person (a concept carried over from the former State assistance plans). However, there

are about 100 of these cases remaining.

3 Under age 21, if a student.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

b. Parent-to-Child Deeming 

A child under age 18 is subject to deeming from an ineligible natural or adoptive parent (and that parent’s

spouse, if any) living in the same household. Certain amounts of the parent’s income are excluded, living

allowances are provided for the parent(s) and an allocation is set aside for each ineligible child under

age 18 who is living in the household. Deeming to a child would continue if the parent is absent from the

household but the absence is temporary or is due solely to active duty assignment as a member of the U.S.

Armed Forces. If a child lives in a household in which all members are receiving public assistance benefits, that child is not considered to be receiving any support and deeming would not apply. 

c. Sponsor-to-Alien Deeming 

The income and resources of noncitizens are deemed to include those of their sponsors. The way the

income and resources are deemed and the length of the deeming period depend on whether the sponsor

signed a legally enforceable affidavit of support1 or the previous version of the affidavit. Generally, individuals who entered the country before 1998 did so under the old version of the affidavit.2

Under the old version of the affidavit, deeming of the sponsor’s income and resources lasts until the noncitizen has been in the United States for 3 years.3 Living allowances equal to the Federal benefit rate are

provided for the sponsor, and allowances equal to one-half of the Federal benefit rate are provided for each

of the sponsor’s dependents. Allowances are also provided for the sponsor and his/her family members in

determining deemed resources. These allowances reduce the amount of the sponsor’s income and

resources deemed to the noncitizen.

For noncitizens admitted into the United States under a legally enforceable affidavit of support, deeming

generally applies until the noncitizen becomes a U.S. citizen. Deeming ends before citizenship if the noncitizen has earned, or can be credited with, 40 qualifying quarters of earnings. Children and spouses of

workers may be credited with quarters earned by the worker. A quarter otherwise earned after 1996 does

not count as one of the required 40 if the noncitizen or worker received Federal means-tested public benefits during the relevant period. 

Also for this group of noncitizens, deeming does not apply for specified periods if the noncitizens or their

children or parents have been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty while in the United States or if

sponsors leave the noncitizens indigent by not providing them with sufficient support. 

E. INCENTIVES FOR WORK AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REHABILITATION

SSI benefits provide a basic level of assistance for individuals who are blind or disabled with limited earnings ability due to their impairments. Nonetheless, for recipients who want to work, the SSI program is

designed to encourage and support their work attempts in order to help them achieve greater degrees of

independence. The SSI program includes a number of work incentive provisions that enable recipients

who are blind or disabled to work and retain benefits or to increase their levels of work activity without

the loss of SSI disability status or Medicaid. These incentives provide higher amounts of income or

resource exclusions as recognition of the expenses associated with working or as inducements to seek

rehabilitation services and support for work efforts. 

1 Legally enforceable affidavits of support are required by Public Law 104-208.

2 The Immigration and Naturalization Service now known as the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) began using the new, legally

enforceable affidavits on December 19, 1997. However, if a potential immigrant had a visa issued before that date, the sponsor would sign an old version of

the affidavit even if the affidavit was signed after December 19, 1997.

3 For a temporary period—January 1994 through September 1996—the deeming period was 5 years.
2007 SSI Annual Report

16

The SSI program also includes provisions to help disabled beneficiaries obtain vocational rehabilitation

and employment support services. These provisions were revised by legislation establishing the Ticket to

Work program, which is described in section III.E.7.

1. Earned Income Exclusion 

The first $65 ($85 if the individual has no income other than earnings) of any monthly earned income plus

one-half of remaining earnings are excluded for SSI benefit computation purposes. This general earned

income exclusion is intended to help offset expenses incurred when working. It assures that SSI recipients

who are working will be rewarded for their efforts by having greater total income than those who do not

work.

2. Impairment-Related Work Expense Exclusion 

The costs of certain impairment-related services and items that a disabled (but not blind) individual needs

in order to work are excluded from earned income in determining SSI eligibility and benefit amounts. 

In calculating these expenses, amounts equal to the costs of certain attendant care services, medical

devices, equipment, prostheses, vehicle modifications, residential modifications to accommodate wheelchairs and similar items and services are deductible from earnings. The costs of routine drugs and routine

medical services are not deductible unless these drugs and services are necessary to control the disabling

condition. They are paid for by the individual, and they are not reimbursable from another source such as

Medicaid.

3. Work Expenses of the Blind Exclusion 

Any earned income by a blind individual that is used to meet expenses needed to earn that income is

excluded from earned income in determining SSI eligibility and benefit amounts. A deductible expense

need not be directly related to the worker’s blindness; it need only be an ordinary and necessary work

expense of the worker.

Some frequently excluded work expenses include transportation to and from work, meals consumed during work hours, job equipment, licenses, income or FICA taxes, and costs of job training. 

4. Student Earned Income Exclusion 

The student earned income exclusion is an additional exclusion for an individual who is under age 22 and

regularly attending school. It is intended to help defray the cost of educational training. Under current regulations, up to $1,510 of earned income per month but no more than $6,100 per year may be excluded.1

5. Plan to Achieve Self-Support 

A plan to achieve self-support (PASS) allows a disabled or blind individual to set aside income and

resources to get a specific type of job or to start a business. This may involve setting aside funds for education or vocational training. Funds can even be set aside to purchase work-related equipment or pay for

transportation related to the work goal. The income and resources that are set aside are excluded under the

SSI income and resources tests. 

1 Increased from $1,460 and $5,910, respectively, effective January 1, 2007 (71 FR 62636). Under current regulations this exclusion is increased yearly

based on changes in the cost of living.
17

2007 SSI Annual Report

The individual must have a feasible work goal, a specific savings or spending plan, and must provide for a

clearly identifiable accounting for the funds which are set aside. The PASS must be approved by SSA. The

individual must then follow the plan and negotiate revisions as needed. SSA monitors the plans once

approved by reviewing them periodically to ensure the individual’s progress towards attaining the work

goal. 

6. Special Provisions for Disabled People Who Work 

This work incentive generally is referred to by its section number in the Social Security Act, section 1619.

Under section 1619(a), disabled individuals who would cease to be eligible because of earnings over the

substantial gainful activity level can receive special cash benefits as long as they:

 • Continue to have the disabling condition;

 • Have income under the amount which would cause ineligibility for any payment under SSI income

counting rules; and

 • Meet all other nondisability requirements for SSI payment.

In many States, being a recipient of the special benefit permits the individual to be eligible for Medicaid

benefits.

Under section 1619(b), “SSI recipient” status for Medicaid eligibility purposes also is provided to individuals:

 • Whose earnings preclude any SSI payment but are not sufficient to provide a reasonable equivalent of

the SSI, social services, and Medicaid benefits that the individuals would have in the absence of earnings; and 

 • Whose ability to continue working would be seriously inhibited by the loss of social services and

Medicaid benefits. 

To qualify for extended Medicaid coverage under section 1619(b) an individual must: 

 • Have a disabling condition;

 • Need Medicaid in order to work;

 • Not be able to afford equivalent medical coverage and publicly funded personal or attendant care

which would be lost without assistance; 

 • Meet all nondisability requirements for SSI payment other than earnings; and 

 • Have received a regular SSI cash payment in a previous month within the current period of eligibility.

(In some States, the individual must have qualified for Medicaid the month preceding the first month

of 1619 eligibility.) 

In determining whether individuals’ earnings are not sufficient to provide them with the equivalent benefits they would be eligible for if they stopped working, their earnings are compared to a threshold amount

for their State of residence. Section 1619(b) status continues if the earnings are at or below the threshold.

If earnings exceed the State threshold, an individualized assessment of the need for Medicaid is made and

1619(b) status may continue. 
2007 SSI Annual Report

18

7. Vocational Rehabilitation/Ticket to Work Program

Since the beginning of the SSI program, State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies have provided services to those blind or disabled SSI recipients whom they accepted as clients. SSA has traditionally reimbursed the VR agency for services provided in situations where the services result in the individual’s

working at the substantial gainful activity level for a continuous period of 9 months, and in certain other

limited situations.

The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 (“the Ticket legislation”) established a

Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program (“Ticket to Work program”) under which a blind or disabled

beneficiary may obtain vocational rehabilitation, employment and other support services from a qualified

private or public provider referred to as an “employment network” (EN), or from a State VR agency. In

addition, the Ticket legislation provided for a new procedure for compensating ENs under an outcome or

outcome-milestone payment system1. By expanding the pool of providers and giving the providers incentives for achieving success, this program seeks to expand a disabled beneficiary’s access to these services

in order to assist the beneficiary in finding, entering, and retaining employment and reducing his/her

dependence on cash benefits. Regulations issued by the Commissioner became effective January 2002.

After being phased in beginning in 2002, the Ticket to Work program has been in operation nationwide

since November 2003. Under this program SSA provides eligible individuals who receive SSI benefits due

to blindness or disability with a Ticket to Work document (“ticket”). These individuals may use the ticket

to obtain the vocational rehabilitation services, employment services and other support services needed to

return to work, or go to work for the first time. The Ticket to Work program provides that as long as the

beneficiary is “using a ticket” as defined by the Commissioner, SSA will not initiate a continuing disability review to determine whether the beneficiary has medically improved. Therefore the beneficiary’s

efforts under the Ticket to Work program to increase self-sufficiency will not be interrupted by a decision

that his/her medical condition has improved. Individuals not eligible for a ticket may still request services

from a State VR agency, which must decide whether they are eligible for services under the Rehabilitation

Act of 1973.

ENs and State VR agencies are the only providers of VR services to disabled SSI recipients that can be

compensated for those services by SSA. All ENs are compensated through the outcome-based system.

State VR agencies are compensated under the traditional VR reimbursement system for those cases where

they have not elected to participate as an EN. Any services provided by the State VR agencies to SSI

recipients who are not yet eligible for a ticket will be compensated under the traditional VR reimbursement system.

Individuals receiving SSI benefits who improve medically and, therefore, are no longer considered disabled or blind can continue to receive SSI benefits if they are actively participating in the Ticket to Work

program, or another approved program of VR services, employment services, or other support services,

and SSA determines that continuation or completion of the program will increase the likelihood that they

will be permanently removed from the SSI rolls. SSI benefits and Medicaid generally continue until the

approved program is completed or until the individual ceases to participate in the program.

8. Expedited Reinstatement

A disabled or blind individual whose eligibility for SSI payments ended because of earnings can request

expedited reinstatement of his/her SSI benefits without filing a new application. To qualify for expedited

1 State VR agencies generally have the option on a case-by-case basis of electing to be paid under an EN payment system or under the traditional cost reimbursement payment system.
19

2007 SSI Annual Report

reinstatement, the individual must make the request within 60 months after his/her eligibility ended and

must have a disabling medical condition that: (1) is the same as (or related to) the disabling medical condition that led to the previous period of eligibility and (2) prevents him/her from performing substantial

gainful activity. In determining whether the individual is disabled or blind, the medical improvement

review standard is applied. Normal nonmedical requirements for SSI eligibility still apply.

An individual requesting expedited reinstatement may receive up to 6 months of provisional benefits while

his/her request is pending. These benefits generally are not considered an overpayment if the request is

denied. Provisional benefits may include Medicaid but do not include any State supplementary payments.

Provisional benefits also may be received by the individual’s spouse at a couple’s rate if the spouse was

previously eligible for SSI as a spouse.

F. ADMINISTRATION OF THE SSI PROGRAM

The framers of the SSI program chose SSA to administer the SSI program because the basic system for

paying monthly benefits to a large number of individuals was already in place in the form of the Social

Security program, and SSA had a long-standing reputation for dealing with the public in a fair and humane

manner.

1. Application Process

Individuals can apply for SSI benefits at any one of the approximately 1,300 SSA field offices around the

country or through SSA teleservice centers. The claims process includes the application interview, the

obtaining of necessary evidence and documentation, and the adjudication of the claim. Although many of

the eligibility requirements for the Social Security program and the SSI program are different, the application process is very similar. Many times, individuals file for benefits under both programs at the same

time.

SSA corroborates information provided by applicants for SSI through independent or collateral sources.

Generally, the basic responsibility for obtaining evidence lies with the claimant, although SSA often gives

advice and assistance on ways to obtain the needed information. Because of the special circumstances of

the SSI population (for example, financial need, old age, or illness), SSA makes special efforts to assist

claimants in obtaining the necessary proofs.

With regard to disability and blindness claims, SSA makes determinations of all of the nonmedical eligibility factors whereas each State’s Disability Determination Services (DDS) makes determinations of the

medical eligibility factors.1

2. Determination of Eligibility for Benefits

SSI applications have no retroactivity and become effective in the month after the month of filing or the

month after all eligibility requirements are met, whichever is later. Eligibility for benefits is determined on

a current monthly basis. The amount of the monthly benefit generally is determined using income in the

second month preceding the month for and in which the benefit is paid (a method called retrospective

monthly accounting). However, at the start of a period of eligibility or re-eligibility, the benefits for the

first and second months are both determined using the income received in the first month. (One-time, nonrecurring income would only be counted in the month received.)

1 The applicant can appeal unfavorable determinations of either the nonmedical or medical eligibility factors. The administrative review process consists of

several steps, which must be requested within certain time periods.
2007 SSI Annual Report

20

3. Payment of Benefits

SSI benefits generally are paid on the first day of each month. If the first of the month falls on a weekend

or legal public holiday, benefit payments are delivered on the first working day preceding such Saturday,

Sunday, or holiday. While SSA strongly encourages all SSI beneficiaries to receive their monthly benefits

by direct deposit, benefit payments are also made by check if individuals do not wish to have their benefits

sent directly to a financial institution. Monthly benefit payments include both the Federal SSI and State

amounts if the recipient lives in a State in which SSA administers the State supplementary payment. (See

section III.G.)

4. Ensuring Continued Eligibility for Benefits

SSI recipients are required to have their nonmedical eligibility factors redetermined periodically, generally

every 1 to 6 years depending on their specific situation.

In addition to these nonmedical reviews, medical reviews are conducted on disabled or blind recipients in

order to determine if they continue to be disabled or blind. For administrative efficiency the medical

reviews are done most often on those disabled or blind recipients whose medical conditions are considered

likely to improve. Medical reviews are required for disabled or blind recipients, for example, under the

following circumstances:

 • When earnings of recipients exceed the substantial gainful activity level;1

 • At least once every 3 years for recipients under age 18 whose medical conditions are considered

likely to improve;

 • Within 12 months after birth for recipients whose low birth weight is a contributing factor material to

the determination of their disability, unless the Commissioner determines that the impairment is not

expected to improve within 12 months of the child’s birth; and 

 • Within 1 year after attainment of age 18 and using the adult eligibility criteria, for recipients whose

eligibility for SSI benefits was established under the disabled child eligibility criteria.

Applicants and recipients are required to report events and changes of circumstances that may affect their

SSI eligibility and benefit amounts. Such reports are required, for example, when an individual has a

change in the amount of his/her income or resources, changes living arrangements, or leaves the United

States. Failure or delay in submitting a required report can result in monetary penalties or ineligibility for

SSI benefits.

The basic “failure to report” penalty is $25 for the first such failure or delay, $50 for the second such failure or delay, and $100 for each subsequent failure or delay. However, in cases of fraud or false representation of material facts, SSA’s Inspector General can assess civil monetary penalties in amounts as large as

$5,000. SSA also has the authority to suspend eligibility to SSI benefits for periods of 6, 12, or 24 months.

Additionally, SSA may use an accelerated rate of overpayment recovery to encourage accurate reporting.

Overpayments to SSI recipients are generally recovered by withholding from the monthly benefit an

amount equal to 10 percent of the individual’s countable monthly income. For many recipients whose only

income is SSI, this amounts to 10 percent of their monthly SSI payment. However, if SSA determines that

1 A medical review cannot be initiated while the SSI recipient is “using a ticket” under the Ticket to Work program.
21

2007 SSI Annual Report

misrepresentation or concealment of material information has occurred, 100 percent of the monthly SSI

benefit may be subject to recovery.

5. Representative Payees 

When SSI recipients are incapable of managing their benefits or are declared legally incompetent, SSA

appoints representative payees for them, and their SSI benefits are sent to the representative payees. In

many cases the representative payee is a spouse, a parent, or other close relative who will act in the recipient’s best interest. In some cases, an SSA-approved organization may be appointed and some organizations have been authorized by SSA to collect a fee from the benefit for acting as payee. The fee cannot

exceed the lesser of 10 percent of the benefit amount or a specified amount ($34 a month in 2007 ($66 a

month for disabled recipients who also have a drug addiction or alcoholism condition)).

Representative payees may use an SSI recipient’s benefit only for the use and benefit of the recipient and

must account for all benefits received. Representative payees also are required to report any changes that

may affect SSI recipients’ eligibility and payment amount and may be held liable for certain overpayments

that occur. In cases in which a child is due a retroactive payment that exceeds six times the Federal benefit

rate, the representative payee is required to establish a dedicated account at a financial institution to maintain the retroactive payment. Expenditures from the account must be used primarily for certain expenses

related to the child’s impairment.

6. Appeal Rights 

Recipients must be informed in writing in advance of adverse actions SSA plans to take and must be given

the opportunity to request that their benefits continue while a decision at the first level of appeal is pending. Recipients can qualify for payment continuation when they appeal an adverse action within 10 days of

receiving the advance notice. Slightly different rules apply to medical cessation cases. When appealing

medical cessation cases, individuals may elect to have their benefits continued at both the reconsideration

and hearing levels of appeal.

7. Fees for Attorneys and Non-attorney Representatives

At any time, an individual may appoint a representative in any dealings with the Social Security Administration. If such a representative is an attorney, he/she must be in good standing, have the right to practice

law before a court, not be disqualified or suspended from acting as a representative in dealings with Social

Security, and not be prohibited by any law from acting as a representative. If the individual is not an attorney, he/she must meet qualifications specified by the Commissioner (e.g., be of good character and able to

provide valuable service to claimants).

A representative may charge and receive a fee for his/her services, but the Social Security Administration

generally decides how much the fee will be. While the Social Security Act does not establish a maximum

fee, most attorneys use a process that limits their maximum fee to the lesser of 25 percent of the retroactive payment or $5,300 1. A representative cannot charge or receive more than the fee amount authorized.

The SSI program has traditionally differed from the Social Security program in that amounts could not be

withheld from an individual’s SSI benefits to pay for attorney fees. SSI claimants were responsible for

paying such fees directly to their attorneys. However, beginning February 28, 2005, direct payment of

attorney fees has temporarily been extended to the SSI program under the same process and in the same

manner as fees are directly paid in the Social Security program.2 As in the fee process for the Social Security program, attorneys are now charged an assessment of the smaller of 6.3 percent of each authorized fee

withheld or $77. The flat-rate cap is adjusted based on annual cost-of-living adjustments, rounded down to

1 Fee agreements prior to February 1, 2002, were limited to the lesser of 25 percent of the retroactive payment or $4,000.

2 P.L. 108-203, enacted March 2, 2004, granted temporary extension of the attorney fee payment system to title XVI claims for a period of 5 years.
2007 SSI Annual Report

22

the next lower dollar. In addition, the Commissioner is conducting a nationwide demonstration project

providing for extension of fee withholding for non-attorney representatives under Social Security and SSI.

In order to be eligible to participate in the demonstration project, non-attorney representatives will have to

meet specified prerequisites that include: having a bachelors’ degree or equivalent; having experience in

representing claimants before SSA; having liability insurance; passing a criminal background check; and,

passing an examination given by SSA that tests relevant knowledge of the Social Security Act and recent

court decisions. The SSI fee withholding and direct payment of fees, and the demonstration project provisions, are temporary in that their authority ends after 5 years.

8. Advance Payments 

The SSI program has provisions which help to respond to the immediate needs of new claimants. These

procedures are in addition to State and local programs designed to help those in need, pending decisions

on their SSI status. 

a. Emergency Advance Payments 

A new claimant who faces a financial emergency, and for whom there is a strong likelihood of being found

eligible, may receive up to 1 month’s SSI benefits, the Federal payment amount plus any applicable State

supplement. The amount paid is recovered from later SSI payments (in full from the first payment or in

increments over no more than a 6-month period, depending upon the circumstances). However, if the

claim is subsequently not allowed because of not finding disability or blindness, repayment would be

waived. If the claim is disallowed for other reasons, the amount paid would be an overpayment and processed as such.

b. Presumptive Disability or Blindness 

Up to 6 months’ payments may be made to an individual applying for benefits based on disability or blindness when the available evidence reflects a high degree of probability that his/her impairment will meet

the definition of disability or blindness and he/she is otherwise eligible. These payments are not considered overpayments if the individual is later determined not to be disabled or blind. If the claim is disallowed for other reasons, the amount paid would be an overpayment and processed as such.

G. STATE SUPPLEMENTATION

In designing the SSI program, Congress recognized that States1, in many instances, would want to provide

a higher level of income maintenance than was available under the Federal program. At the same time

States were given the option either to provide no supplementation to the Federal assistance payments or to

supplement those payments based on their views of the needs of their citizens. Congress also mandated

that States assure that their citizens would not receive lower benefits under the Federal program than they

had under the former State program. The following paragraphs describe the various forms of State supplementation that currently exist. Table III.H1 summarizes State-specific participation in these programs as

well as other programs requiring State and Federal coordination as discussed in section III.H.

1. Optional State Supplementary Payment Programs 

For individuals who first became eligible for SSI in 1974 or later, each State could supplement Federal

payments to whatever extent it found appropriate with respect to the needs of its citizens and resources of

the State. Currently, 462 States have optional State supplementary payment programs.

1 References to State include, in addition to the 50 States, the District of Columbia. The applicable State supplementation provisions would also apply to the

Northern Mariana Islands if it began making State supplementary payments.

2 Georgia added an optional State supplementation program effective July 1, 2006.
23

2007 SSI Annual Report

Some States provide supplementary payments to all individuals eligible for SSI benefits, while others may

limit them to certain SSI recipients such as the blind or residents of domiciliary-care facilities, or may

extend them to persons ineligible for SSI because of excess income. States’ flexibility in setting supplementary payments, however, has been significantly restricted by the passalong provisions (see section Passalong Provisions below).

2. Mandatory State Supplementary Payment Programs 

States are required1 to maintain the December 1973 income levels of individuals who were transferred

from the former State adult assistance programs to the SSI program in 1974, except for Texas which has a

constitutional bar against mandatory State supplementation. Over the years, many individuals who were

converted to SSI from the State benefit rolls in December 1973 have died and others have had their

incomes increased above the December 1973 level. As a result, there are few individuals who continue to

receive mandatory State supplementary payments.

3. Administration of State Supplementary Payments 

A State may administer its supplementary program or enter into an agreement under which SSA will make

eligibility determinations and payments on behalf of the State. Under State administration, the State pays

its own program benefits and absorbs the full administrative costs. Under Federal administration, States

are required to pay SSA a $9.69 fee for each supplementary payment issued in fiscal year 2007. Fees are

projected to rise in succeeding fiscal years, based on changes in the consumer price index.

States that administer their own supplementary payment programs to title XVI recipients establish their

own eligibility criteria for the supplementary payments. States with Federally-administered programs may

supplement the Federal benefit among a limited number of geographical and living arrangement variations

for title XVI recipients.2

4. Passalong Provisions

When the SSI program began in 1974, Congress did not require States to maintain their efforts with regard

to levels of State supplementary payments. However, in 1976 in reaction to States reducing their supplementary payment amounts when SSI payments were increased, Congress mandated that States pass along

SSI benefit increases resulting from cost-of-living adjustments. 

To meet the passalong (or maintenance-of-effort) requirement, a State may either maintain each State payment level from year-to-year—the “payment levels” method—or it may spend the same amount of money,

in the aggregate, that it spent for supplementary benefits in the 12-month period preceding the increase in

the SSI benefit rate—the “total expenditures” method. Currently, 40 States use the levels method and 10

use the expenditure method. West Virginia has no optional supplementary plan and was not required to

establish a mandatory plan because Federal SSI income standards exceeded all payments made under the

State’s adult assistance programs in 1973. 

H. COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROGRAMS

SSI benefits are not the only form of assistance available to needy aged, blind, or disabled individuals.

Medicaid, food stamps, and temporary State assistance also are important in keeping individuals from slid1 Requirement does not affect West Virginia, since, in 1973, SSI Federal benefit rates exceeded the applicable income standards under the State’s adult

assistance programs.

2 Includes, for this purpose, those eligible for title XVI benefits but for income.
2007 SSI Annual Report

24

ing further into poverty. SSA plays a limited but important role in helping States with regard to administration of Medicaid and food stamp programs, and provisions in the SSI statute ensure that payments made

by States or under the Social Security program are not duplicated by SSI benefits. 

1. Windfall Offset 

If a person receives SSI payments, and is later determined to be entitled to retroactive Social Security benefits, such retroactive benefits are reduced by the amount of SSI payments the person would not have been

eligible for had the Social Security benefits been paid in the month they were due. This process is called

the “windfall offset” and was enacted to prevent windfall payments to individuals when Social Security

and SSI payments were paid for the same period. 

2. Medicaid Determinations 

Generally, SSI recipients are categorically eligible for Medicaid. A State may either use SSI eligibility criteria for determining Medicaid eligibility, or use its own criteria as long as the criteria are no more restrictive than the State’s January 1972 medical assistance standards. Forty States use SSI criteria and 11 States

use eligibility criteria more restrictive than those of the SSI program. 

States also may enter into agreements with SSA for SSA to make Medicaid eligibility determinations on

their behalf, as long as the eligibility requirements of the State’s Medicaid plans are the same as those for

the SSI program. Under these agreements, SSA determines only when an individual is eligible for Medicaid; SSA does not determine Medicaid ineligibility. SSA has Medicaid determination agreements with

33 States. 

Continued Medicaid eligibility is provided for certain Social Security beneficiaries who lose SSI eligibility due to entitlement to Social Security benefits, or due to a change in Social Security benefits resulting

from:

 • Cost-of-living adjustments;

 • Actuarial increases in disabled widow(er)s benefits before age 60;

 • Changes in the definition of disability for widow(er)s benefits; or

 • Increases in or entitlement to childhood disability benefits.

3. Food Stamp Applications 

SSI recipients in all States, except California,1 may be eligible for food stamps. Under agreements entered

into by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Commissioner of SSA, Social Security offices notify Social

Security and SSI applicants and recipients of their potential benefits under the Food Stamp program and

make food stamp applications available to them. 

The law also provides for Social Security offices to take food stamp applications from potentially eligible

or eligible SSI households which are not already receiving food stamps and which do not have a food

stamp application pending. Food stamp applications from SSI households may be taken in connection with

initial SSI claims or at the time of a redetermination. Food stamp applicants have the option of applying at

Social Security offices or applying at State food stamp offices if expedited service is required. Social

1 California “cashes out” food stamps and SSI recipients there receive a cash payment in their State supplementary payment in lieu of food stamps.
25

2007 SSI Annual Report

Security offices forward the food stamp applications and any supporting documents to the local food

stamp offices within 1 day of taking the application. Eligibility is determined by the food stamp office. 

4. Interim Assistance Reimbursement 

SSA may enter into agreements under which States or local governments are reimbursed for basic needs

assistance provided during the period that either an eligible individual’s SSI application for benefits was

pending, or the individual’s SSI benefits were suspended and subsequently reinstated (the interim period).

Under these interim assistance reimbursement agreements, if the individual has given SSA written authorization, SSA sends an individual’s first SSI benefit check relating to the interim period to the State or local

jurisdiction that had provided the interim assistance. The State then deducts the amount it is owed and is

required to forward the remainder to the claimant within 10 days.1 Thirty-nine States have interim assistance agreements with SSA. 

1 Beginning in August, 1996, in certain disabled children’s cases, SSA first reimburses the State, then pays the remainder into special dedicated financial

institution accounts for the children. In all other cases where the retroactive benefits exceed a certain amount, SSA reimburses the State, then pays the

remainder in installments to the recipient or his/her representative payee. Beginning February 2005, when an authorized representative fee may be paid

directly, SSA reimburses the State and then pays the approved fee. Any remainder will be paid into a special financial account, in installments, or the full

remainder to the recipient. This change is a 5-year demonstration project.
2007 SSI Annual Report

26

1 See body of text for description of the various forms of State supplementation.

2 State no longer has any recipients receiving mandatory minimum State supplementation.

3 Mandatory minimum State supplementation program is Federally-administered. No optional program.

4 Mandatory minimum State supplementation program is Federally-administered.

5 State provides assistance only in initial application cases. No assistance provided during periods that SSI benefits are suspended or terminated. 6 State does not have a mandatory minimum State supplementation program.

Table III.H1.—SSI State Supplementation 1 and Coordination with Other Programs

 United States and 

District of Columbia

Optional State program—

Administered by:

Method of mandatory 

passalong of benefit 

increases from 

cost-of-living adjustments

Medicaid eligibility 

determination—

Interim 

assistance 

reimbursement 

agreement 

with SSA

Based on: Agreement 

with SSA 

to 

determine 

State eligibility

Federal 

(SSA)

Federal 

& State

“Payment

levels”

“Total

expenditures”

Federal 

criteria

State

criteria

Alabama 2 * * ** Alaska * * * * Arizona * * * ** Arkansas 3 * * * California * * * ** Colorado * * * * * Connecticut 2 * * ** Delaware * * * * * District of Columbia * ** * * Florida 2 * * * * * Georgia * * * ** Hawaii * * * * Idaho * ** Illinois * * * * Indiana 2 * * ** Iowa * * * * * Kansas 3 ** * Kentucky 2 * * * * * Louisiana 4 * * ** Maine * * * * * Maryland 4 * * * ** Massachusetts * * * * * Michigan * * * * * 5

Minnesota 2 * * * * Mississippi 3 * ** Missouri * * * * Montana * * * ** Nebraska * * * * Nevada 2 ** * * New Hampshire * * * * 5

New Jersey * * * ** New Mexico * * * * * 5

New York ** * * * North Carolina * * * * * North Dakota 2 ** * Ohio 4 * * * * Oklahoma * ** Oregon * * * * Pennsylvania ** * * * Rhode Island 2 * * * * * 5

South Carolina 2 * * ** South Dakota 4 * * * * Tennessee 3 * * ** Texas 6 * * * * Utah 2 ** * * Vermont 2 * * * * * Virginia 2 * ** * Washington * * * * * West Virginia 6 * * Wisconsin * * * * * Wyoming * * **

Total number of 

States . . . . . . . . . . . 31 10 5 40 10 40 11 33 39
27

2007 SSI Annual Report

IV. ESTIMATES OF PROGRAM PARTICIPATION AND FEDERAL EXPENDITURES

UNDER THE SUPPLEMENTAL SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM, 2007-31

As described in section III, eligibility for payments under the SSI program depends on satisfying a collection of requirements related to the socioeconomic status of the individual, as well as the evaluation of disability or blindness for all persons under age 65, and for certain individuals at ages 65 or older.

Consequently, future SSI program participation and expenditures will depend on a variety of difficult-topredict factors including the performance of national and local economies, distribution of personal

income, the prevalence of disability in the general population, and the determination of disability as

defined in the Social Security Act. Nonetheless, for planning purposes it is important to develop the best

possible projections of future SSI program participation and expenditures.

This section includes projections of program participation and expenditures under the SSI program for a

period of 25 years as required by the provisions of Public Law 104-193 which mandate this report. The

current projection model uses estimates of the general population by single year of age and gender. Transitions into payment status are projected separately for: (1) new recipients resulting from an application for

program benefits and (2) returns to payment status from suspended status. Movements out of payment status are projected separately for (1) terminations due to death and (2) suspensions of payment for all other

reasons.1 The assumptions and methods used in preparing these projections are reexamined each year in

the light of recent experience and new information about future conditions, and are revised if warranted.

The presentation of projection results in the remainder of this section provides SSI recipient information

by selected age groups. Where certain recipient categories have overlapping age distributions, recipient

category totals are also shown.

A. DEMOGRAPHIC AND ECONOMIC ASSUMPTIONS

The estimates of program participation and Federal expenditures presented in this section have been prepared using the intermediate demographic and economic projections developed for the 2007 Annual

Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and Federal Disability

Insurance (OASDI) Trust Funds.2 The most significant economic parameter is the Consumer Price Index

for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (hereafter denoted as CPI) 3, which is used for indexing the

SSI Federal benefit rate. Detailed discussion of these demographic and economic parameters is presented

in sections V.A and V.B of the Trustees Report.4 The most significant parameters utilized for the projections presented in this report are summarized in the following two tables. Table IV.A1 presents population

projections summarized for the age subgroups that are used in the presentation of SSI participant projections discussed in the next section.

1 The two main reasons other than death for termination of SSI payments are (1) failure to satisfy income and resource limitations of the SSI program

and (2) recovery from a qualifying disability.

2 House Document 110-30, published May 1, 2007.

3 Historical values of the CPI are developed and published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

4 Ibid, Section V.A, Demographic Assumptions and Methods and Section V.B, Economic Assumptions and Methods.
2007 SSI Annual Report

28

1 Age as of last birthday.

2 Preliminary or estimated.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical population data subject to revision.

As described in section III.D.1, the monthly Federal benefit rate is adjusted in January of each year for all

recipients to reflect the increase in the level of consumer prices (the CPI) generally from the third quarter

of the second prior calendar year to the third quarter of the prior calendar year. This cost-of-living adjustment is identical to the adjustment applied to Social Security benefits under the OASDI program after initial benefit eligibility. In previous years, occasional ad hoc increases were also applied to the Federal

benefit rates, either in place of or in addition to the automatic adjustments. The history of legislation

affecting the Federal benefit rates is presented in table V.A1. Table IV.A2 presents a complete history of

the cost-of-living adjustment factors and Federal benefit rates since the inception of the program, along

with projections of such amounts consistent with the economic assumptions underlying the SSI expenditure estimates discussed in section IV.C.

Table IV.A1.—Historical and Projected Population in the Social Security Area based on the 

Intermediate Assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report, as of July 1, 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Year

Age groups 1

Total

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74 75 or older all ages

Historical data:

1974 .................. 70,713 60,129 36,328 32,819 13,883 8,883 222,755

1975 .................. 69,726 62,092 36,311 33,165 14,188 9,117 224,599

1976 .................. 68,736 63,980 36,478 33,437 14,509 9,362 226,501

1977 .................. 67,830 65,644 36,887 33,705 14,840 9,618 228,524

1978 .................. 67,001 67,223 37,470 33,940 15,167 9,886 230,687

1979 .................. 66,271 68,855 38,044 34,110 15,483 10,170 232,932

1980 .................. 65,747 70,443 38,565 34,240 15,773 10,464 235,233

1981 .................. 65,421 71,537 39,565 34,297 16,045 10,763 237,627

1982 .................. 65,209 72,120 41,104 34,246 16,332 11,093 240,104

1983 .................. 65,146 72,586 42,665 34,125 16,594 11,426 242,541

1984 .................. 65,233 72,912 44,170 34,030 16,834 11,743 244,922

1985 .................. 65,458 73,116 45,663 33,931 17,113 12,054 247,335

1986 .................. 65,747 73,222 47,273 33,754 17,448 12,356 249,800

1987 .................. 65,983 73,301 48,966 33,650 17,738 12,675 252,313

1988 .................. 66,184 73,426 50,663 33,666 17,961 12,993 254,892

1989 .................. 66,613 73,360 52,428 33,723 18,167 13,316 257,608

1990 .................. 67,474 72,883 54,229 33,842 18,371 13,658 260,458

1991 .................. 68,588 72,127 55,998 34,072 18,595 13,992 263,372

1992 .................. 69,706 71,312 57,642 34,552 18,805 14,324 266,342

1993 .................. 70,731 70,569 59,179 35,203 18,956 14,635 269,274

1994 .................. 71,633 69,853 60,784 35,841 19,032 14,938 272,081

1995 .................. 72,363 69,189 62,510 36,404 19,048 15,274 274,788

1996 .................. 72,978 68,685 63,833 37,398 18,982 15,639 277,514

1997 .................. 73,459 68,374 64,662 38,900 18,880 15,978 280,253

1998 .................. 73,800 68,209 65,476 40,390 18,748 16,279 282,902

1999 .................. 74,118 68,140 66,241 41,843 18,615 16,562 285,519

2000 .................. 74,479 68,275 66,833 43,272 18,557 16,868 288,284

2001 .................. 74,874 68,618 67,235 44,770 18,536 17,203 291,237

2002 .................. 75,230 69,071 67,467 46,336 18,567 17,505 294,176

2003 .................. 75,520 69,520 67,580 47,910 18,676 17,765 296,970

20042 ................ 75,817 69,928 67,683 49,552 18,838 17,971 299,788

20052 ................ 76,080 70,236 67,843 51,297 19,056 18,091 302,604

20062 ................ 76,243 70,486 67,890 53,089 19,375 18,141 305,225

Projected:

2007 .................. 76,313 70,966 67,647 54,795 19,881 18,162 307,765

2008 .................. 76,283 71,722 67,165 56,384 20,565 18,155 310,273

2009 .................. 76,229 72,569 66,581 57,973 21,253 18,148 312,754

2010 .................. 76,227 73,386 65,962 59,640 21,853 18,177 315,246

2011................... 76,303 74,124 65,353 61,106 22,629 18,234 317,749

2012 .................. 76,454 74,744 64,828 62,143 23,769 18,325 320,262

2013 .................. 76,671 75,239 64,409 63,019 24,973 18,472 322,783

2014 .................. 76,947 75,602 64,138 63,876 26,084 18,661 325,308

2015 .................. 77,253 75,853 64,103 64,555 27,185 18,885 327,833

2016 .................. 77,567 76,060 64,278 64,994 28,281 19,176 330,356

2017 .................. 77,864 76,260 64,567 65,232 29,326 19,600 332,848

2018 .................. 78,142 76,487 64,851 65,352 30,328 20,145 335,305

2019 .................. 78,447 76,729 65,041 65,433 31,404 20,692 337,746

2020 .................. 78,788 76,934 65,148 65,525 32,581 21,192 340,167

2021 .................. 79,118 77,138 65,270 65,540 33,650 21,848 342,564

2022 .................. 79,420 77,360 65,553 65,321 34,464 22,812 344,930

2023 .................. 79,750 77,505 66,062 64,883 35,210 23,850 347,261

2024 .................. 80,114 77,513 66,738 64,359 35,998 24,826 349,549

2025 .................. 80,460 77,431 67,518 63,806 36,777 25,799 351,792

2026 .................. 80,784 77,331 68,310 63,266 37,495 26,798 353,984

2027 .................. 81,076 77,268 69,005 62,807 38,104 27,835 356,096

2028 .................. 81,333 77,269 69,565 62,450 38,601 28,908 358,125

2029 .................. 81,564 77,346 69,979 62,236 38,958 30,012 360,095

2030 .................. 81,769 77,491 70,249 62,242 39,122 31,130 362,003

2031 .................. 81,951 77,698 70,426 62,443 39,074 32,257 363,850
29

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Increases prior to 1984 were effective for the payment due on July 1 of the year. Increases shown for 1984 and later are effective for the payment due on

January 1 of the year.

2 A concept carried over from the former State assistance plans. There are currently about 100 of those cases remaining.

3 Benefits paid in January, 1974 were based on the Federal benefit rates established by Public Law 92-603, enacted October 30, 1972: $130.00 for individuals; $195.00 for couples; and $65.00 for essential persons. Retroactive payments were subsequently made to adjust initial payments to the higher Federal

benefit rates established by Public Law 93-233, enacted December 31, 1973.

4 Ad hoc increases as specified in the law.

5 Originally determined as 2.4 percent, but pursuant to Public Law 106-554, enacted December 21, 2000, is effectively now 2.5 percent. 6 Benefits originally paid in 2000 and through July 2001 were based on Federal benefit rates of $512.00 and $530.00, respectively. Pursuant to Public Law

106-554, monthly payments beginning in August 2001 were effectively based on the higher $531 amount. Lump-sum compensation payments were made

based on an adjusted benefit rate for months prior to August 2001.

Estimates presented in the sections that follow are based on the demographic and economic parameters

described in this section. For the purpose of making these estimates, it is assumed that no changes will occur

during the projection period in the present statutory provisions and regulations under which the SSI program

operates.

Table IV.A2.—SSI Federal Benefit Rate Increases and Levels: Historical and Projected on the Basis of the Intermediate

Assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report, 1974-2031

Year

Benefit rate

increase 1

Federal benefit rate

Individual Couple Essential person 2

Historical data:

Initial benefit paid January 1, 1974 3............... — $140.00 $210.00 $70.00

1974....................................................... 4 4.3% 146.00 219.00 73.00

1975....................................................... 8.0 157.70 236.60 78.90

1976....................................................... 6.4 167.80 251.80 84.00

1977....................................................... 5.9 177.80 266.70 89.00

1978....................................................... 6.5 189.40 284.10 94.80

1979....................................................... 9.9 208.20 312.30 104.20

1980....................................................... 14.3 238.00 357.00 119.20

1981....................................................... 11.2 264.70 397.00 132.60

1982....................................................... 7.4 284.30 426.40 142.50

1983....................................................... 4 7.0 304.30 456.40 152.50

1984....................................................... 3.5 314.00 472.00 157.00

1985....................................................... 3.5 325.00 488.00 163.00

1986....................................................... 3.1 336.00 504.00 168.00

1987....................................................... 1.3 340.00 510.00 170.00

1988....................................................... 4.2 354.00 532.00 177.00

1989....................................................... 4.0 368.00 553.00 184.00

1990....................................................... 4.7 386.00 579.00 193.00

1991....................................................... 5.4 407.00 610.00 204.00

1992....................................................... 3.7 422.00 633.00 211.00

1993....................................................... 3.0 434.00 652.00 217.00

1994....................................................... 2.6 446.00 669.00 223.00

1995....................................................... 2.8 458.00 687.00 229.00

1996....................................................... 2.6 470.00 705.00 235.00

1997....................................................... 2.9 484.00 726.00 242.00

1998....................................................... 2.1 494.00 741.00 247.00

1999....................................................... 1.3 500.00 751.00 250.00

2000....................................................... 5 2.5 6 513.00 769.00 257.00

2001....................................................... 3.5 6 531.00 796.00 266.00

2002....................................................... 2.6 545.00 817.00 273.00

2003....................................................... 1.4 552.00 829.00 277.00

2004....................................................... 2.1 564.00 846.00 282.00

2005....................................................... 2.7 579.00 869.00 290.00

2006....................................................... 4.1 603.00 904.00 302.00

2007....................................................... 3.3 623.00 934.00 312.00

Projected:

2008....................................................... 1.4 632.00 947.00 316.00

2009....................................................... 2.3 646.00 969.00 324.00

2010....................................................... 2.7 664.00 995.00 332.00

2011....................................................... 2.8 682.00 1,023.00 342.00

2012....................................................... 2.8 701.00 1,052.00 351.00

2013....................................................... 2.8 721.00 1,081.00 361.00

2014....................................................... 2.8 741.00 1,112.00 371.00

2015....................................................... 2.8 762.00 1,143.00 382.00

2016....................................................... 2.8 783.00 1,175.00 392.00

2017....................................................... 2.8 805.00 1,208.00 403.00

2018....................................................... 2.8 828.00 1,242.00 415.00

2019....................................................... 2.8 851.00 1,276.00 426.00

2020....................................................... 2.8 875.00 1,312.00 438.00

2021....................................................... 2.8 899.00 1,349.00 450.00

2022....................................................... 2.8 924.00 1,387.00 463.00

2023....................................................... 2.8 950.00 1,426.00 476.00

2024....................................................... 2.8 977.00 1,465.00 489.00

2025....................................................... 2.8 1,004.00 1,507.00 503.00

2026....................................................... 2.8 1,032.00 1,549.00 517.00

2027....................................................... 2.8 1,061.00 1,592.00 532.00

2028....................................................... 2.8 1,091.00 1,637.00 547.00

2029....................................................... 2.8 1,122.00 1,683.00 562.00

2030....................................................... 2.8 1,153.00 1,730.00 578.00

2031....................................................... 2.8 1,185.00 1,778.00 594.00
2007 SSI Annual Report

30

B. NUMBERS OF PARTICIPANTS IN THE SSI PROGRAM

This section presents projections of the numbers of persons receiving Federal SSI payments by category

and age group.1 SSI recipients are categorized as (1) aged or (2) blind or disabled. The following paragraphs discuss the age groupings and recipient categories in more detail.

 • The aged category includes those individuals whose eligibility for SSI benefits is established based

on meeting the age-652-or-older requirement, and other SSI eligibility requirements including income

and resource limits. In December 2006, there were 1.212 million aged recipients of Federally-administered SSI payments. 

 • The blind or disabled category includes those individuals whose eligibility is established based on

meeting the definition of blindness or disability and the applicable income and resource limits as well

as any other SSI eligibility requirements. This category is often subdivided into two subcategories

based on age: blind or disabled adults (age 18 or older) and blind or disabled children (under age 18).

In December 2006, there were 6.024 million blind or disabled recipients of Federally-administered

SSI payments. 

 — The blind or disabled adults subcategory includes those individuals age 18 or older who meet

the definition of blindness or disability for individuals age 18 or older and SSI income and

resource limits. Included in this category are students age 18 to 21 who must meet the adult definition of disability and differ from other adults only in that they qualify for a special student

earned income exclusion. After attainment of age 65, these individuals generally continue to be

classified as blind or disabled adults (rather than aged). In December 2006, there were 4.945 million blind or disabled recipients of Federally-administered SSI payments age 18 or older, including 7 thousand students who used the special student earned income exclusion and 793 thousand

disabled or blind recipients age 65 or older.

 — The blind or disabled children subcategory includes those individuals whose eligibility is established based on meeting the definition of blindness or disability for individuals under age 18.

These children are subject to parent-to-child deeming until they reach the age of 18. At age 18

these individuals continue to be eligible for SSI if they meet the definition of blindness or disability for individuals age 18 or older as well as other eligibility criteria and, as a result, are

reclassified as blind or disabled adults. In December 2006, there were 1.079 million blind or disabled recipients of Federally-administered SSI payments who were under age 18.

Table IV.B1 presents historical and projected numbers of persons applying for SSI benefits, by calendar

year of application. Figure IV.B1 presents the same information in graphical form. Recent historical data

indicate that applications have grown fairly rapidly beginning in calendar year 2002, and that this growth

continued through calendar year 2005. The rate of growth in applications, however, slowed significantly in

2005, and for the 2006 Annual Report we projected a slight decline in the numbers of applications for calendar year 2006. The actual result for 2006 represented a slightly larger decline than was estimated last

year, with the numbers of applications for 2006 coming in 0.3 percent lower than was estimated in the

2006 Annual Report.

1 Recipient flows are projected on a calendar-year-age basis, with activity throughout a given year tabulated according to age at the end of the calendar

year. Tabulations of recipients in current-payment status are provided as of December of each calendar year at which time calendar year of age and age last

birthday are the same. However, the tabulations that reflect activity throughout the calendar year are summarized according to calendar year of age and will

not correspond precisely to tabulations summarized according to age last birthday. For example, applications for the 0-17 age group for a given calendar year

include applications only for those individuals who are under 18 at the end of the calendar year.

2 Individuals may apply for SSI benefits based on age as of the day preceding their 65th birthday.
31

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Based on data reported in the Integrated Workload Management System (formerly known as the District Office Workload Report).

2 “All” column estimated by the Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics using a 10-percent sample and published in the SSI Annual Statistical

Report.

3 Includes conversions from State programs and applications received in 1973.

4 Estimated totals revised from prior SSI Annual Reports.

5 Fewer than 500.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.B1.—SSI Federally-Administered Applications,1 Calendar Years 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Calendar year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 2, 3 . 125 590 626 1,303 158 20 1,434 1,496 2,822 2,931 5,752

1975 2, 4 . 94 276 258 443 15 5/ 238 145 1,086 382 1,468

1976 . . . . 82 260 250 384 8 5/ 175 80 984 254 1,239

1977 . . . . 100 286 246 401 7 1 174 84 1,040 259 1,298

1978 . . . . 94 276 256 413 7 5/ 170 88 1,046 258 1,304

1979 . . . . 106 282 268 426 7 5/ 178 84 1,090 262 1,352

1980 . . . . 122 310 272 438 8 1 187 89 1,151 276 1,427

1981 . . . . 78 206 173 271 5 5/ 88 42 733 130 864

1982 . . . . 88 246 206 278 11 1 93 48 830 141 971

1983 . . . . 102 258 225 311 5 1 122 68 902 190 1,092

1984 . . . . 103 267 247 321 7 5/ 178 108 944 286 1,230

1985 . . . . 114 294 297 409 7 5/ 151 73 1,122 223 1,345

1986 . . . . 122 316 334 426 7 1 150 81 1,205 231 1,437

1987 . . . . 108 287 299 331 7 1 134 66 1,033 200 1,233

1988 . . . . 114 282 301 317 7 1 131 69 1,021 200 1,221

1989 . . . . 116 297 323 329 7 5/ 146 76 1,072 222 1,294

1990 . . . . 149 335 380 356 6 5/ 156 71 1,226 227 1,454

1991 . . . . 237 391 453 391 7 5/ 159 68 1,479 227 1,706

1992 . . . . 339 453 522 407 8 5/ 163 64 1,728 226 1,955

1993 . . . . 473 506 570 416 7 5/ 158 61 1,973 218 2,191

1994 . . . . 517 492 571 402 6 5/ 136 52 1,989 188 2,177

1995 . . . . 473 435 524 363 6 5/ 121 44 1,801 165 1,966

1996 . . . . 431 393 500 345 9 1 108 44 1,678 153 1,831

1997 . . . . 306 317 438 307 8 1 82 35 1,377 117 1,494

1998 . . . . 318 317 453 331 9 1 96 39 1,428 136 1,563

1999 . . . . 338 317 470 336 6 5/ 107 39 1,468 145 1,614

2000 . . . . 337 321 486 341 6 5/ 102 39 1,493 140 1,633

2001 . . . . 351 346 502 354 4 5/ 98 35 1,558 134 1,691

2002 . . . . 385 388 550 384 4 5/ 105 38 1,711 142 1,853

2003 . . . . 400 404 565 408 4 5/ 100 36 1,781 135 1,916

2004 . . . . 420 438 604 452 4 5/ 101 37 1,919 138 2,057

2005 . . . . 429 439 604 477 5 5/ 112 44 1,954 156 2,110

2006 . . . . 415 437 584 484 4 5/ 109 41 1,925 150 2,075

Projected:

2007 . . . . 410 428 571 492 6 5/ 107 39 1,906 147 2,053

2008 . . . . 405 418 560 501 6 5/ 114 39 1,890 154 2,043

2009 . . . . 402 419 551 511 6 5/ 117 39 1,889 156 2,045

2010 . . . . 401 422 544 521 6 5/ 119 39 1,894 158 2,053

2011 . . . . 402 425 539 530 6 5/ 127 39 1,902 165 2,067

2012 . . . . 403 428 534 538 7 5/ 135 38 1,909 174 2,083

2013 . . . . 404 430 530 545 7 5/ 140 38 1,916 178 2,094

2014 . . . . 406 431 528 551 7 5/ 145 38 1,923 183 2,106

2015 . . . . 407 432 528 555 7 5/ 150 39 1,929 188 2,117

2016 . . . . 409 433 530 556 7 5/ 155 40 1,935 194 2,129

2017 . . . . 411 434 532 556 8 5/ 159 41 1,940 200 2,140

2018 . . . . 412 435 533 555 8 5/ 164 42 1,944 206 2,150

2019 . . . . 414 437 534 555 8 5/ 170 43 1,947 213 2,160

2020 . . . . 416 438 534 555 8 5/ 175 44 1,950 219 2,169

2021 . . . . 418 439 535 553 8 5/ 180 46 1,953 225 2,179

2022 . . . . 419 440 538 550 9 5/ 183 48 1,956 231 2,187

2023 . . . . 421 441 543 544 9 5/ 187 50 1,958 237 2,195

2024 . . . . 423 440 549 539 9 5/ 190 52 1,960 242 2,202

2025 . . . . 424 440 556 534 9 5/ 194 54 1,962 247 2,210

2026 . . . . 426 439 562 529 9 5/ 196 56 1,965 252 2,217

2027 . . . . 427 439 567 526 9 5/ 198 58 1,968 256 2,223

2028 . . . . 428 439 571 525 9 5/ 199 60 1,971 259 2,230

2029 . . . . 429 440 574 525 9 5/ 199 62 1,976 261 2,237

2030 . . . . 430 441 576 527 8 5/ 198 64 1,981 262 2,243

2031 . . . . 430 442 577 529 8 5/ 195 66 1,987 262 2,249
2007 SSI Annual Report

32

The fairly rapid growth in applications from 2002 to 2004 was largely attributable to two main factors: (1)

the downturn in the economy that began early in 2001 and (2) the signature proxy process1 introduced by

SSA in June 2004. The slower growth in 2005 and the slight decline in the numbers of applications in

2006 suggest that the growth from these two factors has come to an end. In the short term, our projections

are for the numbers of applications to stay roughly level, with the overall level of applications reflecting a

permanent upward shift due to the signature proxy process. In the longer term, applications are estimated

to grow roughly in line with overall population growth. 

The adjudication of these applications involves an evaluation of levels of income and resources available

to the applicants, as well as other eligibility factors including marital and citizenship status and living

arrangements. In addition, over 90 percent of the applications are for disability benefits which generally

require an evaluation of an alleged impairment by the appropriate State Disability Determination Services.

An unfavorable disability determination may then be appealed by the applicant through several administrative levels of appeal. If all administrative levels of appeal are exhausted, the applicant may in turn carry

his/her appeal to the Federal courts. Data on recent historical experience for this disability decision process are presented in section V.C. 

Table IV.B2 and figure IV.B2 present historical and projected numbers of persons who start receiving SSI

payments as a result of this decision process. Individuals are counted as of the first month that they move

into SSI payment status. For this reason, we refer to these individuals as “new recipients” rather than

“awards.”2 During the 2002 to 2004 period, growth in new recipients did not keep pace with the growth in

applications. In both 2005 and 2006, the numbers of new recipients declined even though there was some

growth in the applications in 2005. There are two important contributing factors to the slower growth for 

 Figure IV.B1.—SSI Federally-Administered Applications by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035

[In thousands]

1 The signature proxy process eases the application process by eliminating the requirement for a signed paper application from SSI applicants filing claims

via the telephone. Previously some portion of those telephone applicants never followed through with a signed paper application. Since the introduction of

the signature proxy process, there has been a significant increase in the numbers of denials where the applicant does not meet the nonmedical criteria.

2 In addition, these counts differ slightly from other similar totals identified as “awards” and published by the Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics

(ORES) in the Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin. The ORES totals are similar in concept to those used in this report, but differ

slightly due to the timing of the action being tabulated. For example, ORES does not count a disability benefit as being awarded until the disability decision

is made. In contrast, under the procedures used in this report, individuals first coming on the SSI rolls through a finding of presumptive disability would be

counted as a “new recipient” in the first month of presumptive disability payment.

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Calendar year

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17

Historical Projected 75 or older
33

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Represents period in which first payment was made, not date of first eligibility for payments.

2 Historical totals estimated based on 1-percent or 10-percent sample data.

3 Totals for 1974 include recipients converted from previous State programs as well as new recipients to the SSI program during 1974. 4 Fewer than 500.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.B2.—SSI Federally-Administered New Recipients, Calendar Years 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Calendar year 1

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals 2

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 3. . . . 63 390 381 925 141 18 1,211 1,268 1,919 2,479 4,398

1975 . . . . . 58 133 105 272 16 4/ 216 131 584 347 931

1976 . . . . . 43 105 88 207 9 4/ 147 70 452 218 669

1977 . . . . . 48 104 84 184 8 1 140 69 429 209 637

1978 . . . . . 43 92 76 154 6 4/ 127 66 370 193 563

1979 . . . . . 44 87 62 133 4 4/ 116 53 330 169 499

1980 . . . . . 41 92 61 142 4 4/ 125 59 341 184 524

1981 . . . . . 37 77 49 106 3 4/ 80 37 272 117 389

1982 . . . . . 38 63 51 90 4 4/ 72 31 245 103 348

1983 . . . . . 47 88 62 117 3 4/ 95 51 317 146 463

1984 . . . . . 47 109 78 142 4 4/ 131 78 380 209 589

1985 . . . . . 48 104 80 148 4 4/ 106 46 384 152 536

1986 . . . . . 55 127 109 153 5 4/ 110 51 449 161 610

1987 . . . . . 48 119 106 157 5 4/ 116 52 435 167 602

1988 . . . . . 50 101 108 146 5 1 112 56 412 167 579

1989 . . . . . 48 113 115 155 5 4/ 127 62 436 189 625

1990 . . . . . 76 136 134 182 5 4/ 149 66 533 215 748

1991 . . . . . 126 146 172 200 6 4/ 139 54 650 193 844

1992 . . . . . 221 199 221 233 6 4/ 133 48 881 181 1,062

1993 . . . . . 235 194 221 225 6 4/ 136 49 881 185 1,066

1994 . . . . . 204 164 207 215 6 4/ 116 42 796 157 953

1995 . . . . . 177 147 207 218 5 4/ 105 36 755 141 895

1996 . . . . . 145 134 193 203 6 1 93 35 681 128 809

1997 . . . . . 116 111 171 178 4 4/ 68 25 580 93 673

1998 . . . . . 135 117 181 194 7 1 78 30 634 108 742

1999 . . . . . 140 114 186 195 5 4/ 88 33 640 120 760

2000 . . . . . 145 112 180 191 5 4/ 84 31 633 115 748

2001 . . . . . 157 121 185 198 4 4/ 79 28 665 107 772

2002 . . . . . 171 128 195 212 4 4/ 82 29 710 111 821

2003 . . . . . 180 132 194 214 4 4/ 77 27 724 104 828

2004 . . . . . 183 138 202 231 4 4/ 78 27 757 105 862

2005 . . . . . 178 131 192 238 4 4/ 81 29 744 111 854

2006 . . . . . 175 128 190 243 3 4/ 81 28 739 109 849

Projected:

2007 . . . . . 175 134 197 258 6 4/ 80 28 770 108 878

2008 . . . . . 175 134 197 267 7 4/ 87 28 779 115 895

2009 . . . . . 171 132 189 269 7 4/ 91 29 768 120 888

2010 . . . . . 170 133 185 273 6 4/ 93 29 767 122 889

2011 . . . . . 170 133 182 276 7 4/ 98 29 768 127 895

2012 . . . . . 171 133 180 279 8 4/ 105 29 770 133 903

2013 . . . . . 171 133 178 282 7 4/ 108 29 773 137 909

2014 . . . . . 172 133 177 286 7 4/ 111 29 776 140 916

2015 . . . . . 173 133 177 287 8 4/ 115 29 778 144 922

2016 . . . . . 174 133 177 287 8 4/ 119 30 778 148 926

2017 . . . . . 173 132 176 285 8 4/ 122 30 774 153 927

2018 . . . . . 174 132 176 285 8 4/ 126 31 775 157 932

2019 . . . . . 174 133 176 285 8 4/ 130 32 776 162 938

2020 . . . . . 175 133 176 285 9 4/ 134 33 777 167 943

2021 . . . . . 176 133 176 284 9 4/ 137 34 778 171 949

2022 . . . . . 176 134 177 282 9 4/ 140 36 778 176 954

2023 . . . . . 177 134 179 279 9 4/ 142 37 778 180 958

2024 . . . . . 178 134 181 277 9 4/ 145 39 778 183 962

2025 . . . . . 178 134 183 274 9 4/ 147 40 778 187 966

2026 . . . . . 179 134 185 272 9 4/ 149 41 778 190 969

2027 . . . . . 179 133 187 270 9 4/ 150 43 779 193 972

2028 . . . . . 180 134 188 269 9 4/ 151 44 779 195 974

2029 . . . . . 180 134 189 268 9 4/ 151 46 780 197 977

2030 . . . . . 180 134 190 269 9 4/ 149 47 781 197 978

2031 . . . . . 180 135 190 270 8 4/ 147 49 783 196 980
2007 SSI Annual Report

34

new recipients as compared to applications: (1) since 2001 there has been substantial growth in the number of claims pending adjudication which is consistent with a longer lag time between application and the

allowance decision; and (2) since the introduction of the signature proxy process there has been a significant increase in the number of denials for applications where the applicant does not meet the nonmedical

criteria, causing a permanent downward shift in the allowance rate. However, the number of new recipients is projected to increase in the next 2 years under the assumption that there will be some reduction in

the level of pending claims. After 2008, new recipients are projected to remain about level for a few years.

Over the longer term the numbers of new recipients are estimated to increase gradually in line with the

projected growth in applications.

Some of the persons receiving SSI benefits in a year will be removed from current-payment status during

the year because of death or the loss of SSI eligibility. The loss of eligibility can occur either as the result

of a redetermination of the individual’s nonmedical factors of eligibility, including income and resources,

or due to a determination that he/she is no longer disabled as defined under the Social Security Act, as a

result of a continuing disability review.1 For example, disabled children, upon attainment of age 18, lose

eligibility if they do not qualify for benefits under the disabled adult eligibility criteria. For purposes of

this presentation, we refer to the net reduction in the number of SSI recipients in payment status during a

period as the number of SSI terminations for that period. 

In the following tables, we have separated the numbers of people moving out of payment status into those

leaving due to death (table IV.B3), and those leaving for all other reasons (table IV.B4). Table IV.B5 and

figure IV.B3 present historical and projected numbers of total terminations by calendar year. 

 Figure IV.B2.—SSI Federally-Administered New Recipients by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035

[In thousands]

1 Some historical details on income and resource redeterminations and the results of continuing disability reviews are presented in section V.D. Section V.E

presents information on certain incentive programs intended to encourage disabled SSI recipients to return to work.

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Calendar year

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17

75 or older

Historical Projected
35

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Historical totals estimated based on 1-percent or 10-percent sample data.

2 Fewer than 500.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.B3.—SSI Federally-Administered Terminations Due to Death, Calendar Years 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Calendar year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals 1

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 2/ 3 8 34 7 2 40 97 55 137 192

1975 . . . . 1 5 12 35 10 2 39 108 65 147 212

1976 . . . . 2 5 9 36 12 1 34 103 64 137 201

1977 . . . . 1 5 12 30 15 1 36 101 65 137 203

1978 . . . . 2 5 8 34 16 2 31 95 67 126 193

1979 . . . . 2 6 9 32 18 2 29 92 67 121 189

1980 . . . . 3 5 9 31 22 1 27 100 71 127 198

1981 . . . . 3 5 8 31 24 2 21 92 73 112 186

1982 . . . . 3 4 8 28 21 2 16 80 65 96 161

1983 . . . . 3 6 8 25 21 3 15 79 65 94 158

1984 . . . . 3 4 9 29 18 5 13 83 67 96 163

1985 . . . . 2 6 10 29 24 6 17 84 77 101 178

1986 . . . . 2 8 12 28 22 8 15 83 80 98 178

1987 . . . . 3 8 13 30 23 10 15 82 87 97 184

1988 . . . . 5 8 14 31 25 12 16 81 95 97 191

1989 . . . . 3 8 16 33 23 12 15 78 95 93 187

1990 . . . . 4 9 18 36 22 14 16 75 103 92 194

1991 . . . . 4 9 20 39 23 17 17 74 112 91 203

1992 . . . . 4 11 22 38 22 15 16 69 111 84 195

1993 . . . . 6 13 27 41 23 17 16 72 127 88 215

1994 . . . . 6 14 27 41 23 17 16 69 127 85 212

1995 . . . . 6 13 30 43 24 18 16 65 135 81 216

1996 . . . . 7 12 30 44 24 18 16 67 135 83 218

1997 . . . . 5 10 24 43 24 19 15 64 127 79 206

1998 . . . . 5 9 24 43 25 20 14 64 127 78 205

1999 . . . . 5 9 25 45 25 21 13 63 131 76 207

2000 . . . . 5 8 27 46 25 21 12 61 132 73 205

2001 . . . . 5 8 28 47 25 22 11 60 135 71 207

2002 . . . . 5 8 28 49 24 21 11 58 135 70 205

2003 . . . . 5 9 28 51 26 21 10 56 138 66 204

2004 . . . . 5 8 27 52 25 22 10 56 140 65 205

2005 . . . . 5 8 28 54 25 22 9 54 141 63 204

2006 . . . . 5 8 27 55 25 22 9 54 143 62 205

Projected:

2007 . . . . 5 8 26 58 25 23 8 52 145 60 206

2008 . . . . 5 9 26 60 26 23 8 52 148 61 209

2009 . . . . 5 9 25 62 26 24 8 52 150 60 210

2010 . . . . 5 9 25 63 26 24 8 52 152 60 212

2011 . . . . 5 9 24 65 27 24 8 51 154 60 214

2012 . . . . 5 10 24 66 28 25 8 51 156 59 215

2013 . . . . 5 10 23 67 28 25 8 51 158 59 217

2014 . . . . 4 10 23 68 29 26 9 51 159 59 219

2015 . . . . 4 10 22 68 30 26 9 51 161 59 220

2016 . . . . 4 10 22 68 31 26 9 50 162 59 221

2017 . . . . 4 10 22 68 32 27 9 50 163 60 223

2018 . . . . 4 10 22 68 33 27 10 50 164 60 224

2019 . . . . 4 10 22 67 34 28 10 50 165 60 225

2020 . . . . 4 10 22 67 35 28 10 50 165 60 226

2021 . . . . 4 10 21 66 36 29 11 50 166 61 227

2022 . . . . 4 9 21 65 36 30 11 51 167 62 228

2023 . . . . 4 9 21 64 37 31 11 51 167 62 230

2024 . . . . 4 9 22 63 38 32 11 52 168 63 231

2025 . . . . 4 9 22 62 38 33 11 53 168 64 232

2026 . . . . 4 9 22 61 39 34 11 54 169 65 234

2027 . . . . 4 9 22 60 39 35 12 55 169 67 236

2028 . . . . 4 9 22 59 39 36 12 56 169 68 237

2029 . . . . 4 9 22 59 39 37 12 57 170 69 239

2030 . . . . 4 9 22 58 39 39 12 59 170 71 241

2031 . . . . 4 9 22 58 39 40 12 61 171 72 243
2007 SSI Annual Report

36

1 Historical totals estimated based on 1-percent or 10-percent sample data.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.B4.—SSI Federally-Administered Terminations Due to Reasons Other Than Death, Calendar Years 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Calendar year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals 1

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 5 33 34 69 12 2 27 29 154 56 210

1975 . . . . 7 50 44 104 15 2 88 91 221 180 401

1976 . . . . 11 70 61 139 24 1 107 133 306 240 546

1977 . . . . 13 65 56 110 19 1 76 92 265 168 433

1978 . . . . 11 64 49 97 18 1 64 86 241 150 391

1979 . . . . 12 59 43 96 23 1 58 85 234 144 378

1980 . . . . 19 48 43 80 23 1 44 77 214 121 334

1981 . . . . 17 43 39 72 21 1 49 86 192 134 326

1982 . . . . 19 48 43 79 23 1 50 87 212 137 348

1983 . . . . 18 43 36 63 14 1 25 61 175 86 261

1984 . . . . 13 51 37 77 21 1 37 60 200 98 298

1985 . . . . 11 42 37 68 13 2 23 54 172 77 249

1986 . . . . 18 49 47 73 16 3 34 60 206 94 300

1987 . . . . 19 51 48 75 17 3 32 57 214 89 302

1988 . . . . 19 52 51 74 15 5 33 59 216 93 309

1989 . . . . 19 55 52 72 16 4 33 58 218 91 308

1990 . . . . 14 52 57 73 17 8 40 68 221 108 330

1991 . . . . 20 50 70 84 18 5 33 58 248 91 339

1992 . . . . 39 68 94 103 19 8 34 56 329 90 419

1993 . . . . 34 73 97 106 22 8 37 55 340 92 433

1994 . . . . 41 73 101 107 18 8 32 49 348 81 429

1995 . . . . 47 81 111 115 20 7 32 48 382 80 461

1996 . . . . 47 89 128 119 21 8 29 49 413 78 491

1997 . . . . 128 105 147 115 18 8 24 40 522 64 586

1998 . . . . 67 89 112 110 19 8 22 38 406 61 466

1999 . . . . 119 111 120 116 20 9 24 43 495 68 563

2000 . . . . 84 99 111 112 22 9 22 38 437 61 498

2001 . . . . 65 95 111 118 20 9 22 38 418 60 478

2002 . . . . 78 100 122 133 20 9 20 35 463 55 517

2003 . . . . 72 95 122 135 20 9 20 36 453 56 509

2004 . . . . 85 101 136 156 23 9 24 38 510 62 572

2005 . . . . 64 101 129 157 20 8 15 30 479 45 524

2006 . . . . 56 96 131 162 21 8 19 30 473 50 522

Projected:

2007 . . . . 55 88 119 163 20 8 16 30 453 47 500

2008 . . . . 60 101 118 167 22 8 20 32 476 53 529

2009 . . . . 51 108 119 174 22 9 21 34 483 55 538

2010 . . . . 51 107 116 177 23 9 21 34 483 55 538

2011 . . . . 52 110 113 178 24 9 22 34 486 56 542

2012 . . . . 66 115 111 177 24 9 23 34 503 57 560

2013 . . . . 90 127 115 184 25 10 24 35 551 59 610

2014 . . . . 87 134 114 188 27 10 24 36 560 60 620

2015 . . . . 80 136 114 190 28 11 25 37 558 61 620

2016 . . . . 78 135 114 191 29 11 26 37 558 63 621

2017 . . . . 73 138 115 194 30 12 26 38 562 65 627

2018 . . . . 73 137 115 193 31 12 27 39 562 66 627

2019 . . . . 74 139 116 194 33 13 28 39 568 67 635

2020 . . . . 75 139 116 193 33 13 29 39 569 68 637

2021 . . . . 75 139 116 192 34 13 30 40 570 70 640

2022 . . . . 75 139 117 191 35 14 31 41 571 72 643

2023 . . . . 75 139 118 189 36 14 32 42 572 73 645

2024 . . . . 75 139 120 187 37 15 32 43 573 75 648

2025 . . . . 76 138 122 186 37 15 33 44 574 77 651

2026 . . . . 76 138 123 184 38 16 33 45 575 79 654

2027 . . . . 77 137 125 183 38 17 34 47 576 81 657

2028 . . . . 77 137 126 182 39 17 34 49 578 83 661

2029 . . . . 77 138 127 181 39 18 35 50 579 85 664

2030 . . . . 77 138 127 182 39 18 35 52 581 87 668

2031 . . . . 78 139 127 182 38 19 35 54 583 88 671
37

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Historical totals estimated based on 1-percent or 10-percent sample data.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Actual numbers of terminations declined in 2006 compared to 2005. This decline resulted from declines in

the terminations for reasons other than death, which were offset in part by small increases in the terminations due to death. The decline in the terminations for reasons other than death were essentially due to

reductions in the numbers of continuing disability reviews (CDRs) and nonmedical redeterminations processed due to constraints on agency administrative resources. Some continued restraint on terminations

over the next 5 years is expected due to continued resource limitations. Thereafter a gradual return to normal processing schedules for these reviews is assumed as resources are made available to SSA to carry out

these legislatively mandated workloads.

Table IV.B5.—SSI Federally-Administered Terminations for All Reasons, Calendar Years 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Calendar year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals 1

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 5 36 42 103 19 4 67 126 209 193 402

1975 . . . . 8 55 56 140 25 3 127 199 287 326 613

1976 . . . . 13 75 71 174 35 3 141 236 371 377 748

1977 . . . . 14 71 68 140 34 3 112 194 330 305 636

1978 . . . . 14 70 58 130 34 3 94 181 308 276 584

1979 . . . . 13 65 52 128 41 2 88 177 301 265 566

1980 . . . . 22 53 52 111 45 2 70 177 284 248 532

1981 . . . . 20 48 47 103 45 3 69 177 266 246 512

1982 . . . . 21 52 51 107 43 2 65 168 277 233 510

1983 . . . . 21 49 44 87 34 4 39 140 240 180 419

1984 . . . . 16 55 46 106 39 6 50 144 267 194 461

1985 . . . . 13 47 47 97 37 8 40 138 249 178 427

1986 . . . . 21 58 59 101 38 11 48 143 287 192 478

1987 . . . . 22 59 61 106 40 13 47 138 301 185 486

1988 . . . . 24 60 65 105 39 18 49 140 311 189 500

1989 . . . . 22 63 69 105 39 15 47 136 312 183 496

1990 . . . . 18 61 75 109 39 22 56 144 324 200 524

1991 . . . . 25 60 90 123 40 22 50 132 360 182 542

1992 . . . . 42 78 115 140 41 23 50 125 440 175 614

1993 . . . . 40 86 124 148 45 24 54 127 467 181 648

1994 . . . . 47 87 128 148 41 24 48 118 475 166 642

1995 . . . . 54 94 142 158 44 25 47 113 517 160 677

1996 . . . . 54 101 158 163 45 27 45 116 548 161 710

1997 . . . . 133 116 172 159 43 26 39 105 648 143 792

1998 . . . . 73 98 136 153 44 29 36 102 533 138 671

1999 . . . . 124 120 146 161 45 31 38 106 626 144 770

2000 . . . . 89 107 138 159 46 29 35 99 569 134 703

2001 . . . . 70 103 139 166 45 31 34 98 554 132 685

2002 . . . . 83 108 150 182 44 30 31 93 598 124 722

2003 . . . . 76 104 149 186 46 30 31 92 591 122 713

2004 . . . . 90 109 163 208 48 31 34 93 650 127 777

2005 . . . . 69 109 157 211 45 30 24 84 621 107 728

2006 . . . . 61 104 158 217 46 31 28 84 615 112 727

Projected:

2007 . . . . 60 96 145 221 45 32 25 82 598 107 706

2008 . . . . 65 110 144 226 47 32 29 85 624 114 738

2009 . . . . 55 117 144 236 48 32 29 86 633 115 748

2010 . . . . 56 116 141 240 49 33 29 86 635 115 750

2011 . . . . 57 120 137 242 50 34 30 86 640 116 755

2012 . . . . 71 125 134 243 52 34 31 86 659 117 776

2013 . . . . 95 137 138 251 54 35 32 86 709 118 828

2014 . . . . 92 144 137 255 56 36 33 87 720 119 839

2015 . . . . 85 145 136 258 58 37 33 87 719 121 840

2016 . . . . 83 145 136 260 60 38 35 88 720 122 843

2017 . . . . 78 148 137 262 62 39 36 89 725 124 849

2018 . . . . 78 147 137 261 64 40 37 89 726 125 851

2019 . . . . 79 148 138 261 67 40 38 89 733 127 860

2020 . . . . 79 148 137 260 68 41 40 89 734 129 863

2021 . . . . 79 148 137 259 70 42 41 90 736 131 867

2022 . . . . 79 149 138 256 72 44 42 92 738 133 871

2023 . . . . 79 148 140 254 73 45 42 93 739 136 875

2024 . . . . 79 148 141 251 74 47 43 95 741 138 879

2025 . . . . 80 147 143 248 76 48 44 97 742 141 883

2026 . . . . 80 147 145 245 77 50 45 99 743 144 888

2027 . . . . 80 146 147 243 78 52 46 102 745 148 893

2028 . . . . 81 146 148 241 78 53 46 105 747 151 898

2029 . . . . 81 146 149 240 78 55 46 108 749 154 903

2030 . . . . 81 147 149 240 78 57 47 111 751 157 908

2031 . . . . 81 147 149 240 77 59 46 114 754 160 914
2007 SSI Annual Report

38

Combining the number of persons coming on the SSI payment rolls during a year with the number of those

already receiving benefits at the beginning of the year, and subtracting the number leaving the rolls during

the year, yields the number of persons receiving Federally-administered SSI payments at the end of the

specified period. Individuals receiving Federal SSI payments, who comprise the great majority of Federally-administered recipients, are presented in table IV.B6 and in figure IV.B4. The net effect of actual

experience in 2006 was that the number of Federal SSI recipients at the end of 2006 was about 1.8 percent

higher than the corresponding number at the end of 2005.

 Figure IV.B3.—SSI Federally-Administered Terminations by Age Group, Calendar Years 1975-2035

[In thousands]

Table IV.B6.—SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as of December, 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 70 338 321 756 109 13 1,010 1,019 1,606 2,029 3,635

1975 . . . . 106 395 352 838 164 14 963 1,062 1,869 2,025 3,893

1976 . . . . 124 420 352 813 208 14 864 1,003 1,932 1,867 3,799

1977 . . . . 147 442 358 800 249 16 785 980 2,013 1,765 3,778

1978 . . . . 165 460 361 791 277 16 728 958 2,069 1,686 3,755

1979 . . . . 176 472 359 764 307 16 656 938 2,094 1,593 3,687

1980 . . . . 188 500 351 750 342 17 609 925 2,149 1,533 3,682

1981 . . . . 194 514 349 720 366 17 541 888 2,160 1,430 3,590

1982 . . . . 191 517 346 683 386 21 459 871 2,144 1,329 3,473

1983 . . . . 198 555 366 692 412 28 449 890 2,250 1,339 3,590

1984 . . . . 210 595 393 700 406 48 463 884 2,352 1,347 3,699

1985 . . . . 226 634 426 717 402 72 462 860 2,477 1,322 3,799

1986 . . . . 240 688 475 739 397 91 465 827 2,630 1,291 3,922

1987 . . . . 249 717 524 756 392 113 464 804 2,751 1,268 4,019

1988 . . . . 254 738 564 774 387 127 468 777 2,844 1,245 4,089

1989 . . . . 263 757 613 799 382 145 488 760 2,959 1,247 4,206

1990 . . . . 306 788 677 840 389 156 508 749 3,156 1,257 4,412

1991 . . . . 395 833 769 897 390 166 542 736 3,451 1,279 4,730

1992 . . . . 555 920 877 970 402 173 577 727 3,898 1,304 5,202

1993 . . . . 721 990 979 1,034 410 179 604 720 4,312 1,324 5,636

1994 . . . . 839 1,032 1,071 1,089 425 182 610 716 4,638 1,326 5,965

1995 . . . . 915 1,058 1,150 1,134 435 188 601 713 4,880 1,315 6,194

1996 . . . . 954 1,066 1,198 1,176 444 192 586 711 5,029 1,296 6,326

1997 . . . . 878 1,039 1,196 1,198 457 193 547 704 4,960 1,251 6,212

1998 . . . . 885 1,038 1,238 1,243 464 197 521 705 5,063 1,226 6,289

1999 . . . . 845 1,005 1,274 1,278 474 195 499 704 5,072 1,203 6,275

0

500

1,000

1,500

2,000

2,500

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Calendar year

Historical Projected

75 or older

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17
39

2007 SSI Annual Report

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Historical data: (Cont.)

2000 . . . . 844 994 1,303 1,313 484 196 483 703 5,134 1,186 6,320

2001 . . . . 879 995 1,329 1,353 493 196 461 703 5,245 1,165 6,410

2002 . . . . 912 1,002 1,344 1,394 502 200 447 705 5,354 1,152 6,505

2003 . . . . 956 1,023 1,353 1,436 511 204 430 703 5,482 1,133 6,614

2004 . . . . 990 1,044 1,350 1,476 515 208 412 699 5,584 1,111 6,695

2005 . . . . 1,034 1,065 1,347 1,523 522 215 408 705 5,706 1,113 6,819

2006 . . . . 1,076 1,095 1,334 1,575 529 220 405 704 5,830 1,109 6,939

Projected:

2007 . . . . 1,114 1,150 1,329 1,636 543 225 405 704 5,997 1,109 7,106

2008 . . . . 1,139 1,196 1,325 1,700 555 229 407 702 6,143 1,109 7,253

2009 . . . . 1,167 1,236 1,310 1,759 566 234 412 700 6,272 1,112 7,383

2010 . . . . 1,192 1,278 1,294 1,816 577 240 418 699 6,398 1,117 7,515

2011 . . . . 1,216 1,316 1,281 1,865 598 244 429 697 6,521 1,127 7,648

2012 . . . . 1,226 1,347 1,270 1,907 626 250 446 696 6,626 1,142 7,768

2013 . . . . 1,212 1,365 1,257 1,945 651 255 464 695 6,684 1,159 7,843

2014 . . . . 1,204 1,373 1,246 1,978 678 259 485 693 6,737 1,178 7,915

2015 . . . . 1,203 1,379 1,244 2,002 704 262 506 693 6,794 1,200 7,994

2016 . . . . 1,204 1,386 1,247 2,016 733 266 530 694 6,851 1,224 8,074

2017 . . . . 1,207 1,389 1,252 2,021 759 272 551 699 6,899 1,250 8,149

2018 . . . . 1,209 1,395 1,257 2,022 786 278 572 707 6,947 1,279 8,226

2019 . . . . 1,212 1,399 1,258 2,021 815 285 595 715 6,989 1,310 8,299

2020 . . . . 1,216 1,401 1,259 2,020 843 291 622 723 7,030 1,345 8,374

2021 . . . . 1,220 1,404 1,263 2,013 868 302 640 742 7,069 1,381 8,451

2022 . . . . 1,224 1,406 1,273 1,999 890 316 651 769 7,108 1,420 8,528

2023 . . . . 1,231 1,404 1,288 1,982 912 328 666 794 7,145 1,460 8,605

2024 . . . . 1,238 1,401 1,306 1,963 933 340 681 820 7,181 1,501 8,682

2025 . . . . 1,246 1,396 1,325 1,943 953 353 696 847 7,216 1,543 8,759

2026 . . . . 1,253 1,392 1,343 1,925 970 366 710 875 7,250 1,585 8,835

2027 . . . . 1,260 1,390 1,358 1,911 984 379 721 905 7,282 1,626 8,908

2028 . . . . 1,267 1,389 1,370 1,899 995 393 731 936 7,313 1,667 8,980

2029 . . . . 1,273 1,391 1,379 1,893 1,001 407 737 969 7,343 1,706 9,049

2030 . . . . 1,278 1,394 1,384 1,895 1,000 421 741 1,001 7,372 1,742 9,114

2031 . . . . 1,283 1,398 1,388 1,902 994 435 740 1,035 7,401 1,775 9,176

 Figure IV.B4.—SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status, by Age Group, 

as of December, 1975-2035

[In thousands]

Table IV.B6.—SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as of December, 1974-2031 (Cont.)

[In thousands]

Year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Year

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17

75 or older

Historical Projected
2007 SSI Annual Report

40

As illustrated in figure IV.B4, the implementation of Public Law 104-121 and Public Law 104-193

resulted in a decline in the Federal recipient population from 1996 to 1997. From the end of 1997 through

the end of 2000, the Federal SSI recipient population grew at an annual rate of less than 1 percent. Since

2000, the growth rate for the Federal SSI recipient population has averaged over 1.5 percent per year. Our

projections indicate that by 2013 we expect to gradually return to a modest growth rate of about 1 percent

per year over the remainder of the 25-year projection period. In order to place this projected growth in the

context of overall population growth, table IV.B7 and figure IV.B5 present Federal SSI recipients as percentages of selected Social Security Area population totals.

1 Blind or disabled recipients as a percentage of the total Social Security Area population.

2 Aged recipients as a percentage of the 65 or older Social Security Area population.

3 Total recipients as a percentage of the total Social Security Area population. Totals do not equal sums of components due to overlapping populations.

Table IV.B7.—SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as a Percentage of 

Selected Social Security Area Population Totals, as of December, 1974-2031 

Year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled1 Aged 2 All 3

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 0.10 0.55 0.89 2.29 0.77 0.14 7.18 11.26 0.72 8.77 1.63

1975 . . . . .15 .63 .97 2.51 1.14 .15 6.69 11.42 .83 8.55 1.73

1976 . . . . .18 .65 .96 2.42 1.41 .14 5.87 10.51 .85 7.70 1.67

1977 . . . . .22 .67 .96 2.36 1.66 .17 5.21 9.99 .88 7.10 1.65

1978 . . . . .25 .68 .95 2.32 1.80 .16 4.73 9.50 .89 6.62 1.62

1979 . . . . .27 .68 .94 2.23 1.96 .15 4.18 9.03 .90 6.11 1.58

1980 . . . . .29 .70 .90 2.19 2.14 .16 3.82 8.66 .91 5.76 1.56

1981 . . . . .30 .72 .87 2.10 2.26 .16 3.34 8.09 .91 5.26 1.50

1982 . . . . .29 .71 .83 2.00 2.34 .19 2.78 7.68 .89 4.77 1.44

1983 . . . . .30 .76 .84 2.03 2.46 .24 2.68 7.64 .92 4.71 1.47

1984 . . . . .32 .81 .88 2.06 2.39 .40 2.72 7.38 .96 4.65 1.50

1985 . . . . .35 .87 .92 2.11 2.32 .58 2.67 7.00 1.00 4.47 1.53

1986 . . . . .37 .94 .99 2.19 2.25 .72 2.63 6.57 1.05 4.27 1.56

1987 . . . . .38 .98 1.05 2.25 2.19 .87 2.59 6.22 1.09 4.12 1.59

1988 . . . . .38 1.00 1.09 2.30 2.14 .96 2.59 5.87 1.11 3.97 1.60

1989 . . . . .40 1.03 1.15 2.36 2.09 1.07 2.66 5.60 1.14 3.91 1.63

1990 . . . . .45 1.09 1.23 2.47 2.10 1.12 2.74 5.38 1.21 3.87 1.69

1991 . . . . .57 1.16 1.35 2.62 2.08 1.17 2.89 5.17 1.30 3.88 1.79

1992 . . . . .79 1.30 1.50 2.78 2.12 1.19 3.05 4.99 1.46 3.89 1.94

1993 . . . . 1.02 1.41 1.63 2.91 2.15 1.20 3.17 4.84 1.59 3.90 2.08

1994 . . . . 1.17 1.49 1.74 3.01 2.22 1.20 3.19 4.72 1.70 3.87 2.18

1995 . . . . 1.26 1.54 1.81 3.09 2.28 1.21 3.15 4.59 1.77 3.80 2.25

1996 . . . . 1.31 1.56 1.86 3.08 2.34 1.21 3.09 4.46 1.80 3.72 2.27

1997 . . . . 1.20 1.52 1.84 3.02 2.42 1.19 2.90 4.34 1.76 3.56 2.21

1998 . . . . 1.20 1.52 1.88 3.02 2.48 1.19 2.78 4.26 1.78 3.48 2.21

1999 . . . . 1.14 1.48 1.91 3.00 2.55 1.16 2.68 4.19 1.77 3.40 2.19

2000 . . . . 1.14 1.45 1.94 2.98 2.60 1.15 2.60 4.10 1.77 3.32 2.18

2001 . . . . 1.18 1.45 1.97 2.97 2.65 1.12 2.48 4.03 1.79 3.23 2.19

2002 . . . . 1.22 1.45 1.99 2.96 2.69 1.12 2.40 3.97 1.81 3.16 2.20

2003 . . . . 1.27 1.47 2.00 2.95 2.72 1.13 2.29 3.91 1.84 3.08 2.22

2004 . . . . 1.31 1.49 1.99 2.93 2.71 1.15 2.17 3.84 1.86 2.99 2.22

2005 . . . . 1.36 1.51 1.98 2.92 2.71 1.18 2.12 3.86 1.88 2.97 2.25

2006 1.42 1.55 1.97 2.92 2.70 1.20 2.06 3.85 1.90 2.93 2.27

Projected:

2007 . . . . 1.47 1.61 1.97 2.94 2.68 1.23 2.00 3.85 1.94 2.88 2.30

2008 . . . . 1.50 1.66 1.98 2.97 2.65 1.25 1.94 3.84 1.97 2.83 2.33

2009 . . . . 1.54 1.69 1.98 2.99 2.62 1.28 1.91 3.83 2.00 2.79 2.35

2010 . . . . 1.57 1.73 1.97 3.00 2.60 1.31 1.88 3.82 2.02 2.76 2.38

2011 . . . . 1.60 1.77 1.97 3.02 2.58 1.33 1.85 3.79 2.05 2.71 2.40

2012 . . . . 1.61 1.80 1.97 3.05 2.56 1.35 1.82 3.76 2.06 2.66 2.42

2013 . . . . 1.59 1.81 1.96 3.06 2.55 1.36 1.81 3.72 2.06 2.62 2.42

2014 . . . . 1.57 1.81 1.95 3.08 2.54 1.37 1.82 3.67 2.06 2.59 2.43

2015 . . . . 1.56 1.82 1.94 3.09 2.53 1.37 1.82 3.62 2.07 2.56 2.43

2016 . . . . 1.56 1.82 1.94 3.09 2.54 1.36 1.83 3.56 2.07 2.53 2.44

2017 . . . . 1.56 1.82 1.93 3.09 2.54 1.36 1.84 3.50 2.07 2.51 2.44

2018 . . . . 1.55 1.82 1.93 3.09 2.55 1.35 1.85 3.44 2.07 2.49 2.45

2019 . . . . 1.55 1.82 1.93 3.08 2.54 1.35 1.86 3.39 2.06 2.47 2.45

2020 . . . . 1.55 1.82 1.93 3.08 2.53 1.35 1.87 3.35 2.06 2.45 2.45

2021 . . . . 1.55 1.82 1.93 3.07 2.54 1.35 1.87 3.31 2.06 2.44 2.46

2022 . . . . 1.55 1.82 1.94 3.07 2.55 1.34 1.87 3.27 2.05 2.43 2.47

2023 . . . . 1.55 1.81 1.94 3.06 2.56 1.34 1.87 3.24 2.05 2.43 2.47

2024 . . . . 1.55 1.81 1.95 3.06 2.56 1.34 1.87 3.22 2.05 2.42 2.48

2025 . . . . 1.55 1.81 1.95 3.06 2.56 1.33 1.87 3.20 2.05 2.42 2.48

2026 . . . . 1.56 1.80 1.96 3.05 2.56 1.33 1.87 3.19 2.04 2.43 2.49

2027 . . . . 1.56 1.80 1.96 3.05 2.56 1.33 1.88 3.17 2.04 2.43 2.50

2028 . . . . 1.56 1.80 1.96 3.05 2.56 1.33 1.88 3.16 2.04 2.43 2.50

2029 . . . . 1.57 1.80 1.97 3.04 2.56 1.32 1.88 3.15 2.03 2.44 2.51

2030 . . . . 1.57 1.80 1.97 3.04 2.55 1.32 1.89 3.14 2.03 2.45 2.51

2031 . . . . 1.57 1.80 1.97 3.04 2.55 1.32 1.89 3.14 2.03 2.46 2.52
41

2007 SSI Annual Report

For the totals shown in table IV.B7, the percentages are calculated using the population age group totals

corresponding to the age groups in the Federal recipient categories. Because the ratios for the separate

recipient categories are computed as percentages of differing base populations, the percentage for the total

SSI recipient population is not the arithmetic sum of the percentages for the respective recipient categories. As indicated in the table, the percentage of the total Social Security Area population who were receiving Federal SSI payments declined from 1975 through the early 1980s. In 1983, this percentage started

increasing and continued to increase through 1996. Due to factors described previously, the percentage of

the total population receiving Federal SSI payments declined in 1997, but leveled out over the next few

years. It has increased slightly over the past few years and is expected to increase gradually over the projection period, due largely to the changing age distribution of the underlying population. 

The various subcategories of Federal SSI recipients, however, follow significantly different growth patterns in relationship to their respective population totals. The aged Federal SSI recipient population

declines steadily as a percentage of the 65 or older population throughout the historical period and most of

the projection period, with the decline leveling off near the end of the projection period. In contrast, except

for recent decreases due to the eligibility redeterminations and continuing disability reviews mandated by

Public Law 104-193, the number of blind or disabled children receiving Federal SSI payments increased

steadily as a percentage of the under age 18 population, with the increase being quite steep in the early

1990s. The total blind or disabled Federal SSI recipient population as a percentage of the total population

remained fairly level until the early 1980s when it started increasing and continued to increase through

1996. After the modest decrease in the late 1990s due to the implementation of legislation described in

other sections, the number of blind or disabled persons receiving Federal SSI payments began a gradual

increase as a percentage of the total population that is estimated to continue through 2011 and then level

off at slightly more than 2 percent of the total population.

Historical and projected numbers of individuals who receive only a Federally-administered State supplement are presented in table IV.B8.

 Figure IV.B5.—SSI Recipients with Federal Benefits in Current-Payment Status as a Percentage of 

Selected Social Security Area Population Age Groups, as of December, 1975-2035

0%

2%

4%

6%

8%

10%

12%

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Year

0-17

18-34

35-49

50-64

65-74

75 or older

Total

Historical Projected
2007 SSI Annual Report

42

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

The combined numbers of persons receiving either a Federal SSI payment or a Federally-administered

State supplement are displayed in table IV.B9.

In examining the recent history of SSI participation and the projections of such participation in the near

future, certain patterns are worth noting. The rapid increase in the total number of SSI participants in the

early 1990s is a function of the growth in the numbers of disabled adults and children. The growth in the

numbers of children receiving SSI resulted in large part from the Supreme Court decision in the case of

Table IV.B8.—SSI Recipients with Federally-Administered State Supplementary Benefits Only,

in Current-Payment Status as of December, 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 1 12 20 57 13 1 138 120 104 257 361

1975 . . . . 1 15 25 74 21 2 144 138 139 282 421

1976 . . . . 1 14 27 87 26 2 134 146 156 280 437

1977 . . . . 1 16 27 94 35 2 136 150 174 286 460

1978 . . . . 1 16 26 93 41 2 127 155 180 282 462

1979 . . . . 1 18 25 89 49 2 121 157 184 278 462

1980 . . . . 2 20 26 82 52 2 112 162 185 274 460

1981 . . . . 1 19 26 75 58 2 94 155 181 248 429

1982 . . . . 1 18 23 68 53 2 82 137 165 219 384

1983 . . . . 1 17 19 50 44 4 65 111 136 176 312

1984 . . . . 1 18 23 50 47 7 68 116 147 184 331

1985 . . . . 1 21 28 53 45 8 67 115 157 182 339

1986 . . . . 1 23 31 55 45 11 66 116 166 182 348

1987 . . . . 1 26 36 60 43 12 72 115 178 187 366

1988 . . . . 1 26 42 59 44 14 74 114 187 188 375

1989 . . . . 2 28 45 60 45 16 76 115 195 192 387

1990 . . . . 2 31 54 60 44 17 82 116 208 197 405

1991 . . . . 2 29 54 59 42 17 78 108 203 186 389

1992 . . . . 2 29 55 59 37 16 70 97 197 167 364

1993 . . . . 2 29 58 59 34 15 64 88 197 151 348

1994 . . . . 2 28 59 56 32 14 59 81 192 139 331

1995 . . . . 3 25 59 56 32 14 54 77 188 131 320

1996 . . . . 2 21 54 53 29 13 49 68 172 116 288

1997 . . . . 2 20 55 53 29 13 46 65 172 111 283

1998 . . . . 2 18 54 55 28 13 43 63 171 106 277

1999 . . . . 2 18 57 58 28 13 43 62 177 105 282

2000 . . . . 2 17 57 60 29 13 42 61 179 103 282

2001 . . . . 2 17 56 62 29 12 41 59 179 100 278

2002 . . . . 3 17 57 64 30 12 42 58 183 100 283

2003 . . . . 3 18 58 67 30 12 42 58 188 100 288

2004 . . . . 3 18 58 70 31 12 43 58 193 100 293

2005 . . . . 3 18 56 73 31 12 44 58 193 102 295

2006 . . . . 3 18 55 76 32 12 45 58 194 103 297

Projected:

2007 . . . . 3 18 54 78 33 12 45 58 199 103 302

2008 . . . . 3 20 54 83 35 12 47 59 207 105 312

2009 . . . . 3 21 54 86 37 13 48 60 213 107 321

2010 . . . . 3 21 54 90 38 13 48 60 219 109 328

2011 . . . . 3 22 53 93 40 13 49 61 225 110 335

2012 . . . . 3 23 54 95 42 14 51 61 231 112 343

2013 . . . . 4 23 54 97 43 14 52 61 235 113 349

2014 . . . . 3 24 54 99 45 14 54 61 238 115 353

2015 . . . . 3 24 53 99 46 15 55 61 240 117 357

2016 . . . . 3 24 53 100 47 15 57 62 242 119 360

2017 . . . . 3 24 53 99 48 15 59 62 242 121 363

2018 . . . . 3 24 53 99 50 15 60 63 244 124 367

2019 . . . . 3 24 53 99 51 16 63 64 246 127 372

2020 . . . . 3 24 53 99 53 16 65 65 248 130 378

2021 . . . . 3 24 53 99 54 16 67 67 250 134 383

2022 . . . . 3 25 53 98 56 17 68 69 252 137 389

2023 . . . . 3 25 54 97 57 18 70 72 253 141 395

2024 . . . . 3 24 55 96 58 18 71 74 255 145 401

2025 . . . . 3 24 55 95 59 19 73 77 257 149 406

2026 . . . . 3 24 56 94 60 20 74 79 258 153 412

2027 . . . . 3 24 57 94 61 20 75 82 260 157 417

2028 . . . . 3 24 57 93 62 21 76 85 261 161 422

2029 . . . . 3 24 58 93 62 22 77 88 262 165 427

2030 . . . . 3 24 58 93 62 23 77 91 263 168 431

2031 . . . . 3 24 58 93 61 23 77 94 264 171 435
43

2007 SSI Annual Report

Sullivan v. Zebley, which greatly expanded the criteria used for determining disability for children. The

growth in the numbers of disabled adults is a more complicated phenomenon which is not completely

understood. However, extensive research conducted under contract to SSA and the Department of Health

and Human Services suggested that this growth was the result of a combination of factors including (1)

demographic trends, (2) a downturn in the economy in the late 1980s and early 1990s, (3) long-term structural changes in the economy, and (4) changes in other support programs (in particular the reduction or

elimination of general assistance programs in certain States). The recent modest changes in program participation reflects the combined effects of recent legislation described in previous sections, along with

changes in some of the factors mentioned above.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.B9.—SSI Recipients with Federally-Administered Benefits in Current-Payment Status 

as of December, 1974-2031

[In thousands]

Year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . 71 349 341 813 122 14 1,148 1,138 1,710 2,286 3,996

1975 . . . . 107 410 378 911 185 16 1,107 1,200 2,007 2,307 4,314

1976 . . . . 125 434 379 900 234 15 999 1,149 2,088 2,148 4,236

1977 . . . . 147 458 385 893 284 18 921 1,130 2,187 2,051 4,238

1978 . . . . 166 476 387 884 319 17 855 1,113 2,249 1,968 4,217

1979 . . . . 177 490 384 852 357 17 777 1,095 2,278 1,872 4,150

1980 . . . . 190 521 377 833 393 20 721 1,086 2,334 1,808 4,142

1981 . . . . 195 533 375 795 424 19 635 1,043 2,341 1,678 4,019

1982 . . . . 192 535 369 751 439 23 541 1,008 2,309 1,549 3,858

1983 . . . . 198 572 386 742 456 32 514 1,001 2,386 1,515 3,901

1984 . . . . 212 613 417 751 453 54 531 999 2,499 1,530 4,029

1985 . . . . 227 655 454 769 447 80 530 975 2,634 1,504 4,138

1986 . . . . 241 711 506 794 442 102 531 942 2,796 1,473 4,269

1987 . . . . 251 743 560 816 436 124 536 920 2,930 1,455 4,385

1988 . . . . 255 764 606 833 431 142 543 891 3,030 1,433 4,464

1989 . . . . 265 785 658 859 427 160 564 875 3,154 1,439 4,593

1990 . . . . 309 819 731 900 432 172 589 865 3,363 1,454 4,817

1991 . . . . 397 863 823 956 432 183 620 845 3,654 1,465 5,118

1992 . . . . 556 949 932 1,029 440 189 647 824 4,095 1,471 5,566

1993 . . . . 723 1,019 1,036 1,093 445 194 667 808 4,509 1,475 5,984

1994 . . . . 841 1,060 1,130 1,146 457 196 669 797 4,830 1,466 6,296

1995 . . . . 917 1,083 1,209 1,190 467 202 656 790 5,068 1,446 6,514

1996 . . . . 955 1,087 1,252 1,229 472 205 634 778 5,201 1,413 6,614

1997 . . . . 880 1,059 1,251 1,252 486 205 593 770 5,133 1,362 6,495

1998 . . . . 887 1,056 1,292 1,298 492 209 564 768 5,234 1,332 6,566

1999 . . . . 847 1,024 1,331 1,336 503 208 543 765 5,249 1,308 6,557

2000 . . . . 847 1,011 1,360 1,373 513 209 525 764 5,312 1,289 6,602

2001 . . . . 882 1,012 1,385 1,415 522 209 502 762 5,424 1,264 6,688

2002 . . . . 915 1,019 1,401 1,458 532 212 489 763 5,536 1,252 6,788

2003 . . . . 959 1,040 1,410 1,503 541 216 471 761 5,670 1,233 6,902

2004 . . . . 993 1,062 1,408 1,546 546 221 455 756 5,777 1,211 6,988

2005 . . . . 1,036 1,083 1,404 1,596 553 228 452 763 5,900 1,214 7,114

2006 1,079 1,113 1,388 1,651 560 232 450 762 6,024 1,212 7,236

Projected:

2007 . . . . 1,117 1,168 1,383 1,714 576 237 450 762 6,195 1,213 7,408

2008 . . . . 1,142 1,215 1,379 1,782 590 241 454 760 6,350 1,215 7,565

2009 . . . . 1,170 1,257 1,364 1,846 603 246 460 759 6,485 1,219 7,704

2010 . . . . 1,196 1,299 1,348 1,906 615 253 466 760 6,617 1,226 7,843

2011 . . . . 1,219 1,338 1,335 1,958 638 258 479 758 6,746 1,237 7,983

2012 . . . . 1,229 1,370 1,324 2,003 668 264 497 757 6,856 1,254 8,110

2013 . . . . 1,216 1,388 1,310 2,042 695 269 516 756 6,920 1,272 8,192

2014 . . . . 1,207 1,397 1,300 2,076 722 273 538 755 6,976 1,293 8,269

2015 . . . . 1,207 1,403 1,297 2,101 750 277 562 755 7,035 1,316 8,351

2016 . . . . 1,207 1,410 1,300 2,115 780 280 587 756 7,093 1,342 8,435

2017 . . . . 1,210 1,413 1,305 2,120 807 287 610 761 7,142 1,371 8,512

2018 . . . . 1,213 1,419 1,309 2,121 836 294 632 770 7,191 1,402 8,593

2019 . . . . 1,215 1,423 1,311 2,120 866 300 658 779 7,234 1,437 8,672

2020 . . . . 1,219 1,425 1,312 2,119 895 307 687 788 7,277 1,475 8,752

2021 . . . . 1,223 1,428 1,315 2,112 922 318 707 808 7,319 1,515 8,834

2022 . . . . 1,227 1,431 1,326 2,097 946 333 719 838 7,360 1,557 8,917

2023 . . . . 1,234 1,429 1,342 2,079 969 346 736 866 7,399 1,601 9,000

2024 . . . . 1,241 1,426 1,360 2,059 991 359 752 894 7,437 1,646 9,083

2025 . . . . 1,249 1,421 1,380 2,039 1,013 372 769 923 7,473 1,692 9,165

2026 . . . . 1,256 1,416 1,399 2,020 1,031 385 784 955 7,508 1,738 9,246

2027 . . . . 1,264 1,414 1,415 2,004 1,045 399 797 987 7,541 1,784 9,325

2028 . . . . 1,271 1,413 1,427 1,992 1,056 414 807 1,021 7,573 1,828 9,402

2029 . . . . 1,277 1,415 1,436 1,986 1,063 429 814 1,057 7,605 1,871 9,475

2030 . . . . 1,282 1,418 1,442 1,987 1,062 443 818 1,092 7,635 1,910 9,545

2031 . . . . 1,286 1,423 1,446 1,995 1,056 459 818 1,129 7,664 1,946 9,611
2007 SSI Annual Report

44

C. FEDERAL PAYMENTS UNDER SSI

In order to estimate future amounts of Federal expenditures under SSI, the projected Federal benefit rates

shown in table IV.A2 are first modified to reflect actual payment levels, taking into account historical and

projected levels of adjustments for other actual or deemed income. Combining these actual payment levels

with the projected numbers of persons receiving Federal SSI payments yields estimates of the amounts of

Federal SSI payments. Historical amounts of such payments on a calendar year basis are shown in table

IV.C1. For purposes of this presentation, these payment amounts are computed on a cash-flow basis consistent with the concepts used to define SSI obligations for the Federal Budget. As a result, for months

after January 1978, SSI payments due on the first of the month are tabulated in the previous month, if the

first of the month falls on a weekend or Federal holiday.1

1 Total historical payments for 1974-77 agree with those presented in the Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin. Total historical payments for 1978-83 are estimated.

2 Includes 13 months of payments since payments due on January 1, 1978 and January 1, 1979 were both paid in calendar year 1978.

3 Partially estimated.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Using this cash-flow concept causes these payments to differ from similar amounts shown in other Social

Security Administration publications, such as the Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin, in two main ways. First, the payments shown in the Annual Statistical Supplement are tabulated for

the month the payment is due, while the amounts shown in table IV.C1 are tabulated for the month they are

1 Public Law 95-216, the Social Security Amendments of 1977, enacted December 20, 1977, added a statutory requirement that SSI payments, which are

normally due on the first of the month, be delivered early when the normal delivery date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal holiday. When the first of the

month falls on a weekend or Federal holiday, all payments due on that day are paid in the previous month. Payments presented on a cash-flow basis are tabulated according to the month in which they are actually paid.

Table IV.C1.—SSI Federal Payments in Current Dollars,1 Calendar Years 1974-2007

[In millions]

Calendar 

year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

1974 ........... $40 $438 $452 $968 $135 $17 $825 $958 $2,050 $1,783 $3,833

1975 ........... 128 537 499 1,099 190 17 812 1,031 2,471 1,843 4,314

1976 ........... 176 605 541 1,147 241 17 762 1,023 2,727 1,785 4,512

1977 ........... 227 671 579 1,174 298 17 721 1,016 2,966 1,737 4,703

1978 2 ........ 302 781 655 1,312 381 18 736 1,111 3,449 1,847 5,296

1979 ........... 340 809 650 1,296 429 21 667 1,093 3,546 1,760 5,306

1980 ........... 397 931 731 1,420 544 28 642 1,230 4,051 1,872 5,923

1981 ........... 458 1,079 821 1,542 654 32 643 1,320 4,586 1,963 6,549

1982 ........... 512 1,211 883 1,590 704 38 630 1,364 4,937 1,994 6,931

1983 ........... 574 1,372 985 1,704 774 58 624 1,440 5,466 2,064 7,530

1984 ........... 659 1,576 1,128 1,835 836 102 670 1,512 6,136 2,182 8,318

1985 ........... 736 1,709 1,250 1,924 833 160 699 1,499 6,611 2,198 8,809

1986 ........... 831 1,929 1,452 2,043 848 209 731 1,479 7,312 2,210 9,522

1987 ........... 900 2,081 1,618 2,157 846 259 765 1,444 7,860 2,210 10,069

1988 ........... 955 2,228 1,818 2,303 874 304 814 1,449 8,481 2,263 10,744

1989 ........... 1,025 2,431 2,048 2,481 936 366 881 1,479 9,286 2,361 11,647

1990 ........... 1,201 2,660 2,395 2,792 969 407 987 1,532 10,423 2,519 12,943

1991 ........... 1,678 3,129 2,966 3,305 1,060 463 1,169 1,637 12,601 2,806 15,407

1992 ........... 3,154 3,900 3,577 3,790 1,124 487 1,303 1,690 16,033 2,993 19,026

1993 ........... 3,909 4,465 4,164 4,188 1,208 513 1,471 1,759 18,447 3,230 21,677

1994 ........... 4,167 4,504 4,666 4,533 1,274 538 1,566 1,814 19,682 3,380 23,063

1995 ........... 4,657 4,777 5,155 4,896 1,357 565 1,599 1,900 21,407 3,499 24,906

1996 ........... 4,947 5,004 5,614 5,298 1,427 590 1,643 1,977 22,880 3,621 26,501

1997 ........... 4,920 5,031 5,564 5,410 1,505 614 1,586 2,046 23,044 3,632 26,675

1998 ........... 4,965 5,150 5,901 5,777 1,588 635 1,542 2,136 24,017 3,678 27,695

1999 ........... 4,835 5,132 6,185 6,037 1,660 654 1,503 2,206 24,503 3,709 28,212

2000 ........... 4,789 5,121 6,404 6,293 1,717 675 1,470 2,309 24,999 3,779 28,778

2001 ........... 5,104 5,354 6,817 6,783 1,838 713 1,470 2,454 26,608 3,924 30,532

2002 ........... 5,353 5,484 7,048 7,131 1,909 738 1,433 2,520 27,663 3,953 31,616

2003 ........... 5,686 5,715 7,243 7,532 1,984 771 1,408 2,601 28,932 4,009 32,941

2004 ........... 6,036 5,954 7,384 7,943 2,054 809 1,366 2,657 30,179 4,023 34,202

2005 ........... 6,488 6,291 7,624 8,437 2,148 871 1,358 2,778 31,859 4,136 35,995

2006 ........... 6,948 6,656 7,760 8,943 2,235 924 1,413 2,895 33,467 4,308 37,775

2007 3 ........ 7,424 7,216 7,980 9,627 2,356 980 1,425 2,981 35,582 4,405 39,987
45

2007 SSI Annual Report

actually paid. In particular, since January 1 of each year is a Federal holiday, SSI payments due on

January 1 of years 1979 and later are actually paid in December of the previous year. Thus, for example,

the calendar year 2006 payment amounts shown in table IV.C1 reflect payments made in January-December, 2006, and include the payments due on January 1, 2007 (which were actually paid in December,

2006), but not the payments due on January 1, 2006 (which were actually paid in December, 2005). Second, beginning in 1991, SSI obligations as accounted for in the Federal Budget are not reduced for certain

recovered overpayments which are remitted directly to the Department of the Treasury. The payments

shown in the Annual Statistical Supplement continue to report an amount which is reduced by such overpayment recoveries, as was done for the Budget prior to 1991.

Corresponding amounts of SSI outlays on a fiscal year1 basis are presented in table IV.C2 for fiscal years

1978-2007. Fiscal years prior to 1978 are omitted from table IV.C2 since historical SSI payment amounts

on a fiscal year basis for years prior to 1978 are not readily available. As with the calendar year figures,

these fiscal year amounts are shown on a cash-flow basis. Consequently, fiscal years 1979 and later may

contain 11, 12, or 13 months of payments, depending on whether October 1 of the current and succeeding

fiscal years falls on a weekend.2 Fiscal year 1978 contains 13 months of payments.

1 Payment due on October 1 of fiscal year paid in previous fiscal year.

2 Partially estimated.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

1 Fiscal years 1977 and later cover the 12-month period ending September 30. For example, fiscal year 2007 payments include payments made from October 1, 2006 through September 30, 2007.

2 Generally, for fiscal years 1979 and later, the number of months of payments included in the fiscal year is:

11 months if October 1 of the current, but not the succeeding fiscal year falls on a weekend;

12 months if October 1 of both the current and succeeding fiscal years falls during the week (all payments made in the fiscal year due);

12 months if October 1 of both the current and succeeding fiscal years falls on a weekend (both payments due on October 1 paid in preceding fiscal year);

and

13 months if October 1 of the succeeding, but not current, fiscal year falls on a weekend.

Table IV.C2.—SSI Federal Payments in Current Dollars, Fiscal Years 1978-2007

[In millions]

Fiscal

year

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

1978. . . . . . $206 $740 $668 $1,438 $312 $22 $772 $1,076 $3,386 $1,848 $5,234

1979 1 . . . . 226 711 620 1,265 331 20 656 954 3,172 1,610 4,782

1980. . . . . . 372 877 698 1,360 506 26 629 1,184 3,840 1,813 5,653

1981. . . . . . 442 1,039 797 1,508 625 31 647 1,307 4,442 1,954 6,396

1982. . . . . . 499 1,181 861 1,570 693 36 640 1,356 4,840 1,996 6,836

1983. . . . . . 596 1,416 1,024 1,783 806 56 660 1,510 5,680 2,170 7,850

1984 1 . . . . 588 1,411 1,005 1,665 760 85 613 1,391 5,514 2,004 7,517

1985. . . . . . 713 1,662 1,215 1,895 828 145 691 1,502 6,459 2,193 8,652

1986. . . . . . 800 1,864 1,386 1,995 840 196 723 1,487 7,080 2,209 9,290

1987. . . . . . 880 2,030 1,565 2,119 845 242 755 1,448 7,681 2,203 9,884

1988. . . . . . 1,009 2,356 1,898 2,425 932 316 860 1,559 8,935 2,419 11,354

1989 1 . . . . 1,012 2,378 1,997 2,452 910 345 862 1,473 9,094 2,335 11,430

1990 1 . . . . 1,039 2,378 2,115 2,479 876 362 879 1,394 9,247 2,273 11,521

1991. . . . . . 1,519 2,975 2,772 3,141 1,032 447 1,120 1,608 11,886 2,728 14,614

1992. . . . . . 2,684 3,621 3,398 3,653 1,099 476 1,269 1,680 14,932 2,949 17,881

1993. . . . . . 3,817 4,377 3,977 4,033 1,175 502 1,420 1,730 17,880 3,150 21,029

1994. . . . . . 4,328 4,771 4,866 4,756 1,344 569 1,659 1,930 20,635 3,588 24,223

1995 1 . . . . 4,554 4,719 5,031 4,822 1,341 560 1,596 1,884 21,027 3,480 24,507

1996 1 . . . . 4,543 4,595 5,123 4,830 1,305 540 1,510 1,808 20,936 3,317 24,254

1997. . . . . . 4,933 5,004 5,529 5,340 1,478 606 1,602 2,027 22,890 3,629 26,519

1998. . . . . . 4,915 5,114 5,816 5,688 1,567 630 1,548 2,110 23,729 3,658 27,387

1999. . . . . . 4,901 5,152 6,123 5,975 1,638 648 1,506 2,180 24,438 3,685 28,123

2000. . . . . . 5,152 5,500 6,827 6,692 1,822 718 1,599 2,453 26,710 4,052 30,763

2001 1 . . . . 4,597 4,869 6,170 6,125 1,670 652 1,352 2,236 24,083 3,588 27,671

2002. . . . . . 5,290 5,456 6,998 7,041 1,889 731 1,444 2,500 27,405 3,944 31,349

2003. . . . . . 5,558 5,623 7,170 7,390 1,957 759 1,417 2,572 28,456 3,989 32,445

2004. . . . . . 5,910 5,868 7,327 7,797 2,031 796 1,380 2,638 29,729 4,018 33,748

2005. . . . . . 6,856 6,669 8,150 8,928 2,282 916 1,463 2,945 33,800 4,409 38,208

2006 1 . . . . 6,832 6,560 7,739 8,813 2,207 908 1,404 2,863 33,060 4,267 37,327

2007 1, 2 . . 6,724 6,521 7,283 8,707 2,154 898 1,311 2,746 32,287 4,058 36,344
2007 SSI Annual Report

46

When projecting dollar amounts over longer periods of time, the changing value of the dollar due to inflation can make meaningful comparisons of such amounts difficult. For this reason, in projecting SSI expenditures for 25 years, some means of removing inflation is generally desirable. The CPI, as discussed in

section IV.A, is an appropriate means of standardizing projected SSI costs over time. Constant-dollar values of Federal SSI benefit payments (those adjusted by the CPI) are presented in table IV.C3 for both the

historical period, calendar years 1974-2006, and the full 25-year projection period, 2007-31. This same

information is presented in graphical form in figure IV.C1. Projections of the CPI used for this standardization are based on the intermediate economic assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report.

The future growth in the “constant dollar” estimates is primarily attributable to the underlying growth in

the U.S. population as shown in table IV.A1. However, an additional contributing factor is the projected

growth in the number of SSI recipients as a percent of the population, as shown in table IV.B7.

 Figure IV.C1.—SSI Federal Payments, by Age Group, in Constant 2007 Dollars, Calendar Years 1975-2035

[In billions]

$0

$10

$20

$30

$40

$50

$60

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Calendar year

Constant 2007 dollars -- billions .

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17

75 or older

Historical Projected
47

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 The adjusted CPI is the CPI-W indexed to calendar year 2007. Projections of the adjusted CPI are based on the intermediate economic assumptions of the

2007 OASDI Trustees Report.

2 Payment amounts include 13 months of payments since payments due on January 1, 1978 and January 1, 1979 were both paid in calendar year 1978.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical split among age groups is estimated on a calendar year of age basis.

Table IV.C3.—SSI Federal Payments in Constant 2007 Dollars, Calendar Years 1974-2031

[Payment amounts in millions]

Calendar year

Adjusted1

CPI 

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . . . . 24.66 $164 $1,774 $1,832 $3,927 $548 $70 $3,345 $3,884 $8,315 $7,229 $15,544

1975 . . . . . . . 26.92 477 1,995 1,854 4,082 706 65 3,017 3,829 9,178 6,846 16,024

1976 . . . . . . . 28.46 618 2,127 1,901 4,030 848 59 2,677 3,596 9,583 6,273 15,856

1977 . . . . . . . 30.30 751 2,214 1,910 3,875 982 57 2,380 3,351 9,789 5,731 15,520

1978 2. . . . . . 32.61 927 2,394 2,007 4,023 1,170 56 2,256 3,408 10,577 5,664 16,241

1979 . . . . . . . 36.33 935 2,228 1,790 3,567 1,182 58 1,835 3,009 9,760 4,844 14,604

1980 . . . . . . . 41.24 963 2,258 1,773 3,443 1,320 67 1,557 2,983 9,824 4,539 14,363

1981 . . . . . . . 45.46 1,008 2,373 1,806 3,392 1,439 69 1,414 2,905 10,087 4,318 14,406

1982 . . . . . . . 48.18 1,063 2,512 1,832 3,299 1,461 79 1,307 2,831 10,247 4,138 14,384

1983 . . . . . . . 49.65 1,155 2,763 1,984 3,432 1,559 116 1,257 2,900 11,009 4,157 15,166

1984 . . . . . . . 51.35 1,284 3,070 2,197 3,574 1,628 198 1,305 2,945 11,950 4,250 16,200

1985 . . . . . . . 53.17 1,384 3,214 2,351 3,619 1,567 301 1,315 2,819 12,435 4,134 16,569

1986 . . . . . . . 53.99 1,540 3,573 2,690 3,784 1,570 387 1,353 2,739 13,544 4,092 17,636

1987 . . . . . . . 55.93 1,608 3,720 2,893 3,856 1,512 463 1,368 2,582 14,052 3,950 18,002

1988 . . . . . . . 58.16 1,642 3,831 3,126 3,959 1,503 523 1,400 2,491 14,584 3,891 18,475

1989 . . . . . . . 60.96 1,682 3,987 3,359 4,069 1,536 600 1,446 2,427 15,234 3,872 19,106

1990 . . . . . . . 64.17 1,871 4,146 3,733 4,352 1,509 634 1,539 2,387 16,244 3,926 20,170

1991 . . . . . . . 66.76 2,514 4,687 4,443 4,951 1,589 693 1,751 2,453 18,876 4,204 23,079

1992 . . . . . . . 68.70 4,590 5,677 5,207 5,517 1,636 709 1,896 2,460 23,337 4,357 27,694

1993 . . . . . . . 70.64 5,534 6,320 5,895 5,929 1,710 726 2,083 2,490 26,114 4,572 30,686

1994 . . . . . . . 72.42 5,754 6,219 6,443 6,260 1,759 743 2,163 2,504 27,177 4,667 31,844

1995 . . . . . . . 74.47 6,254 6,414 6,923 6,574 1,822 759 2,147 2,552 28,746 4,699 33,445

1996 . . . . . . . 76.65 6,454 6,529 7,324 6,912 1,862 770 2,144 2,580 29,850 4,724 34,574

1997 . . . . . . . 78.35 6,280 6,421 7,102 6,905 1,921 783 2,024 2,611 29,412 4,635 34,047

1998 . . . . . . . 79.39 6,253 6,487 7,433 7,277 2,000 800 1,943 2,690 30,251 4,633 34,884

1999 . . . . . . . 81.17 5,957 6,322 7,619 7,438 2,045 805 1,852 2,718 30,187 4,570 34,756

2000 . . . . . . . 83.98 5,702 6,097 7,626 7,493 2,044 804 1,750 2,750 29,766 4,500 34,266

2001 . . . . . . . 86.28 5,915 6,205 7,900 7,861 2,130 827 1,704 2,844 30,837 4,548 35,386

2002 . . . . . . . 87.46 6,121 6,270 8,059 8,154 2,182 843 1,638 2,881 31,630 4,520 36,150

2003 . . . . . . . 89.41 6,359 6,391 8,101 8,424 2,219 863 1,575 2,909 32,358 4,483 36,841

2004 . . . . . . . 91.74 6,580 6,490 8,049 8,658 2,239 882 1,489 2,896 32,897 4,386 37,283

2005 . . . . . . . 94.97 6,832 6,625 8,028 8,884 2,262 917 1,430 2,926 33,548 4,355 37,904

2006 . . . . . . . 98.14 7,080 6,782 7,908 9,113 2,278 941 1,439 2,950 34,101 4,390 38,491

Projected:

2007 . . . . . . . 100.00 7,424 7,216 7,980 9,627 2,356 980 1,425 2,981 35,582 4,405 39,987

2008 . . . . . . . 102.37 7,621 7,535 8,012 10,009 2,412 994 1,433 2,984 36,585 4,417 41,002

2009 . . . . . . . 105.11 7,791 7,760 7,920 10,317 2,454 1,013 1,443 2,981 37,256 4,424 41,680

2010 . . . . . . . 108.05 7,989 8,011 7,843 10,640 2,508 1,041 1,465 2,994 38,031 4,459 42,490

2011 . . . . . . . 111.08 8,177 8,256 7,783 10,925 2,605 1,064 1,500 2,993 38,810 4,493 43,303

2012 . . . . . . . 114.19 8,311 8,464 7,737 11,174 2,734 1,094 1,553 2,997 39,513 4,549 44,063

2013 . . . . . . . 117.39 8,319 8,615 7,691 11,416 2,855 1,120 1,618 3,001 40,015 4,619 44,635

2014 . . . . . . . 120.67 8,268 8,678 7,636 11,601 2,977 1,140 1,690 3,004 40,300 4,694 44,994

2015 . . . . . . . 124.05 8,274 8,716 7,638 11,733 3,103 1,160 1,765 3,013 40,624 4,778 45,403

2016 . . . . . . . 127.52 8,289 8,760 7,670 11,807 3,235 1,179 1,847 3,024 40,941 4,871 45,812

2017 . . . . . . . 131.09 8,323 8,800 7,723 11,844 3,363 1,215 1,925 3,052 41,268 4,978 46,246

2018 . . . . . . . 134.76 8,364 8,854 7,782 11,869 3,500 1,249 2,001 3,095 41,618 5,096 46,714

2019 . . . . . . . 138.54 8,403 8,897 7,824 11,882 3,641 1,282 2,087 3,134 41,930 5,221 47,152

2020 . . . . . . . 142.42 8,452 8,932 7,862 11,899 3,782 1,318 2,183 3,176 42,245 5,359 47,605

2021 . . . . . . . 146.41 8,497 8,962 7,905 11,878 3,909 1,371 2,248 3,259 42,524 5,506 48,030

2022 . . . . . . . 150.50 8,545 8,991 7,993 11,814 4,023 1,442 2,288 3,378 42,808 5,666 48,474

2023 . . . . . . . 154.72 8,614 9,004 8,121 11,741 4,142 1,507 2,341 3,493 43,129 5,834 48,962

2024 . . . . . . . 159.05 8,687 9,007 8,263 11,660 4,258 1,572 2,397 3,610 43,446 6,006 49,453

2025 . . . . . . . 163.50 8,753 8,986 8,401 11,558 4,363 1,634 2,452 3,730 43,695 6,182 49,877

2026 . . . . . . . 168.08 8,789 8,953 8,520 11,450 4,446 1,698 2,502 3,862 43,855 6,364 50,219

2027 . . . . . . . 172.79 8,797 8,915 8,602 11,344 4,507 1,760 2,546 4,002 43,926 6,548 50,474

2028 . . . . . . . 177.63 8,807 8,894 8,668 11,260 4,554 1,825 2,583 4,148 44,007 6,731 50,738

2029 . . . . . . . 182.60 8,815 8,886 8,711 11,211 4,581 1,891 2,611 4,300 44,096 6,910 51,006

2030 . . . . . . . 187.71 8,812 8,887 8,732 11,199 4,574 1,957 2,627 4,451 44,161 7,078 51,239

2031 . . . . . . . 192.97 8,809 8,899 8,747 11,219 4,544 2,023 2,629 4,607 44,241 7,237 51,478
2007 SSI Annual Report

48

Although detailed projections of SSI State supplementary payments are not prepared, historical information on the amounts of such supplements administered by SSA is presented in table IV.C4. These amounts

are consistent with those presented in the Annual Statistical Supplement to the Social Security Bulletin and

are shown only for the two broad recipient categories.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components.

Historical information on State-administered State supplementary payments was previously included in

this report, but is no longer included since complete data for all States is generally not available. Information on selected characteristics of State assistance programs for SSI recipients can be found in the Social

Security Administration publication, State Assistance Programs for SSI Recipients.1

Table IV.C4.—SSI Federally-Administered State Supplementary Payments in Current Dollars, Calendar Years 1974-2006

[In millions]

Calendar year Aged

Blind or

disabled Total

1974 ................................................ $631 $632 $1,264

1975 ................................................ 674 729 1,403

1976 ................................................ 635 753 1,388

1977 ................................................ 627 804 1,431

1978 ................................................ 636 855 1,491

1979 ................................................ 661 928 1,590

1980 ................................................ 757 1,091 1,848

1981 ................................................ 731 1,108 1,839

1982 ................................................ 694 1,104 1,798

1983 ................................................ 645 1,066 1,711

1984 ................................................ 645 1,148 1,792

1985 ................................................ 694 1,278 1,973

1986 ................................................ 759 1,484 2,243

1987 ................................................ 849 1,714 2,563

1988 ................................................ 873 1,798 2,671

1989 ................................................ 954 2,001 2,955

1990 ................................................ 1,038 2,201 3,239

1991 ................................................ 999 2,232 3,231

1992 ................................................ 1,023 2,412 3,435

1993 ................................................ 934 2,336 3,270

1994 ................................................ 876 2,240 3,116

1995 ................................................ 864 2,253 3,118

1996 ................................................ 833 2,155 2,988

1997 ................................................ 824 2,090 2,913

1998 ................................................ 838 2,165 3,003

1999 ................................................ 921 2,380 3,301

2000 ................................................ 943 2,439 3,381

2001 ................................................ 956 2,505 3,460

2002 ................................................ 1,051 2,768 3,820

2003 ................................................ 1,098 2,906 4,005

2004 ................................................ 1,133 3,045 4,178

2005 ................................................ 1,128 3,050 4,178

20061 ..............................................

1 Split between recipient categories is a preliminary estimate.

1,147 3,006 4,153

1 Publication No. 13-11975, prepared by the Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics, is available on the internet at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/

policy/docs/progdesc/ssi_st_asst.
49

2007 SSI Annual Report

D. FEDERAL SSI PAYMENTS AS A PERCENTAGE OF GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT

For SSI, an appropriate relative measure of program costs is produced by comparing estimated annual SSI

costs to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)1. In addition to providing an inflation-independent measure of

the cost of the SSI program, this provides a useful perspective on the proportion of the total output of the

U.S. economy needed to provide Federal SSI benefits. As is shown in table IV.D1 and figure IV.D1, the

total cost of the SSI program after 2007 is projected to decline relative to GDP.

Table IV.D1 and figure IV.D1 present a concise summary of Federal expenditures under the SSI program.

Following the initial higher costs of the program, total Federal SSI payments during the 1980s were a

fairly constant percentage of GDP (0.21 percent). During the early 1990s, SSI experienced rather rapid

growth (to 0.34 percent of GDP in 1996) due to a combination of factors discussed earlier in section IV.

Legislation enacted in 19962 resulted in a drop in the cost of SSI as a percentage of GDP in 1997. As mentioned earlier, the estimates prepared for this report project total participation in the SSI program to remain

a stable proportion of the U.S. population. Federal SSI expenditures, after adjusting for growth in prices,

are projected to grow slightly faster than the population due to some estimated growth in the SSI recipient

population as a percentage of the overall U.S. population, as discussed previously in section IV.C. Since

the real growth projected for GDP under the 2007 Trustees Report intermediate assumptions is greater

than the effect of increases in SSI participation, Federal SSI payments are projected to decline as a percentage of GDP over the next 25 years, reaching 0.24 percent of GDP by 2031.

1 The total value of goods and services produced in the United States.

2 Public Law 104-121 and Public Law 104-193.

 Figure IV.D1.—SSI Federal Payments, by Age Group, as a Percentage of GDP, Calendar Years 1975-2035

0.00%

0.10%

0.20%

0.30%

0.40%

0.50%

1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035

Calendar year

35-49

65-74

50-64

18-34

0-17

75 or older 

Historical Projected
2007 SSI Annual Report

50

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components. Historical GDP amounts subject to revision.

Table IV.D1.—SSI Federal Payments as a Percentage of GDP, Calendar Years 1974-2031 

Calendar 

year

GDP1

(In billions)

1 Projected values based on the intermediate economic assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report.

Blind or disabled, by age group Aged, by age group Totals

0-17 18-34 35-49 50-64 65-74

75 or

older 65-74

75 or

older

Blind or

disabled Aged All

Historical data:

1974 . . . . $1,500 0.003 0.029 0.030 0.065 0.009 0.001 0.055 0.064 0.137 0.119 0.256

1975 . . . . 1,638 .008 .033 .030 .067 .012 .001 .050 .063 .151 .112 .263

1976 . . . . 1,825 .010 .033 .030 .063 .013 .001 .042 .056 .149 .098 .247

1977 . . . . 2,031 .011 .033 .029 .058 .015 .001 .036 .050 .146 .086 .232

1978 . . . . 2,295 .013 .034 .029 .057 .017 .001 .032 .048 .150 .080 .231

1979 . . . . 2,563 .013 .032 .025 .051 .017 .001 .026 .043 .138 .069 .207

1980 . . . . 2,790 .014 .033 .026 .051 .020 .001 .023 .044 .145 .067 .212

1981 . . . . 3,128 .015 .034 .026 .049 .021 .001 .021 .042 .147 .063 .209

1982 . . . . 3,255 .016 .037 .027 .049 .022 .001 .019 .042 .152 .061 .213

1983 . . . . 3,537 .016 .039 .028 .048 .022 .002 .018 .041 .155 .058 .213

1984 . . . . 3,933 .017 .040 .029 .047 .021 .003 .017 .038 .156 .055 .211

1985 . . . . 4,220 .017 .040 .030 .046 .020 .004 .017 .036 .157 .052 .209

1986 . . . . 4,463 .019 .043 .033 .046 .019 .005 .016 .033 .164 .050 .213

1987 . . . . 4,739 .019 .044 .034 .046 .018 .005 .016 .030 .166 .047 .212

1988 . . . . 5,104 .019 .044 .036 .045 .017 .006 .016 .028 .166 .044 .211

1989 . . . . 5,484 .019 .044 .037 .045 .017 .007 .016 .027 .169 .043 .212

1990 . . . . 5,803 .021 .046 .041 .048 .017 .007 .017 .026 .180 .043 .223

1991 . . . . 5,996 .028 .052 .049 .055 .018 .008 .019 .027 .210 .047 .257

1992 . . . . 6,338 .050 .062 .056 .060 .018 .008 .021 .027 .253 .047 .300

1993 . . . . 6,657 .059 .067 .063 .063 .018 .008 .022 .026 .277 .049 .326

1994 . . . . 7,072 .059 .064 .066 .064 .018 .008 .022 .026 .278 .048 .326

1995 . . . . 7,398 .063 .065 .070 .066 .018 .008 .022 .026 .289 .047 .337

1996 . . . . 7,817 .063 .064 .072 .068 .018 .008 .021 .025 .293 .046 .339

1997 . . . . 8,304 .059 .061 .067 .065 .018 .007 .019 .025 .277 .044 .321

1998 . . . . 8,747 .057 .059 .067 .066 .018 .007 .018 .024 .275 .042 .317

1999 . . . . 9,268 .052 .055 .067 .065 .018 .007 .016 .024 .264 .040 .304

2000 . . . . 9,817 .049 .052 .065 .064 .017 .007 .015 .024 .255 .038 .293

2001 . . . . 10,128 .050 .053 .067 .067 .018 .007 .015 .024 .263 .039 .301

2002 . . . . 10,470 .051 .052 .067 .068 .018 .007 .014 .024 .264 .038 .302

2003 . . . . 10,961 .052 .052 .066 .069 .018 .007 .013 .024 .264 .037 .301

2004 . . . . 11,712 .052 .051 .063 .068 .018 .007 .012 .023 .258 .034 .292

2005 . . . . 12,456 .052 .051 .061 .068 .017 .007 .011 .022 .256 .033 .289

2006 . . . . 13,245 .052 .050 .059 .068 .017 .007 .011 .022 .253 .033 .285

Projected:

2007 . . . . 13,858 .054 .052 .058 .069 .017 .007 .010 .022 .257 .032 .289

2008 . . . . 14,550 .054 .053 .056 .070 .017 .007 .010 .021 .257 .031 .288

2009 . . . . 15,302 .054 .053 .054 .071 .017 .007 .010 .020 .256 .030 .286

2010 . . . . 16,083 .054 .054 .053 .071 .017 .007 .010 .020 .256 .030 .285

2011 . . . . 16,900 .054 .054 .051 .072 .017 .007 .010 .020 .255 .030 .285

2012 . . . . 17,721 .054 .055 .050 .072 .018 .007 .010 .019 .255 .029 .284

2013 . . . . 18,550 .053 .055 .049 .072 .018 .007 .010 .019 .253 .029 .282

2014 . . . . 19,398 .051 .054 .048 .072 .019 .007 .011 .019 .251 .029 .280

2015 . . . . 20,304 .051 .053 .047 .072 .019 .007 .011 .018 .248 .029 .277

2016 . . . . 21,253 .050 .053 .046 .071 .019 .007 .011 .018 .246 .029 .275

2017 . . . . 22,243 .049 .052 .046 .070 .020 .007 .011 .018 .243 .029 .273

2018 . . . . 23,260 .048 .051 .045 .069 .020 .007 .012 .018 .241 .030 .271

2019 . . . . 24,317 .048 .051 .045 .068 .021 .007 .012 .018 .239 .030 .269

2020 . . . . 25,415 .047 .050 .044 .067 .021 .007 .012 .018 .237 .030 .267

2021 . . . . 26,558 .047 .049 .044 .065 .022 .008 .012 .018 .234 .030 .265

2022 . . . . 27,739 .046 .049 .043 .064 .022 .008 .012 .018 .232 .031 .263

2023 . . . . 28,970 .046 .048 .043 .063 .022 .008 .013 .019 .230 .031 .261

2024 . . . . 30,253 .046 .047 .043 .061 .022 .008 .013 .019 .228 .032 .260

2025 . . . . 31,596 .045 .047 .043 .060 .023 .008 .013 .019 .226 .032 .258

2026 . . . . 32,991 .045 .046 .043 .058 .023 .009 .013 .020 .223 .032 .256

2027 . . . . 34,447 .044 .045 .043 .057 .023 .009 .013 .020 .220 .033 .253

2028 . . . . 35,964 .043 .044 .043 .056 .022 .009 .013 .020 .217 .033 .251

2029 . . . . 37,553 .043 .043 .042 .055 .022 .009 .013 .021 .214 .034 .248

2030 . . . . 39,216 .042 .043 .042 .054 .022 .009 .013 .021 .211 .034 .245

2031 . . . . 40,951 .042 .042 .041 .053 .021 .010 .012 .022 .208 .034 .243
51

2007 SSI Annual Report

E. THE SSI PROGRAM’S SHARE OF SSA’S ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS 

AND BENEFICIARY SERVICES COSTS

The SSI program is administered by the Social Security Administration. Section 201(g)(1) of the Social

Security Act provides that administrative expenses for the SSI program, including Federal administration

of State supplementation payments, may be financed from the OASDI Trust Funds. The trust funds are

reimbursed from the General Fund of the Treasury for any such SSI administrative expenditures. These

reimbursements include adjustments for any interest losses the trust funds may have incurred as a result of

such expenditures. The legislative history of the 1972 amendments (which established this funding mechanism) indicates a desire to obtain economy of administration by giving SSA the responsibility for the SSI

program because of its existing field office network and its administrative and automated data processing

facilities. Because of the integration of the administration of the SSI and OASDI programs, it was desirable to fund them from a single source, with reimbursement to the trust funds based on a Government

Accountability Office-approved method of cost analysis of the respective expenses of the SSI and OASDI

programs, and a final settlement by the end of the subsequent fiscal year required by law. Table IV.E1 provides historical data on selected administrative costs of the SSI program.

1 This activity funds the reimbursement to the OASI and DI Trust Funds from the General Fund of the

Treasury for the SSI program’s share of SSA’s administrative expenses, as well as reimbursements from participating States for SSA’s administration of the SSI State Supplementation Program.

2 Includes payments to State Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) agencies and Employment Networks for VR

services and payments under the Ticket to Work program. Payments for referral and monitoring services for

Drug Addicts and Alcoholics are also included through December 1996. These payments were terminated

effective January 1997. The increase in the estimate for fiscal year 2007 reflects an assumption that State

budgets will continue to improve, enabling the States to restore some lost vocational rehabilitation service

capacity and serve a greater number of SSI beneficiaries.

3 Reflects a one-time payment to State VR agencies for prior year expenses.

Table IV.E1.—Selected SSI Administrative Costs, Fiscal Years 1978-2007

[Outlays in millions] 

Fiscal year

Payments to the

trust funds 1 Beneficiaryservices 2

1978.................................................................. $539 $31.6

1979.................................................................. 611 57.0

1980.................................................................. 668 33.1

1981.................................................................. 717 37.3

1982.................................................................. 780 12.0

1983.................................................................. 846 8.0

1984.................................................................. 864 3 84.0

1985.................................................................. 956 3.0

1986.................................................................. 1,023 7.2

1987.................................................................. 977 9.5

1988.................................................................. 976 12.9

1989.................................................................. 1,052 20.0

1990.................................................................. 1,075 28.3

1991.................................................................. 1,230 33.1

1992.................................................................. 1,426 36.0

1993.................................................................. 1,468 32.3

1994.................................................................. 1,780 33.8

1995.................................................................. 1,978 48.2

1996.................................................................. 1,953 71.8

1997.................................................................. 2,055 77.3

1998.................................................................. 2,304 46.0

1999.................................................................. 2,493 52.0

2000.................................................................. 2,321 53.7

2001.................................................................. 2,397 43.9

2002.................................................................. 2,522 54.0

2003.................................................................. 2,656 37.0

2004.................................................................. 2,806 38.6

2005.................................................................. 2,795 30.4

2006.................................................................. 2,916 38.9

2007 (estimated)............................................... 3,029 90.0
2007 SSI Annual Report

52

V. APPENDICES

A. HISTORY OF PROVISIONS

Act

1. Basic Eligibility Requirements

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

An individual may qualify for payments on the basis of age, blindness, or disability.

Aged: Any person aged 65 or older.

Blind: Any person with 20/200 or less vision in the better eye with the use of

correcting lenses, or with tunnel vision of 20 degrees or less. An individual

transferred from a State Aid to the Blind (AB) program to SSI is eligible if he/

she received such State aid in December 1973 and continues to meet the October 1972 State definition of blindness.

Disabled: Any person unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by

reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment expected

to result in death or that has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous

period of at least 12 months. For a child under age 18, eligibility is based on disability of severity comparable with that of an adult. An individual transferred

from a State Aid to the Permanently and Totally Disabled (APTD) program to

SSI is also eligible if he/she received such State aid in December 1973 and continues to meet the October 1972 State definition of disability.

1973

Public Law 93-233, 

enacted December 31

Only persons who had received APTD before July 1973 and were on the rolls in

December 1973 may receive SSI on the basis of the State definition of disability; those who became eligible for State aid from July to December 1973 must

meet the Federal definition of disability.

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

A disabled recipient who loses Federal SSI eligibility because of earnings at the

substantial gainful activity level may continue to receive a special benefit under

section 1619 and retain eligibility for Medicaid under title XIX of the Social

Security Act. This special benefit status may continue as long as the recipient

has the disabling impairment and meets all nondisability SSI eligibility criteria.

States have the option of supplementing this special benefit.

This provision of the law was in effect from January 1, 1981, through December

31, 1983. Beginning in January 1984, under a 1-year demonstration project, this

provision was continued for persons already eligible for either regular SSI payments or special monthly benefits.

1984

Public Law 98-460, 

enacted October 9 

The special benefit and Medicaid provisions of the 1980 legislation were

extended through June 30, 1987 (retroactive to January 1, 1984).

1986

Public Law 99-643, 

enacted November 10

The special benefit and Medicaid provisions of the 1980 amendments are made

permanent. The provisions were amended effective July 1, 1987, with significant modifications to simplify administration and to allow free movement

between regular SSI disability payments and either the special cash benefit or

Medicaid eligibility under section 1619. The distinction between a disabled person eligible for regular SSI payments and one eligible for 1619(a) is that the latter has several months with gross earnings above the SGA level. Previously,

section 1619(a) status required completion of a trial work period and the determination that the work was SGA.
53

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

For individuals under age 18, the “comparable severity” standard is eliminated

and replaced with a requirement that a child be considered disabled if he/she has

a medically determinable impairment that results in “marked and severe functional limitations,” and meets the existing statutory duration requirement. The

law also eliminates references to “maladaptive behaviors” from the personal/

behavioral domain of the mental disorders in the Listing of Impairments for

children, and discontinues the use of individualized functional assessments for

children.

SSI eligibility is prohibited for an individual in any month during which such an

individual is a fugitive felon, fleeing prosecution, or violating State or Federal

conditions of probation or parole. In addition, SSI eligibility is prohibited for 10

years for those convicted of fraudulently claiming residence to obtain benefits

simultaneously in two or more States. 1

2006

Public Law 109-171, 

enacted February 8

Requires the Commissioner to conduct reviews of a specific percentage of SSI

initial disability and blindness cases involving individuals aged 18 and older

that are allowed by State Disability Determination Service agencies (DDS). The

provision is phased in as follows—for fiscal year 2006, the Commissioner is

required to review 20 percent of DDS allowances; in fiscal year 2007, the

requirement is 40 percent; and, for fiscal years 2008 and thereafter, 50 percent

of all DDS allowances are required to be reviewed. These reviews are to be

made before the allowance decision is implemented.

2. Other Eligibility Provisions

a. Citizenship and U.S. Residency

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

The individual must reside within one of the 50 States or the District of Columbia and be a citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence or

permanently residing in the United States under color of law. Persons living outside the United States for an entire calendar month lose their eligibility for such

a month.

1976

Public Law 94-241, 

enacted March 24

Eligibility for SSI is extended to residents of the Northern Mariana Islands,

effective January 9, 1978.

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

The income and resources of the immigration sponsors of aliens applying for

SSI are considered in determining eligibility for and the amount of payment.

After allowances for the needs of the sponsor and his/her family, the remainder

is deemed available for the support of the alien applicant for a 3-year period

after admission to the United States for permanent residence. This provision

does not apply to those who become blind or disabled after admission, to refugees, or to persons granted political asylum. (See section 2.g. for subsequent

changes to sponsor-to-alien deeming provisions.)

1This last provision was repealed in 1999 by Public Law 106-169 and replaced with a provision providing for nonpayment of benefits for up to 24 months for knowingly making false or misleading statements regarding material

facts.
2007 SSI Annual Report

54

Act

1989

Public Law 101-239, 

enacted December 19

SSI eligibility is continued for a disabled or blind child who was receiving SSI

benefits while living in the United States and is now living with a parent who is

a member of the U.S. Armed Forces assigned to permanent duty ashore outside

the United States, but not where the parent is stationed in Puerto Rico or the territories and possessions of the United States.

1993

Public Law 103-66, 

enacted August 10

Above provision made applicable where the parent is a member of the U.S.

Armed Forces and stationed in Puerto Rico or the territories and possessions of

the United States.

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Prohibits SSI eligibility for anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or national unless

they are in a “qualified alien” category and meet one of certain exceptions such

as lawful permanent residents who earn or can be credited with 40 qualifying

quarters of earnings, certain refugee type categories eligible for up to 5 years of

time limited eligibility, or active duty U.S. military or veterans and their spouses

and children. Extends eligibility for aliens receiving SSI as of August 22, 1996

(the enactment date of the law) for 1 year after the enactment date for those

aliens found ineligible under the new standards.

Public Law 104-208, 

enacted September 30

Amends Public Law 104-193 to add to the list of “qualified aliens” certain noncitizens (and their children) who have been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty by a spouse or parent or a member of the spouse’s or parent’s family living

in the same household.

1997

Public Law 105-18, 

enacted June 12

Extends eligibility for aliens receiving SSI as of August 22, 1996, until September 30, 1997, for those found ineligible under the new alien standards of Public

Law 104-193.

Public Law 105-33, 

enacted August 5

Further amends Public Law 104-193 to add Cuban and Haitian entrants, and the

child of a parent who has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty, to the

list of qualified aliens. Provides that Cuban and Haitian entrants and Amerasian

immigrants qualify for time limited eligibility, and increases the time limit from

5 to 7 years for all time-limited categories. Additional exceptions are added for

qualified aliens: (1) lawfully residing in the United States and receiving SSI

benefits on August 22, 1996; and (2) lawfully residing in the United States on

August 22, 1996 and meeting the definition of blind or disabled in the Social

Security Act.

Certain noncitizen American Indians are excepted from the alien nonpayment

provisions of Public Law 104-193.

Extends eligibility for “nonqualified aliens” receiving SSI as of August 22,

1996, until September 30, 1998.

1998

Public Law 105-306, 

enacted October 28

Permanently extends eligibility of all remaining “nonqualified aliens” who

were receiving SSI benefits when Public Law 104-193 was enacted on

August 22, 1996.

2000

Public Law 106-386, 

enacted October 28

Noncitizens, regardless of their immigration status, may be eligible for SSI to

the same extent as refugees, if they are determined to be victims of “severe

forms of trafficking in persons.”
55

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Extends SSI eligibility to blind or disabled children who are U.S. citizens living

with a parent assigned to permanent U.S. military duty outside of the United

States, and who were not receiving SSI benefits while in the United States. Previously, only blind or disabled children who received an SSI benefit for the

month before the parent reported for permanent duty abroad were eligible.

Effective April 2004 for applications filed after enactment.

b. Other Benefits

1980

Public Law 96-272, 

enacted June 17

SSI applicants and recipients are not required as a condition of eligibility to

elect to receive Veterans Administration pensions under the Veterans and Survivors’ Pension Improvement Act of 1978 if the State of residence lacks a medically-needy program under title XIX.

c. Drug Addiction and Alcoholism (DA&A)

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Any disabled individual who has been medically determined to be an alcoholic

or drug addict must accept appropriate treatment, if available, in an approved

facility and demonstrate compliance with conditions and requirements for treatment.

SSI payments are required to be made through a representative payee—another

person or public or private agency designated by SSA to manage the recipient’s

benefit on his/her behalf.

1994

Public Law 103-296, 

enacted August 15

Any individual who is receiving SSI based on a disability where drug addiction

or alcoholism is a contributing factor material to the finding of disability must

comply with the DA&A treatment requirements. The individual must accept

appropriate treatment when it is available and comply with the conditions and

terms of treatment. Instances of noncompliance with the requirements result in

progressively longer payment suspensions. Before payments can resume, the

individual must demonstrate compliance for specific periods; 2 months, 3

months, and 6 months, respectively, for the first, second, third and subsequent

instances of noncompliance. An individual who is not in compliance with the

DA&A treatment requirements for 12 consecutive months shall not be eligible

for payments; however, this does not prevent such individuals from reapplying

and again becoming eligible for payments.

SSI disability payments based on DA&A are also limited to a total of 36 benefit

months (beginning March 1995) regardless of whether appropriate treatment is

available. Months for which benefits are not due and received do not count

towards the 36-month limit.

Payments based on DA&A must be made to a representative payee. Preference

is required to be given to community based nonprofit social service agencies

and Federal, State, or local government agencies in representative payee selection. These agencies when serving as payees for individuals receiving payments

based on DA&A may retain the lesser of 10 percent of the monthly benefit or

$50 (adjusted annually after 1995 by the Consumer Price Index (CPI)) as compensation for their services.

Establishment of one or more referral and monitoring agencies for each State is

required.
2007 SSI Annual Report

56

Act

1996

Public Law 104-121, 

enacted March 29

An individual is not considered disabled if DA&A is a contributing factor material to a finding of disability.

Applies DA&A representative payee requirements enacted under Public Law

103-296 to disabled SSI recipients who have a DA&A condition and are incapable of managing their benefits. In addition, these recipients shall be referred to

the appropriate State agency administering the State plan for substance abuse

treatment.

d. Institutionalization

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

An individual who is an inmate of a public institution is ineligible for SSI payments unless the institution is a facility approved for Medicaid payments and is

receiving such payments on behalf of the person. Under regulations, the Medicaid payment must represent more than 50 percent of the cost of services provided by the facility to the individual.

1976

Public Law 94-566, 

enacted October 20

An inmate of a publicly operated community residence serving no more than 16

persons may, if otherwise eligible, receive SSI.

1983

Public Law 98-21, 

enacted April 20

Payments may be made to persons who are residents of public emergency shelters for the homeless for a period of up to 3 months in any 12-month period.

1986

Public Law 99-643, 

enacted November 10

Effective July 1, 1987, disabled or blind recipients who were receiving special

SSI payments or had special SSI recipient status under section 1619 in the

month preceding the first full month of institutionalization, may receive payments based on the full Federal benefit rate for the initial 2 full months of institutionalization, if they reside in certain public medical, psychiatric or Medicaid

facilities, or in private Medicaid facilities.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Effective January 1, 1988, payments may be made to persons who are residents

of public emergency shelters for the homeless, for up to 6 months in a 9-month

period.

Effective July 1, 1988, continued payment of SSI benefits for up to 3 months is

permitted, at the rate that was applicable in the month prior to the first full

month of institutionalization, for individuals whose expected institutional stay

on admission is not likely to exceed 3 months, as certified by a physician, and

for whom the receipt of benefits is necessary to maintain living arrangements to

which they may return.

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Effective December 1996, institutionalized children under age 18 whose private

health insurance is making payments to the institution may receive no more than

$30 per month in Federal SSI.

e. Vocational Rehabilitation and Treatment

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Blind or disabled individuals receiving Federal SSI benefits who are under age

65, must be referred to the State agency providing services under the Vocational

Rehabilitation Act and must accept the services offered. States are reimbursed

for the cost of services.
57

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1976

Public Law 94-566, 

enacted October 20

Blind or disabled children under age 16 must be referred to the State agency

administering crippled children’s services or to another agency designated by

the State. States are reimbursed for the cost of services.

Of funds provided for these services, at least 90 percent must be used for children under age 6 or for those who have never attended public schools.

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

Disabled SSI recipients who medically recover while enrolled in approved

vocational rehabilitation programs of State VR agencies, may continue to

receive benefits during their participation in such programs if the Commissioner

of Social Security determines that continuation in the program will increase the

probability that they leave the rolls permanently.

1981

Public Law 97-35, 

enacted August 13

Funding no longer provided under title XVI for medical, social, developmental

and rehabilitative services to disabled or blind children.

Reimbursement for the cost of rehabilitation services will be made only if the

services result in the recipient’s return to work for a continuous period of

9 months. The work must be at the substantial gainful activity earnings level.

1984

Public Law 98-460, 

enacted October 9

Authorizes the reimbursement of States for the cost of VR services provided to

individuals who (1) continue to receive benefits after medical recovery because

they are participating in a State VR program or (2) refuse, without good cause,

to continue in or cooperate with the VR program in which they had been participating.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Extends the provision for continuation of payments to disabled SSI recipients

who have medically recovered while enrolled in an approved vocational rehabilitation program to include blind SSI recipients.

1990

Public Law 101-508, 

enacted November 5

Reimbursement authorized for the cost of vocational rehabilitation services provided in months in which the individual was not receiving Federal SSI payments, if:

 • SSI recipient status for Medicaid eligibility purposes was retained under

work incentive provisions, or 

 • Benefits were in suspense 1 status (for a reason other than cessation of disability or blindness), or

 • Federally-administered State supplementation was received.

Extends benefit continuation provision to disabled SSI recipients who medically

recover while participating in a non-State VR program.

1 Recipients who have lost eligibility for SSI benefits for fewer than 13 consecutive months are in suspended payment

status.
2007 SSI Annual Report

58

Act

1999

Public Law 106-170, 

enacted December 17

Establishes a Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program which will provide

SSI (and OASDI) disability beneficiaries with a ticket that can be used to obtain

vocational rehabilitation services, employment services, or other support services, from an employment network (EN) of their choice.

An EN chooses one of the two EN payment options at the time it submits an

application to SSA to become an EN. The chosen payment system will apply to

all beneficiaries served. An EN can elect to receive payment under the:

 • Outcome payment system, under which it can receive payment for up to 60

outcome payment months; or

 • Outcome-milestone payment system, under which it can receive payment

for up to four milestones (established by regulation) in addition to outcome

payments. These milestones must occur before the EN enters the first

month for which it is eligible for an outcome payment. Four milestone payments plus 60 months of reduced outcome payments equal 85 percent of

the total that would be available if the EN chose the outcome payment system.

The four milestones are based on gross earnings exceeding the substantial gainful activity level for specified months. An outcome payment month is any

month in which SSA does not pay any Federal disability cash benefits to a beneficiary because of work or earnings.

Also eliminates the requirement that blind or disabled SSI recipients age 16

through 64 be referred to the State VR agency and accept the services offered.

f. Continuing Disability Reviews and Eligibility Redeterminations

1994

Public Law 103-296, 

enacted August 15

During each of fiscal years 1996, 1997, and 1998, requires SSA to conduct continuing disability reviews (CDRs) on a minimum of 100,000 SSI recipients. In

addition, during the same period, requires SSA to redetermine the SSI eligibility

of at least one-third of all child SSI recipients who reach age 18 after April 1995

during the 1-year period following attainment of age 18. Redeterminations for

persons turning age 18 could count toward the 100,000 CDR requirement.

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Repeals the requirement that SSA redetermine the eligibility of at least one-third

of all child SSI recipients who reach age 18 after April 1995 during the 1-year

period following attainment of age 18.

Requires a CDR:

 • At least once every 3 years for SSI recipients under age 18 who are eligible

by reason of an impairment which is likely to improve, and

 • Not later than 12 months after birth for recipients whose low birth weight is

a contributing factor material to the determination of their disability.

Requires eligibility redetermination under the adult disability standard for all

child SSI recipients eligible for the month before the month in which they attain

age 18.

Requires redetermination of eligibility for children considered disabled based

on an individual functional assessment and/or consideration of maladaptive

behavior.
59

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

Requires the representative payee of a child SSI recipient whose continuing eligibility is being reviewed to present evidence that the recipient is receiving

treatment which is considered medically necessary and available for the condition which was the basis for providing SSI benefits.

1997

Public Law 105-33, 

enacted August 5

Modifies provision of Public Law 104-193 to extend from 12 to 18 months the

period for redetermining the disability of children under age 18 under the new

childhood disability standard.

Modifies provision of Public Law 104-193 to permit SSA to schedule a CDR

for a disabled child for whom low birth weight is a contributing factor material

to the determination of disability, at a date after the child’s first birthday if the

Commissioner determines the impairment is not expected to improve within 12

months of the child’s birth.

Modifies provision of Public Law 104-193 to provide SSA the authority to

make redeterminations of disabled childhood recipients who attain age 18, more

than 1 year after the date such recipient attains age 18.

1999

Public Law 106-170, 

enacted December 17

Prohibits the initiation of a CDR during the period that a recipient is “using a

ticket” under the Ticket to Work program.

g. Deeming of Income and Resources

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Deeming occurs when the income and resources of certain family members living in the same household with the SSI recipient are considered in determining

the amount of the SSI payment. These family members are the ineligible spouse

of an adult recipient and the ineligible parents of a child recipient under age 21.

After deduction of personal allocations for the spouse (or parents) and for ineligible children in the home, and after application of income exclusions, any

remaining income of the spouse (or parents) is added to the income of the eligible person.

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

Children aged 18 or older are not subject to parental deeming.

Sponsor’s income and resources deemed to an alien for 3 years.

1989

Public Law 101-239, 

enacted December 19

Disabled children receiving home care services under State Medicaid programs,

who are ineligible for SSI because of deeming of parental income, and who

received SSI benefits limited to $30 while in a medical treatment facility, may

receive the $30 monthly allowance that would be payable if the recipient were

institutionalized.

1993

Public Law 103-152, 

enacted November 24

Sponsor-to-alien deeming period extended from 3 years to 5 years, effective

January 1, 1994, through September 30, 1996.

Considers an ineligible spouse or parent who is absent from the household due

to active military service to be a member of the household for deeming purposes.
2007 SSI Annual Report

60

Act

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Deeming of income and resources from an immigration sponsor to a noncitizen

continues until citizenship, with exceptions for those who earn, or can be credited with, 40 qualifying quarters of earnings. Effective for those whose sponsor

signs a new legally enforceable affidavit of support.

1996

Public Law 104-208, 

enacted September 30

Amends Public Law 104-193 to add two exceptions to the sponsor-to-alien

deeming:

 • Provides that if the noncitizen is indigent and would be unable to obtain

food and shelter without SSI benefits even after receiving support from the

sponsor, then only the amount of income and resources actually provided

by the sponsor will be counted for a 12-month period after a determination

of indigence; and

 • Provides that in certain cases, deeming would not apply for a 12-month

period (with some options for extension) if the noncitizen (or his/her children) has been battered, or subjected to extreme cruelty by family members.

1997

Public Law 105-33, 

enacted August 5

Amends Public Law 104-208 to add an additional exception to sponsor-to-alien

deeming when the parent of a noncitizen has been battered or subjected to

extreme cruelty by family members.

2006

Public Law 109-163, 

enacted January 6

Provides that individuals who were made ineligible for SSI because of their

spouses or parents being called to active military duty would not have to file a

new application for SSI benefits if they again could be eligible for benefits

before the end of 24 consecutive months of ineligibility.

3. Federal Benefit Payments

a. Windfall Offset

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

Offset (by reduction of retroactive Social Security benefits) to prevent persons

whose initial OASDI payment is retroactive from receiving more in total benefits than if they were paid the benefits when regularly due.

1984

Public Law 98-617, 

enacted November 8

Offset provision expanded to allow for reduction of retroactive SSI benefits and

to apply in cases of OASDI benefit reinstatement.

b. Proration of Benefit

1982

Public Law 97-248, 

enacted September 3

Benefit for first month of eligibility to be prorated by the number of days in the

month for which an application has been filed and there is eligibility.

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Changes the effective date of an SSI application to the first day of the month

following the date on which the application was filed or on which the individual

first becomes eligible, whichever is later. This, in effect, eliminates prorated

payments in initial claims.
61

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

c. Retrospective Monthly Accounting

1981

Public Law 97-35, 

enacted August 13

Changes the method of computing the SSI benefit to one under which the benefit amount is computed on a monthly basis and is based on income and other

characteristics in the previous (or second previous) month.

1984

Public Law 98-369, 

enacted July 18

Changes the method of computing the SSI benefit to persons receiving title II

payments. The effect of the increased title II income at the time of the cost-ofliving increase is not delayed as it otherwise would be.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Provides an exception to retrospective monthly accounting so that amounts

received under Aid to Families With Dependent Children (AFDC), foster care,

refugee cash assistance, Cuban-Haitian entrant assistance, or general and child

welfare assistance provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs are counted only in

the month received.

1993

Public Law 103-66, 

enacted August 10

Changes the method of computing the SSI benefit to persons receiving the value

of the one-third reduction. The effect of the increased value at the time of the

cost-of-living increase is not delayed as it otherwise would be. Effective January

1995.

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Eliminates triple counting of one-time, nonrecurring income by providing that

this income will be counted only for the month that the income is received, and

not for any other month during the transition to retrospective monthly accounting, which occurs during the first 3 months of an individual’s SSI eligibility.

Effective April 2005.

d. Uncashed Checks

1981

Public Law 97-35, 

enacted August 13

States that have Federally-administered supplements to be credited their share

of SSI checks that remain unnegotiated for 180 days.

1987

Public Law 100-86, 

enacted August 10

SSI checks now unnegotiable after 1 year. States are credited their share of SSI

checks after 1 year rather than 180 days.

e. Rounding of Payment Amounts

1982

Public Law 97-248, 

enacted September 3

Cost-of-living adjustments in the Federal SSI benefit and income eligibility levels are to be rounded to the next lower whole dollar, after the adjustment is calculated. Subsequent cost-of-living adjustments will be calculated on the

previous year’s benefit standard before rounding.

f. Penalties for False or Misleading Statements or Withholding of 

Information

1999

Public Law 106-169, 

enacted December 14

Provides for the nonpayment of OASDI and SSI benefits (6, 12 and 24 months,

respectively, for the first, second, and third or subsequent violations) for individuals found to have knowingly made a false or misleading statement of material fact for use in determining eligibility for benefits.
2007 SSI Annual Report

62

Act

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Expands the administrative sanction of nonpayment of benefits to situations

where an individual has failed to disclose material information, if the person

knew or should have known that such failure was misleading.

Authorizes Federal courts to order a defendant convicted of defrauding Social

Security, Special Veterans’ Benefits, or SSI to make restitution to SSA. Restitution funds would be deposited to the trust funds or General Fund of the Treasury, as appropriate. Effective with respect to violations occurring on or after the

date of enactment.

g. Installment Payments

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Establishes a schedule for paying retroactive SSI benefit amounts that exceed 12

times the FBR plus the State supplement level. Payments would be made at

6-month intervals:

 • The first installment would be 12 times the FBR plus any Federally administered State supplement.

 • Any remaining retroactive benefits would be paid in a second installment

(not to exceed the first payment amount).

 • All remaining retroactive benefits would be paid in the third installment.

Provides that where an underpaid individual has incurred debts to provide for

food, clothing or shelter, has expenses for disability-related items and services

that exceed the installment amount, or has entered into a contract to purchase a

home, the installment payment would be increased by the amount needed to

cover those debts, expenses and obligations.

Provides that full retroactive payments be paid to an individual who is terminally ill or, if currently ineligible, is likely to remain so for the next 12 months.

2006

Public Law 109-171, 

enacted February 8

Requires that past-due monthly SSI benefits that exceed three times the maximum monthly benefit (Federal benefit rate plus State supplementary payment

amount, if any) payable to the individual be paid in up to three installment payments, 6 months apart. Also, limits the amount of the first two installment payment to three times the maximum monthly benefit. All remaining benefits due

are to be paid in the third installment. As under current law, the amounts of the

installment payments may be increased in certain cases, such as those in which

the individual has outstanding debt relating to food, clothing, or shelter, or has

necessary medical needs.

Effective 3 months after February 8, 2006.
63

2007 SSI Annual Report

4. Federal Benefit Rates

Basic benefit standards are used in computing the amount of Federal SSI payments. Benefit levels differ

for individuals and couples living in households and for persons in Medicaid institutions. Individuals or

couples living in their own households are eligible for the full Federal benefit. If an individual or couple is

living in another person’s household and receiving support and maintenance there, the Federal benefit is

reduced by one-third. The Federal benefit rates for persons in households are increased annually to reflect

increases in the cost of living. Legislation affecting the level of Federal benefit rates since the inception of

the SSI program are summarized in table V.A1.

1 For those in another person’s household receiving support and maintenance there, the Federal benefit rate is reduced by one-third. 2 For those without countable income. These payments are reduced by the amount of countable income of the individual or couple.

3 Public Law 92-603, enacted October 30, 1972.

4 Includes persons in private institutions whose care in not provided by Medicaid.

5 Public Law 93-66, enacted July 9, 1973.

6 Public Law 93-233, enacted December 31, 1973.

7 Public Law 93-368, enacted August 7, 1974.

8 Subject to automatic provisions, see table IV.A2.

9 Public Law 98-21, enacted April 20, 1983. 10 Public Law 100-203, enacted December 22, 1987.

Table V.A1.—Federal Benefit Rates Set by Legislation

Act Living arrangements 1

Amount 2

Individual Couple Conditions

1972 3 ....... Own household 4 $130.00 $195.00 Was to be effective January 1, 1974; superseded by Public Law 

93-233.

1973 5 ....... — 140.00 210.00 Was to be effective January 1, 1974; superseded by Public Law 

93-233.

1973 6 ....... — 140.00 210.00 Effective January 1, 1974.

1973 6 ....... — 146.00 219.00 Effective July 1, 1974.

1974 7 ....... — — — Mechanism established for providing cost-of-living 

adjustments coordinated with earlier legislation applying to 

OASDI cash benefits. SSI payments to be increased by the 

same percentage as OASDI benefits and at the same time.

— 8157.70 8 236.60 Effective July 1, 1975.

1983 9 ....... — 304.30 456.40 Effective July 1, 1983 (general benefit increase).

— 8 314.00 8 472.00 Effective January 1, 1984.

1973 5 ....... Increment for 

“essential person” 

in household

65.00 — Was to be effective January 1, 1974. For persons transferred 

from OAA, AB, or APTD programs who were receiving 

payments in December 1973 under a State plan that took 

account of “essential persons” in the household.

— 70.00 — Was to be effective July 1, 1974.

1973 6 ....... — 70.00 — Effective January 1, 1974.

— 73.00 — Effective July 1, 1974.

1974 7 ....... — — — Mechanism established for providing cost-of-living 

adjustments.

— 8 78.90 — Effective July 1, 1975.

1983 9 ....... — 152.50 — Effective July 1, 1983 (general benefit increase).

— 8 157.00 — Effective January 1, 1984.

1972 3 ....... Receiving institutional 

care covered by 

Medicaid

25.00 50.00 Effective January 1, 1974. Must be receiving more than 50 

percent of the cost of the care from Medicaid (title XIX of 

the Social Security Act).

1987 10 ..... — 30.00 60.00 Effective July 1, 1988. Must be receiving more than 50 percent 

of the cost of the care from Medicaid (title XIX of the Social 

Security Act).
2007 SSI Annual Report

64

Act 5. Exclusions from Income

a. General Exclusions

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

The first $60 of earned or unearned income per calendar quarter for an individual or couple; the next $195 and one-half the remainder of quarterly earned

income. Unearned income includes Social Security benefits, other government

or private pensions, veterans’ benefits, and workers’ compensation.

1981

Public Law 97-35, 

enacted August 13

The first $20 of earned or unearned income per month for an individual or couple; the next $65 and one-half the remainder of monthly earned income.

Unearned income includes Social Security benefits, other government or private

pensions, veterans’ benefits, and workers’ compensation.

2000

Public Law 106-554, 

enacted December 21

Earnings of persons defined as Social Security statutory employees are treated

as self-employment income for SSI purposes.

b. Special Exclusions

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Any amount of tax rebate issued to an individual by any public agency that is

based on either real property or food purchase taxes.

Grants, scholarships, and fellowships used to pay tuition and fees at an educational institution.

Income required for achieving an approved self-support plan for blind or disabled persons.

Work expenses of blind persons.

For blind persons transferred from State programs to SSI, income exclusions

equal to the maximum amount permitted as of October 1972 under the State

programs.

Irregularly or infrequently received income totaling $60 or less of unearned

income and $30 of earned income in a calendar quarter.

Payment for foster care of ineligible child residing in recipient’s home through

placement by a public or private nonprofit child care agency.

One-third of any payment received from an absent parent for the support of a

child eligible for SSI.

Certain earnings of a blind or disabled child under age 22 regularly attending an

educational institution.

State or local government cash payments based on need and designed to supplement SSI payments.
65

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1976

Public Law 94-331, 

enacted June 30

Disaster assistance from income for 9 months and application of one-third

reduction for 6 months for certain victims of disasters occurring between January 1, 1976 and December 31, 1976.

Public Law 94-566, 

enacted October 20

Any assistance based on need (including vendor payments) made to or on behalf

of SSI recipients, which is paid and wholly funded by State or local governments.

The value of assistance provided under certain Federal housing programs.

1977

Public Law 95-113, 

enacted September 29

Food stamps, Federally donated food, and the value of free or reduced price

food for women and children under the Child Nutrition Act and National School

Lunch Act.

Public Law 95-171, 

enacted November 12

Provisions for exclusions for support and maintenance under the Disaster Relief

and Emergency Assistance Act of 1974 extended on a permanent basis. Effective January 1, 1978.

1980

Public Law 96-222, 

enacted April 1

Earned income tax credit treated as earned income (temporarily excluded from

1975 through 1980).

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

Remunerations received in sheltered workshops and work activity centers are

considered earned income and qualify for earned income exclusions.

Impairment-related work expenses paid by the individual (including cost for

attendant care, medical equipment, drugs, and services necessary to control an

impairment) are deducted from earnings when determining if an individual is

engaging in substantial gainful activity. Impairment-related work expenses are

excluded in calculating income for benefit purposes if initial eligibility for benefits exists on the basis of countable income without applying this exclusion.

1981

Public Law 97-35, 

enacted August 13

Modifies provision under which irregularly or infrequently received income is

excluded to conform to change from quarterly to monthly accounting; amounts

excludable: $20 or less of unearned income and $10 of earned income in a

month.

1982

Public Law 97-377, 

enacted December 21

From December 18, 1982, to September 30, 1983, certain home energy assistance payments are excluded if a State agency certified that they are based on

need.

1983

Public Law 97-424, 

enacted January 6

Support or maintenance assistance (including home energy assistance) provided

in kind by a nonprofit organization or in cash or in kind by certain providers of

home energy is excluded if the State determines that the assistance is based on

need. Provision is applicable through September 1984.

Certain home energy assistance payments are excluded if a State agency certified that the assistance is based on need. Provision is applicable through June

1985.
2007 SSI Annual Report

66

Act

1984

Public Law 98-369, 

enacted July 18

The 1983 provisions for support and maintenance and home energy assistance

continue to October 1, 1987.

1986

Public Law 99-498, 

enacted October 17

Educational assistance used for educational expenses under the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

The 1983 provisions for support and maintenance and home energy assistance

made permanent.

Excludes death payments (for example, proceeds from life insurance) from SSI

income determinations to the extent they were spent on last illness and burial.

Modifies the 1982 resource exclusion for burial funds to extend the exclusion to

any burial fund of $1,500 or less maintained separately from all other assets,

thereby allowing interest to be excluded from income if retained in the fund.

1988

Public Law 100-383, 

enacted August 10

Restitution payments made to Japanese internees and relocated Aleutians.

1989

Public Law 101-239, 

enacted December 19

Interest on agreements representing the purchase of an excluded burial space.

Payments from the Agent Orange Settlement.

Value of a ticket for domestic travel received as a gift and not cashed.

1990

Public Law 101-508, 

enacted November 5

Earned income tax credit (including the child health insurance portion).

Payments received from a State-administered fund established to aid victims of

crime.

Impairment-related work expenses excluded from income in determining initial

eligibility for benefits.

Payments received as State or local government relocation assistance.

Payments received under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.

Redefines as earned income, royalties earned in connection with any publication

of the individual’s work, and honoraria received for services rendered (previously defined as unearned income).

1993

Public Law 103-66, 

enacted August 10

Hostile fire pay to members of the uniformed services.

Payments received as State or local government relocation assistance made permanent.

1994

Public Law 103-286, 

enacted August 1

Payments to victims of Nazi persecution.
67

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1998

Public Law 105-285, 

enacted October 27

Funds made available to an SSI recipient by a State or local government or a

nonprofit organization as part of the Individual Development Account demonstration project.

Public Law 105-306, 

enacted October 28

In-kind gifts to children with life-threatening conditions by tax-exempt organizations not converted to cash.

The first $2,000 annually of cash gifts by tax-exempt organizations to, or for the

benefit of, individuals under age 18 with life-threatening conditions.

Public Law 105-369, 

enacted November 12

Payments made under the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998.

2000

Public Law 106-554, 

enacted December 21

Interest on funds deposited in an individual development account.

Any adjustments made to prior payments from other Federal programs to

account for the error in the computation of the Consumer Price Index during

1999.

2001

Public Law 107-16, 

enacted June 7

The refundable child tax credit is excluded in determining eligibility for meanstested programs, including SSI.

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Changes the calculation of infrequent and irregular income from a monthly to a

quarterly basis. Excludes from the determination of an individual’s income all

interest and dividend income earned on countable resources. Effective July

2004.

Permits the student earned income exclusion to apply to any individual under

age 22 who is a student. Thus, students under age 22 who are married or heads

of households would be eligible for the exclusion. Effective April 2005.

Excludes from the determination of income any gift to an individual for use in

paying tuition or educational fees, just as grants, scholarships, and fellowships

for such use are currently excluded from the determination of income. Effective

June 2004.

2005

Public Law 109-64, 

enacted September 20

Amends the National Flood Insurance Act of 1968 to specify that assistance

provided under a program for flood mitigation activities with respect to a property would not be considered income or a resource of the owner of the property

when determining eligibility for or benefit levels under any income assistance or

resource-tested program (including SSI) that is funded in whole or in part by a

Federal agency or by appropriated Federal funds.

2006

Public-Law 109-432, 

enacted December 20

Extends the present law that allows combat pay to be considered for Earned

Income Tax Credit (EITC) purposes for one additional year (for taxable years

ending before January 1, 2008). For SSI purposes, EITC payments are excluded

from income, and are not a countable resource for 9 calendar months following

the month of receipt.
2007 SSI Annual Report

68

Act

6. Resources

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Countable resources limited to $1,500 or less for an individual and to $2,250 or

less for a couple.

1984

Public Law 98-369, 

enacted July 18

Limit on countable resources raised by $100 a year for individuals and $150 a

year for couples, beginning in calendar year 1985 through 1989. The respective

limits would become $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple in 1989

and thereafter.

1999

Public Law 106-169, 

enacted December 14

Includes generally in the countable resources of an individual the assets of a

trust which could be used for the benefit of the individual or spouse.

a. General Exclusions

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

A home of reasonable value—established by regulation as not exceeding a fairmarket value of $25,000 ($35,000 in Alaska and Hawaii).

Personal effects and household goods of reasonable value established by regulation as not exceeding a total market value of $1,500.

An automobile of reasonable value—established by regulation as not exceeding

a market value of $1,200.

An automobile may be excluded, regardless of value, if the individual’s household uses it for employment or medical treatment, or if it is modified to be operated by or for transportation of a person with a disability.

Life insurance with face value of $1,500 or less.

1976

Public Law 94-569, 

enacted October 20

The recipient’s home, regardless of value, is excluded from consideration in

determining resources.

1977

Public Law 95-171, 

enacted November 12

Assistance received under the Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act of

1974 for 9 months following receipt.

1979 Reasonable value for an automobile increased by regulation to $4,500 of current-market value; personal goods and household effects increased to $2,000 of

equity value.

1982

Public Law 97-248, 

enacted September 3

The value, within prescribed limits, of a burial space for the recipient, spouse,

and immediate family is excluded. In addition, $1,500 each (less the value of

already excluded life insurance and any amount in an irrevocable burial arrangement) may be set aside for the burial of the recipient and spouse.

1984

Public Law 98-369, 

enacted July 18

The unspent portion of any retroactive title II or title XVI payment is excluded

for 6 months following its receipt, and the individual must be given written

notice of the time limit on the exclusion.
69

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1985 Regulations permit exclusion, regardless of value, of an automobile needed for

essential transportation or modified for a person with a disability. The $4,500

current market value limit applies only if no automobile could be excluded

based on the nature of its use.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Provides for suspension of the 1980 transfer of assets provision, in any month

that it is determined that undue hardship would result.

Real property that cannot be sold for the following reasons: it is jointly owned;

its sale would cause the other owner(s) undue hardship due to loss of housing;

its sale is barred by a legal impediment; or, the owner’s reasonable efforts to sell

have been unsuccessful.

Temporarily extends the 1984 exclusion of retroactive title II and title XVI benefits from 6 months to 9 months (the longer exclusion applies to benefits paid in

fiscal years 1988 and 1989).

1988

Public Law 100-707, 

enacted November 23

Removes the time limit for exclusion of disaster assistance.

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Increases to 9 months and makes uniform the time period for excluding from

resources amounts attributable to payments of past-due Social Security and SSI

benefits and earned income and child tax credits. Effective for such payments

received on or after the date of enactment.

2005 Regulations permit exclusion, regardless of value, of:

 • One automobile if used for transportation for the beneficiary or a member

of the beneficiary’s household; and

 • Personal goods and household effects.

b. Special Exclusions

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Assets of a blind or disabled individual that are necessary to an approved plan of

self-support.

Tools and other property essential to self-support (PESS), within reasonable

limits. Shares of nonnegotiable stock in regional or village corporations held by

natives of Alaska.

For persons transferred from State programs to SSI, resource exclusions equal to

the maximum amount permitted as of October 1972 under the State program.

1988

Public Law 100-383, 

enacted August 10

Restitution payments made to Japanese internees and relocated Aleutians.

1989

Public Law 101-239, 

enacted December 19

Specifies that no limitation can be placed on property essential to self-support

used in a trade or business, or by an individual as an employee (including the

tools of a tradesperson and the machinery and livestock of a farmer).

Payments from the Agent Orange Settlement.
2007 SSI Annual Report

70

Act

1990

Public Law 101-508, 

enacted November 5

Earned income tax credit excluded for the month following the month the credit

is received.

Payments received from a State-administered fund established to aid victims of

crime excluded for a 9-month period. Individual not required to file for such

benefits.

Payments received as State or local government relocation assistance

excluded for a 9-month period. (The provision expired 3 years after its effective

date.)

Payments received under the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.

1993

Public Law 103-66, 

enacted August 10

Makes permanent the 9-month exclusion of payments received as State or local

government relocation assistance.

1994

Public Law 103-286, 

enacted August 1

Payments to victims of Nazi persecution.

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Dedicated financial institution accounts required to be established for large pastdue benefits for disabled individuals under age 18 with a representative payee.

1998

Public Law 105-285, 

enacted October 27

Funds made available to an SSI recipient by a State or local government or a

nonprofit organization as part of the Individual Development Account demonstration project.

Public Law 105-306, 

enacted October 28

In-kind gifts to children with life-threatening conditions by tax-exempt organizations not converted to cash.

The first $2,000 annually of cash gifts by tax-exempt organizations to, or for the

benefit of, individuals under age 18 with life-threatening conditions.

Public Law 105-369, 

enacted November 12

Payments made under the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998.

2000

Public Law 106-554, 

enacted December 21

Funds deposited by an individual in an individual development account and the

interest on those funds.

2001

Public Law 107-16, 

enacted June 7

The refundable child tax credit in the month of receipt and in the following

month.
71

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Excludes grants, scholarships, fellowships, or gifts to be used for tuition or educational fees from an individual’s countable resources for 9 months after the

month of receipt.

c. Transfer-of-Resources Penalties

1980

Public Law 96-611, 

enacted December 28

Assets transferred for less than fair market value for the purpose of establishing

eligibility for benefits under the Social Security Act are counted as resources for

24 months after transfer.

1988

Public Law 100-360, 

enacted July 1

Removes the transfer-of-assets penalty for transfers made July 1, 1988, or later.

1999

Public Law 106-169, 

enacted December 14

Provides a penalty under the SSI program for the disposal of resources at less

than fair market value. The penalty is a loss of benefits for up to 36 months. A

formula is provided to determine the number of months.

7. Presumptive and Emergency Payments and Interim Assistance

Reimbursement

a. Presumptive Payments

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

A person applying on the basis of disability who meets all other criteria of eligibility, and is likely to be disabled, may receive payments for 3 months pending

the disability determination.

1976

Public Law 94-569, 

enacted October 20

Presumptive payment provision was extended to persons applying on the basis

of blindness.

1990

Public Law 101-508, 

enacted November 5

Extends the period for receipt of payments to 6 months.

b. Emergency Advance Payments

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

Any applicant who can be presumed to meet the criteria of eligibility, but has

not yet been determined eligible, and who is faced with a financial emergency

may receive an immediate cash advance of up to $100.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Increases the maximum emergency advance payment amount to the maximum

amount of the regular Federal SSI monthly benefit rate, plus, if any, the Federally-administered State supplementary payment.
2007 SSI Annual Report

72

Act

1996

Public Law 104-193, 

enacted August 22

Applicants who have a financial emergency may receive an emergency advance

payment in the month of application, which, effective with this law, is always

prior to the first month of eligibility. These advance payments are recouped by

proportional reductions in the recipient’s first 6 months of SSI benefits.

c. Interim Assistance Reimbursement

1974

Public Law 93-368, 

enacted August 7

SSA may enter into agreements with the States to repay them directly for assistance payments made to an SSI applicant while his/her claim is being adjudicated. The repayment is made from the first check due to the individual. This

legislation expires June 30, 1976.

1976

Public Law 94-365, 

enacted July 14

The authority to repay the State for interim assistance is made permanent.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Extends interim assistance reimbursement to situations in which payments are

made by States or political subdivisions to persons whose SSI payments were

suspended or terminated and who subsequently are found to be eligible for such

benefits. Also clarifies that the payment from which the interim assistance reimbursement is paid must be the first payment of benefits relating to the interim

period.

8. Medicaid Eligibility

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

States can provide Medicaid coverage to all recipients of SSI payments. Alternatively, they can limit coverage by applying more restrictive criteria from the

State Medicaid plan in effect on January 1, 1972.

States can accept SSA determination of eligibility, or make their own determination.

1976

Public Law 94-566, 

enacted October 20

Preserves the Medicaid eligibility of recipients who become ineligible for cash

SSI payments due to the cost-of-living increases in Social Security benefits.

1980

Public Law 96-265, 

enacted June 9

Blind or disabled recipients under age 65 no longer eligible for either regular or

special SSI payments because of their earnings may retain SSI recipient status

for Medicaid eligibility purposes under the following conditions: (1) they continue to have the disabling impairment, (2) they meet all nondisability eligibility

criteria except for earned income, (3) they would be seriously inhibited from

continuing employment without Medicaid services, and (4) their earnings are

insufficient to provide a reasonable equivalent of SSI payments and Medicaid.

In States that do not provide Medicaid coverage categorically to all SSI recipients, qualification for Medicaid benefits depends on the State’s specific eligibility and program requirements.
73

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

The Medicaid provision of the 1980 legislation was in effect from January 1,

1981, through December 31, 1983. Under a 1-year demonstration project,

beginning January 1, 1984, this provision was continued for persons already eligible for regular or special SSI payments or for retention of Medicaid eligibility.

1984

Public Law 98-460, 

enacted October 9

Medicaid provision of 1980 legislation extended through June 30, 1987 (retroactive to January 1, 1984).

1986

Public Law 99-272, 

enacted April 7

Restores Medicaid eligibility for some disabled widow(er)s who became ineligible for SSI when their title II benefits increased in 1984 because of a change in

the Social Security disabled widow(er)s benefits reduction factor.

Public Law 99-643, 

enacted November 10

The SSI recipient status for Medicaid eligibility provision of the 1980 amendments is made permanent.

Effective July 1, 1987, certain expenses are excluded from earnings when determining sufficiency of earnings to establish SSI recipient status eligibility for

Medicaid purposes:

 • Impairment-related work expenses of disabled persons,

 • Work expenses of blind persons,

 • Income required for achieving an approved self-support plan, and

 • The value of publicly funded attendant care services.

Effective July 1, 1987, preserves the Medicaid eligibility of recipients who

become ineligible for SSI payments because of entitlement to, or an increase in,

Social Security disabled adult child benefits on or after the effective date.

Effective July 1, 1987, requires all States to provide Medicaid coverage for

recipients in special SSI status (either receiving special SSI payments or in the

special recipient status described for 1980) if they received Medicaid coverage

the month before special SSI status.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Effective July 1, 1988, restores or preserves the Medicaid eligibility of persons

aged 60 or older who are eligible for Social Security benefits as widows or widowers (but not eligible for Medicare) and who become ineligible for SSI payments or State supplementation because of the receipt of old-age or survivors

insurance benefits under Social Security.

1990

Public Law 101-508, 

enacted November 5

Age limit for retention of SSI recipient status for Medicaid eligibility purposes

(1980 and subsequent work incentive provisions, above) is eliminated.

Preserves the Medicaid eligibility of SSI recipients who become ineligible for

payments when they become entitled to Social Security disabled widow(er)s

benefits following the revised definition used for their disability.
2007 SSI Annual Report

74

Act

1997

Public Law 105-33, 

enacted August 5

Requires States to continue Medicaid coverage for disabled children who were

receiving SSI payments as of August 22, 1996 and would have continued to be

eligible for such payments except that their eligibility terminated because they

did not meet the revised SSI childhood disability standard established under

Public Law 104-193.

2006

Public Law 109-171, 

enacted February 8

Begins Medicaid coverage for children who are eligible for SSI effective the

month the SSI application is filed or the first month of SSI eligibility, whichever

is later. (Under prior law, Medicaid eligibility for such children began the month

following the month of the SSI application or first eligibility.)

9. State Supplementation

1972

Public Law 92-603, 

enacted October 30

States are given the option of providing supplementary payments both to recipients transferred from the State program and to those newly eligible for SSI.

States may either administer the payments themselves or have the Social Security Administration make payments on their behalf. When State supplementary

payments are Federally-administered, the Social Security Administration makes

eligibility and payment determinations for the State and assumes administrative

costs.

“Hold harmless” protection, which limits a State’s fiscal liability to its share of

OAA, AB, and APTD expenditures for calendar year 1972, is provided to States

electing Federal administration of their supplementary plans. This provision

applies only to supplementary payments that do not, on the average, exceed a

State’s “adjusted payment level.” (The adjusted payment level is the average of

the payments that individuals with no other income received in January 1972; it

may include the bonus value of food stamps. Adjustments are provided for payments that had been below State standards.)

1973

Public Law 93-66, 

enacted July 9

Provides for mandatory State supplementation as assurance against reduction of

income for persons who received State assistance in December 1973 and were

transferred to SSI. These supplementary payments must equal the difference

between (1) the amount of the State assistance payment that the individual

received in December 1973 plus other income and (2) his/her Federal SSI payment plus other income.

1976

Public Law 94-585, 

enacted October 21

After June 30, 1977, when the Federal SSI payment level is increased by a costof-living increase, such an increase will be excluded in calculating the “hold

harmless” amount.

Requires States to maintain State supplementation payments at the level of

December 1976 (“maintenance of payments”) or to continue to pay in supplements the same total annual amounts (“maintenance of expenditures”) when the

Federal SSI payment level is increased and thereby pass through any increases

in Federal benefits without reducing State supplements.
75

2007 SSI Annual Report

Act

1982

Public Law 97-248, 

enacted September 3

Begins a 3-year phase out of “hold harmless” protection. Effective with fiscal

year 1985, Wisconsin and Hawaii (the only remaining “hold harmless” States)

assumed the full cost of their supplementary payments.

1983

Public Law 98-21, 

enacted April 20

Federal pass-through law is adjusted (1) by substituting the State supplementary

payment levels in effect in March 1983 for those in effect in December 1976 as

the levels that States must maintain in complying with the pass-through requirements, and (2) with regard to the $20 (individual) and $30 (couple) increase in

the Federal SSI standard in July 1983, by requiring States to pass through only

as much as would have been required if the SSI cost-of-living adjustment had

been made in July 1983.

1987

Public Law 100-203, 

enacted December 22

Provides for Federal administration of State supplements to residents of medical

institutions.

Provides for required pass through of $5 increase in Federal rate for persons

whose care in institutions is paid in substantial part by Medicaid.

1993

Public Law 103-66, 

enacted August 10

Requires States to pay fees for Federal administration of their State supplementation payments. The fees are $1.67 for each monthly supplementary payment in

fiscal year 1994, $3.33 in fiscal year 1995, and $5.00 in fiscal year 1996. Fees

for subsequent fiscal years will be $5.00 or another amount determined by the

Commissioner to be appropriate. The Commissioner may charge the States

additional fees for services they request that are beyond the level customarily

provided in administering State supplementary payments.

1997

Public Law 105-33, 

enacted August 5

Revises the schedule of per-payment fees for Federal administration of State

supplementation for fiscal years 1998 ($6.20) through 2002 ($8.50) and provides a formula for determining the fee beyond fiscal year 2002.

1999

Public Law 106-170, 

enacted December 17

A State which has an agreement with SSA to administer its supplementation

payments, must remit both payments and fees prior to the SSI payment date.

2000

Public Law 106-554, 

enacted December 21

Changes the effective date of above provision from 2009 to 2001.

10. Overpayment Recovery

1984

Public Law 98-369, 

enacted July 18

Limits the rate of recovering overpayments from monthly payments to the lesser

of: (1) the monthly payment, or (2) 10 percent of a recipient’s monthly income.

Permits a higher or lower adjustment at the request of the recipient subject to the

agreement of the Commissioner. The limit does not apply if fraud, willful misrepresentation, or concealment of material information was involved on the part

of the recipient or spouse in connection with the overpayment.

Waives recovery of certain overpayments due to amount of excess resources of

$50 or less.

Provides authority for the recovery of overpayments from tax refunds.
2007 SSI Annual Report

76

Act

1998

Public Law 105-306, 

enacted October 28

Authorizes SSA to collect SSI overpayments for individuals not currently eligible for SSI cash benefits by offsetting Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) benefits, with a maximum monthly offset of no more than 10

percent of the Social Security benefit. The limit does not apply if fraud, willful

misrepresentation, or concealment of material information was involved on the

part of the recipient or spouse in connection with the overpayment.

1999

Public Law 106-169, 

enacted December 14

Makes a representative payee liable for an SSI overpayment caused by a payment made to the representative payee on behalf of a recipient, after the recipient’s death and requires SSA to establish an overpayment control record under

the representative payee’s Social Security number. 

Requires SSA to recover SSI overpayments from SSI lump-sum amounts by

withholding at least 50 percent of the lump-sum payment or the amount of the

overpayment, whichever is less.

Extends all of the debt collection authorities currently available for the collection of overpayments under the OASDI program to the SSI program.

2004

Public Law 108-203, 

enacted March 2

Provides for recovery of overpayment of SSI benefits by withholding from

OASDI and Special Veterans’ benefits up to 100 percent of any underpayment

of benefits and 10 percent of ongoing monthly benefits. The 10 percent limit

does not apply if fraud, willful misrepresentation, or concealment of material

information was involved on the part of the recipient or spouse in connection

with the overpayment.

Also provides for recovery of overpayment of OASDI or Special Veterans’ benefits by withholding from SSI up to 100 percent of any underpayment of benefits, but limits any recovery from SSI benefits to the lesser of 100 percent of the

monthly benefit or 10 percent of the individual’s total monthly income.

Effective with respect to overpayments that are outstanding at the time of enactment. 
77

2007 SSI Annual Report

B. INCOME AND RESOURCE EXCLUSIONS

1. Earned Income Exclusions

 • Any refund of Federal income taxes received under section 32 of the Internal Revenue Code (relating

to earned income tax credit) and any payment received under section 3507 of the Internal Revenue

Code (relating to advance payment of earned income tax credit);

 • Any refundable child tax credit;

 • The first $30 of earned income in a quarter if it is infrequent or irregular, that is, (1) if it is received

only once in a calendar quarter from a single source and is not also received in the month immediately

preceding or the month immediately following the month of receipt regardless of whether or not these

payments occur in different calendar quarters or (2) if its receipt cannot reasonably be expected;

 • Up to $1,510 per month but not more than $6,100 in a calendar year received by a blind or disabled

recipient who is a working student under age 22 and regularly attending school;

 • Any portion of the monthly $20 exclusion for unearned income that has not been used;

 • $65 of earned income in a month;

 • Amounts used to pay impairment-related work expenses if a recipient is disabled (but not blind) and

under age 65 or is disabled (but not blind) and receiving SSI (or disability payments under a former

State plan) before age 651;

 • One-half of remaining earned income in a month;

 • Earned income used to meet any expenses reasonably attributable to the earning of the income if the

recipient is blind and under age 65 or if he/she received SSI as a blind person prior to age 651;

 • Any earned income received and used to fulfill an approved plan to achieve self-support if the recipient is blind or disabled and under age 65 or is blind or disabled and received SSI as a blind or disabled

individual in the month before he/she attained age 65; 

 • Any earned income deposited into either a Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or

“Assets for Independence Act” individual development account (IDA); and

 • Some Federal laws other than the Social Security Act provide for the exclusion of earned income for

SSI purposes. For the most part, the income received under these laws relates to assistance received in

the form of food, housing and utilities, educational and employment benefits or benefits derived from

being a member of a Native American tribe. A complete list of laws which exclude earned income

under SSI can be found in the Federal Regulations Appendix to Subpart K 20 CFR 416.

2. Unearned Income Exclusions

 • Any public agency’s refund of taxes on real property or food; 

1 Amounts used to pay impairment-related work expenses are deducted before the one-half of earned income deduction, whereas amounts used to pay the

work expenses of the blind are deducted after the one-half of earned income deduction. In effect, amounts of blind work expenses reduce SSI earned income

twice as much as the same amounts of impairment-related work expenses.
2007 SSI Annual Report

78

 • Assistance based on need which is wholly funded by a State or one of its political subdivisions. This

includes State supplementation of Federal SSI benefits but does not include payments under a Federal/State grant program such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF);

 • Any portion of a grant, scholarship, fellowship, or gift to an individual used for paying tuition, fees or

other necessary educational expenses. Portions set aside for food or shelter are counted;

 • Food raised by a household if it is consumed by that household;

 • Assistance received under the Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act and assistance provided

under any Federal statute because of a catastrophe which the President of the United States declares to

be a major disaster;

 • Assistance received under a program for flood mitigation activities;

 • The first $60 of unearned income in a quarter if it is infrequent or irregular, that is, (1) if it is received

only once in a calendar quarter from a single source and is not also received in the month immediately

preceding or the month immediately following the month of receipt regardless of whether or not these

payments occur in different calendar quarters or (2) if its receipt cannot reasonably be expected;

 • Any unearned income received and used to fulfill an approved plan to achieve self-support if the

recipient is blind or disabled and under age 65 or is blind or disabled and received SSI as a blind or

disabled individual in the month before he/she attained age 65;

 • Periodic payments made by a State under a program established before July 1, 1973, and based solely

on the recipient’s length of residence and attainment of age 65;

 • Payments for providing foster care to an ineligible child who was placed in the recipient’s home by a

public or private nonprofit child placement or child care agency;

 • Any interest earned on excluded burial funds and any appreciation in the value of an excluded burial

arrangement which are left to accumulate and become part of the separately identifiable burial fund;

 • Certain support and maintenance assistance provided in the form of home energy assistance;

 • One-third of support payments made by an absent parent if the recipient is a child;

 • The first $20 of unearned income in a month other than income in the form of in-kind support and

maintenance received in the household of another and income based on need;

 • The value of any assistance paid with respect to a dwelling unit under the United States Housing Act

of 1937, the National Housing Act, section 101 of the Housing and Urban Development Act of 1965,

title V of the Housing Act of 1949, or section 202(h) of the Housing Act of 1959;

 • Any interest accrued on and left to accumulate as part of the value of an excluded burial space purchase agreement (effective April 1, 1990) and any interest earned on the value of nonexcludable

burial funds and burial space purchase agreements is excluded from income (effective July 1, 2004);

 • The value of any commercial transportation ticket, for travel by a recipient or his/her spouse among

the 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa and

the Northern Mariana Islands, which is received as a gift and is not converted to cash;

 • Payments received from a fund established by a State to aid victims of crime;
79

2007 SSI Annual Report

 • Relocation assistance provided by a State or local government that is comparable to assistance provided under title II of the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act

of 1970;

 • Hostile fire pay received from one of the uniformed services pursuant to 37 U.S.C. 310 and other

kinds of additional pay received by military personnel in a combat zone;

 • Interest or other earnings on a dedicated account excluded from resources;

 • In-kind gifts not converted to cash and the first $2,000 annually of cash gifts made by tax-exempt

organizations, such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, to, or for the benefit of, individuals under age

18 with life-threatening conditions;

 • Payments made under the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998;

 • TANF funds made available to an SSI recipient as part of an individual development account (IDA);

 • Deposits made by a participating individual or a sponsoring nonprofit organization or State or local

government into an IDA under the “Assets for Independence Act” IDA demonstration project and

interest earned on these deposits; 

 • Unearned income excluded by other Federal laws. See Federal Regulations Appendix to Subpart K 20

CFR 416; and

 • Generally, all interest and dividend income earned on countable resources.

3. Resource Exclusions

 • The home in which an individual has ownership interest and which serves as the individual’s principal

place of residence (including the land appertaining thereto);

 • Household goods and personal effects;

 • One automobile if used for transportation for the beneficiary or a member of the beneficiary’s household;

 • Property used in a trade or business which is essential to self-support;

 • Up to $6,000 of nonbusiness property which is essential to self-support;

 • Resources of a blind or disabled individual which are necessary to fulfill an approved plan to achieve

self-support;

 • Stock in regional or village corporations held by natives of Alaska during the 20-year period in which

the stock is inalienable pursuant to the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act;

 • Life insurance owned by an individual (and spouse, if any) provided that all life insurance on any person does not exceed a face value of $1,500;

 • Restricted allotted Indian lands;

 • Disaster relief assistance;

 • Assistance received under a program for flood mitigation activities;
2007 SSI Annual Report

80

 • Burial spaces and certain funds up to $1,500 for burial expenses;

 • Title XVI or title II retroactive payments (for 9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Housing assistance;

 • Refunds of Federal income taxes and advances made by an employer relating to an earned income tax

credit (for 9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Refundable child tax credit (for 9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Grants, scholarships, fellowships or gifts to be used for tuition or educational fees (for 9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Payments received as compensation for expenses incurred or losses suffered as a result of a crime (for

9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Relocation assistance from a State or local government (for 9 months following the month of receipt);

 • Dedicated financial institution accounts for disabled children;

 • In-kind gifts not converted to cash and the first $2,000 annually of cash gifts made by tax-exempt

organizations, such as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, to, or for the benefit of, individuals under age

18 with life-threatening conditions;

 • Payments made under the Ricky Ray Hemophilia Relief Fund Act of 1998;

 • Amounts deposited into either a TANF or “Assets for Independence Act” IDA, including matching

funds and interest earned on such amounts;

 • Certain trusts (e.g., those established by will or certain Medicaid trusts that will repay the State, upon

the death of the beneficiary, for the costs of medical assistance provided to that individual); and

 • Payments or benefits provided under a Federal statute other than title XVI of the Social Security Act

where exclusion is provided by such statute.
81

2007 SSI Annual Report

C. HISTORICAL ALLOWANCE DATA

At the end of 2006, 83 percent of SSI recipients were receiving benefits based on a determination of disability. Claims are filed at a local Social Security office and claims requiring an evaluation of disability are

sent to the State Disability Determination Services (DDS) for a decision. Initial DDS decisions that are

unfavorable to the applicant may be appealed. Until recently, all appeals were initiated at the DDS level

with a request for reconsideration of that initial denial. Persons denied at the reconsideration level could

then apply to the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR), formerly known as the Office of

Hearings and Appeals (OHA), for a hearing before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), and if dissatisfied

with the hearing decision could request a review by the Appeals Council. Those dissatisfied with the

Appeals Council’s action could seek further relief via the Federal court system. This appeals process is

still in effect for the majority of new applicants. However, in recent years SSA has conducted small pilots

testing revisions to this process and introduced a modification of this process that has been utilized in

10 States for applications filed on or after October 1, 1999. Under this revised process appeals of initial

denials are made directly to ODAR, thereby eliminating the reconsideration step. The options for appeal

beyond the ODAR level are unchanged.

Such a process of application and appeal can, in some cases, span several years. However, before 1993,

the only data available on the disability determination process resided in files compiled at each separate

stage of the process and only captured various point-in-time snapshots. A complete picture of the disability determination process can be fully understood only by compiling a longitudinal database from administrative records at all levels of appeal. Beginning in 1993, such a longitudinal database (the “Disability

Research File”) was constructed by SSA’s Office of Disability Programs to assist the agency in understanding and managing this process. In constructing this database, some problems were encountered due to

inconsistencies in the data collected from all the respective levels of appeal. The following sections

present some additional details and qualifications essential to a complete understanding of the resulting

data. Following these technical notes are tables based on the Disability Research File which show the latest available summary of results on disability determinations under title XVI.

1. Technical Notes on the Disability Research File

Methods used to build the title XVI Disability Research File—The “base” file for the title XVI research

file is the Supplemental Security Record (SSR). This “base” file is matched against records from various

other administrative sources, including transactions from the disability determination (SSA-831) files,

Social Security number identification records and earnings data, and ODAR case control data. 

The process used to build this research file is cumbersome, involving about 200 steps, and generally

requiring 2 to 4 months to complete. Much of this complexity flows from the fact that the file is assembled

based on filing date cohorts, even though many of the source files do not contain a filing date. The three

most recent calendar year cohorts are completely reassembled from the basic data sources. Older calendar

year cohorts are updated to reflect activity since the last time the file was built. Since the process is so time

consuming, the research file is updated only annually (usually beginning in July). Therefore, research file

data are not yet available for claims filed in 2006.

Methods used for estimating results (through February 2007) for claims filed in 2006—Although decision

counts are available for 2006 filers (from many of the “source” files), those counts do not translate directly

into the claims/appeals counts included in the following tables, due to the consolidation of multiple transactions (and application of claims-based tolerance rules) which occurs when the research file is built.

To prepare preliminary estimates of results (through February 2007) for 2006 filers, we started from the

latest available transaction data, such as the SSA-831 data, and took into account recent years’ experience
2007 SSI Annual Report

82

of the relationship between corresponding earlier transaction data and the resulting claims/appeals data in

completed research files. Estimates of ODAR appeals activity are taken from a file which tracks individual

claimants, rather than individual claims. Therefore, this may result in a slight undercount of ODAR activity. 

While we believe that the methods used are reasonable, it must be emphasized that the resulting estimates

may prove to be of limited reliability, especially in light of the fact that the estimates give results only

through February 2007, whereas the final research files will reflect information through June 2007. Actual

data for 2006 will be available to replace these estimates in the 2008 Annual Report.

2. General Considerations

Some general points that apply to tables V.C1 and V.C2 are as follows:

 • Data for 1988-2005 filers are as of June 2006. Results for those years’ filers have been updated to

include ODAR results through August 2006. 

 • Data for 2006 filers are preliminary estimates as of February 2007, and reflect larger numbers of

claims still pending. February 2007 data on number of claims appealed may be too low because larger

numbers of claimants are still within the period allowed for filing an appeal (i.e., larger numbers of

recently denied claimants who have not yet filed an appeal may appeal before the time limit runs out). 

 • Remaining appeals will affect the results. Since allowances are generally processed more quickly than

denials, we expect that the percent allowed will ultimately be lower as all cases are processed. 

 • In certain pilot activities and under the revised process introduced October 1, 1999 in 10 States, initial

denials can be appealed directly to ODAR without a separate reconsideration step. As a result the

appeals of initial denials shown in these tables include cases which will not receive a decision at the

reconsideration level.
83

2007 SSI Annual Report

Table V.C1.—Disabled Adult Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing 1 and Level of Decision

Calendar year

of filing 

Total

claims

filed

Initial decisions

Pending

Allowances Denials Appeals of initial denials

Number Percent 2 Number Percent 2 Number 3 Percent 4

1988 946,603 — 272,204 28.8 674,399 71.2 265,151 39.3

1989 969,218 — 292,044 30.1 677,174 69.9 274,823 40.6

1990 1,099,805 — 347,823 31.6 751,982 68.4 320,207 42.6

1991 1,288,331 — 415,336 32.2 872,995 67.8 383,669 43.9

1992 1,415,624 — 436,888 30.9 978,736 69.1 433,244 44.3

1993 1,503,278 — 416,300 27.7 1,086,978 72.3 485,166 44.6

1994 1,436,958 — 353,995 24.6 1,082,963 75.4 482,533 44.6

1995 1,318,416 — 323,084 24.5 995,332 75.5 439,166 44.1

1996 1,247,926 — 305,351 24.5 942,575 75.5 406,425 43.1

1997 1,110,898 — 292,839 26.4 818,059 73.6 357,972 43.8

1998 1,108,957 — 322,734 29.1 786,223 70.9 339,287 43.2

1999 1,104,975 — 326,607 29.6 778,368 70.4 332,235 42.7

2000 1,139,571 — 344,163 30.2 795,408 69.8 332,935 41.9

2001 1,216,182 — 365,932 30.1 850,250 69.9 355,165 41.8

2002 1,322,683 — 371,233 28.1 951,450 71.9 398,582 41.9

2003 1,403,442 — 378,538 27.0 1,024,904 73.0 424,698 41.4

2004 1,476,100 — 383,032 25.9 1,093,068 74.1 424,230 38.8

2005 1,472,953 23,250 360,651 24.9 1,089,052 75.1 367,954 33.8

2006 1,482,558 209,577 372,810 29.3 900,171 70.7 264,001 29.3

Calendar year

of filing 

Reconsiderations Appeals beyond reconsideration 5

Pending

Allowances

Denials

Appeals of

reconsideration denials Allowances

Number Percent 2 Number 6 Percent 4 Pending 7 Number Percent 8 Denials 9

1988 — 38,385 14.5 226,766 140,663 62.0 — 82,414 58.6 58,249

1989 — 43,505 15.8 231,318 146,082 63.2 — 90,169 61.7 55,913

1990 — 52,055 16.3 268,152 175,520 65.5 — 109,098 62.2 66,422

1991 — 59,157 15.4 324,512 221,816 68.4 — 139,698 63.0 82,118

1992 — 58,819 13.6 374,425 260,554 69.6 — 159,084 61.1 101,470

1993 — 57,938 11.9 427,228 294,801 69.0 — 170,402 57.8 124,399

1994 — 55,822 11.6 426,711 293,448 68.8 — 164,537 56.1 128,911

1995 — 51,697 11.8 387,469 264,270 68.2 — 143,582 54.3 120,688

1996 — 49,263 12.1 357,162 242,407 67.9 — 133,323 55.0 109,084

1997 — 47,573 13.4 306,561 213,869 69.8 — 121,565 55.8 96,142

1998 — 46,507 13.7 292,272 203,188 69.5 — 115,208 56.6 88,488

1999 — 42,135 13.3 274,269 194,644 71.0 2,109 118,564 56.9 89,802

2000 — 39,522 14.3 237,714 170,264 71.6 3,093 125,064 56.1 97,806

2001 — 38,987 13.9 241,200 172,082 71.3 5,210 134,684 55.7 107,166

2002 — 40,290 12.9 271,278 193,416 71.3 12,862 149,299 55.8 118,269

2003 — 40,861 12.2 293,433 208,070 70.9 50,700 139,000 56.1 108,774

2004 — 37,849 11.4 294,765 204,886 69.5 161,792 77,956 57.9 56,754

2005 36,914 24,692 9.9 225,591 135,701 60.2 189,357 16,315 60.2 10,786

2006 59,986 16,011 11.4 124,972 64,222 51.4 120,853 4,451 69.5 1,950

Calendar year

of filing 

Selected summary case information by decision status: Numbers of cases

Total

claims

filed

Initial

decisions

pending

Total

initial

decisions Allowances

Denials

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

1988 946,603 — 946,603 393,003 — 553,600

1989 969,218 — 969,218 425,718 — 543,500

1990 1,099,805 — 1,099,805 508,976 — 590,829

1991 1,288,331 — 1,288,331 614,191 — 674,140

1992 1,415,624 — 1,415,624 654,791 — 760,833

1993 1,503,278 — 1,503,278 644,640 — 858,638

1994 1,436,958 — 1,436,958 574,354 — 862,604

1995 1,318,416 — 1,318,416 518,363 — 800,053

1996 1,247,926 — 1,247,926 487,937 — 759,989

1997 1,110,898 — 1,110,898 461,977 — 648,921

1998 1,108,957 — 1,108,957 484,449 — 624,508

1999 1,104,975 — 1,104,975 487,306 2,109 615,560

2000 1,139,571 — 1,139,571 508,749 3,093 627,729

2001 1,216,182 — 1,216,182 539,603 5,210 671,369

2002 1,322,683 — 1,322,683 560,822 12,862 748,999

2003 1,403,442 — 1,403,442 558,399 50,700 794,343

2004 1,476,100 — 1,476,100 498,837 161,792 815,471

2005 1,472,953 23,250 1,449,703 401,658 226,271 821,774

2006 1,482,558 209,577 1,272,981 393,272 180,839 698,870
2007 SSI Annual Report

84

1 Data for claims filed in 1988-2005 reflect results as of June 2006 at the DDS level and as of August 2006 at the ODAR level. The numbers of total claims

filed for 2003-05 are subject to change. Data for claims filed in 2006 are preliminary estimates as of February 2007. The ultimate numbers of allowances and

denials are subject to change until all initial decisions have been completed and all appeals are final.

2 Percentage of decisions at this level.

3 Includes certain cases which can be appealed directly to ODAR.

4 Percentage of denials at this level appealed to next level.

5 Includes cases appealed to ODAR, as well as beyond ODAR to the Federal courts. 6 Number of persons appealing beyond the reconsideration level.

7 Includes cases remanded to ODAR from the Federal courts. 8 Percentage of decisions at this level. For years in which decisions are still pending, the preliminary percentage shown is expected to ultimately be lower

as all cases are processed. This occurs because allowances are generally processed more quickly than denials.

9 Includes denied claims where the final administrative action was a dismissal of an appeal request (e.g., the appeal was not filed timely or the applicant

failed to appear at the scheduled hearing).

Table V.C1.—Disabled Adult Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing 1 and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Calendar year

of filing 

Selected summary case information by decision status

Numbers as a percentage of total claims filed Numbers as a percentage of total initial decisions

Initial

decision

pending Allowances

Denials

Allowances

Denials

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

1988 — 41.5 — 58.5 41.5 — 58.5

1989 — 43.9 — 56.1 43.9 — 56.1

1990 — 46.3 — 53.7 46.3 — 53.7

1991 — 47.7 — 52.3 47.7 — 52.3

1992 — 46.3 — 53.7 46.3 — 53.7

1993 — 42.9 — 57.1 42.9 — 57.1

1994 — 40.0 — 60.0 40.0 — 60.0

1995 — 39.3 — 60.7 39.3 — 60.7

1996 — 39.1 — 60.9 39.1 — 60.9

1997 — 41.6 — 58.4 41.6 — 58.4

1998 — 43.7 — 56.3 43.7 — 56.3

1999 — 44.1 0.2 55.7 44.1 0.2 55.7

2000 — 44.6 .3 55.1 44.6 .3 55.1

2001 — 44.4 .4 55.2 44.4 .4 55.2

2002 — 42.4 1.0 56.6 42.4 1.0 56.6

2003 — 39.8 3.6 56.6 39.8 3.6 56.6

2004 — 33.8 11.0 55.2 33.8 11.0 55.2

2005 1.6 27.3 15.4 55.8 27.7 15.6 56.7

2006 14.1 26.5 12.2 47.1 30.9 14.2 54.9
85

2007 SSI Annual Report

Table V.C2.—Disabled Child Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing 1 and Level of Decision

Calendar year

of filing 

Total

claims

filed

Initial decisions

Pending

Allowances Denials Appeals of initial denials

Number Percent 2 Number Percent 2 Number 3 Percent 4

1991 250,962 — 148,220 59.1 102,742 40.9 24,702 24.0

1992 372,971 — 189,079 50.7 183,892 49.3 49,297 26.8

1993 496,131 — 212,268 42.8 283,863 57.2 75,967 26.8

1994 525,013 — 172,219 32.8 352,794 67.2 92,093 26.1

1995 487,730 — 144,231 29.6 343,499 70.4 86,841 25.3

1996 453,473 — 127,416 28.1 326,057 71.9 75,013 23.0

1997 332,032 — 106,528 32.1 225,504 67.9 51,493 22.8

1998 335,732 — 123,249 36.7 212,483 63.3 50,109 23.6

1999 342,153 — 128,543 37.6 213,610 62.4 49,585 23.2

2000 349,288 — 136,989 39.2 212,299 60.8 48,169 22.7

2001 367,751 — 151,288 41.1 216,463 58.9 49,089 22.7

2002 402,130 — 163,772 40.7 238,358 59.3 55,863 23.4

2003 425,365 — 171,183 40.2 254,182 59.8 59,431 23.4

2004 435,984 — 173,465 39.8 262,519 60.2 58,006 22.1

2005 425,690 4,780 161,112 38.3 259,798 61.7 49,983 19.2

2006 433,612 50,803 160,316 41.9 222,493 58.1 35,895 16.1

Calendar year

of filing 

Reconsiderations Appeals beyond reconsideration 5

Pending

Allowances

Denials

Appeals of

reconsideration

denials Allowances

Number Percent 2 Number 6 Percent 4 Pending 7 Number Percent 8 Denials 9

1991 — 5,605 22.7 19,097 9,196 48.2 — 3,884 42.2 5,312

1992 — 9,463 19.2 39,834 19,770 49.6 — 7,523 38.1 12,247

1993 — 11,338 14.9 64,629 31,193 48.3 — 10,638 34.1 20,555

1994 — 11,332 12.3 80,761 38,433 47.6 — 12,954 33.7 25,479

1995 — 10,287 11.8 76,554 35,592 46.5 — 10,924 30.7 24,668

1996 — 9,355 12.5 65,658 27,920 42.5 — 8,853 31.7 19,067

1997 — 8,266 16.2 42,705 18,912 44.3 — 7,026 36.2 12,408

1998 — 7,799 15.6 42,237 18,701 44.3 — 7,029 37.4 11,745

1999 — 7,196 15.5 39,377 17,934 45.5 193 7,824 37.7 12,929

2000 — 6,932 18.3 31,051 14,428 46.5 291 8,904 36.6 15,419

2001 — 6,807 18.7 29,643 13,576 45.8 407 9,269 35.9 16,539

2002 — 7,426 17.9 34,024 15,329 45.1 1,082 10,136 35.4 18,524

2003 — 7,690 17.1 37,211 16,374 44.0 5,016 9,174 35.4 16,714

2004 — 7,094 16.2 36,750 15,693 42.7 16,730 4,886 37.2 8,239

2005 4,112 5,768 17.0 28,194 10,518 37.3 20,123 1,089 47.3 1,215

2006 6,920 2,601 13.0 17,385 5,463 31.4 13,905 191 34.9 356

Calendar year

of filing 

Selected summary case information by decision status: Numbers of cases

Total

claims

filed

Initial

decisions

pending

Total

initial

decisions Allowances

Denials

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

1991 250,962 — 250,962 157,709 — 93,253

1992 372,971 — 372,971 206,065 — 166,906

1993 496,131 — 496,131 234,244 — 261,887

1994 525,013 — 525,013 196,505 — 328,508

1995 487,730 — 487,730 165,442 — 322,288

1996 453,473 — 453,473 145,624 — 307,849

1997 332,032 — 332,032 121,820 — 210,212

1998 335,732 — 335,732 138,077 — 197,655

1999 342,153 — 342,153 143,563 193 198,397

2000 349,288 — 349,288 152,825 291 196,172

2001 367,751 — 367,751 167,364 407 199,980

2002 402,130 — 402,130 181,334 1,082 219,714

2003 425,365 — 425,365 188,047 5,016 232,302

2004 435,984 — 435,984 185,445 16,730 233,809

2005 425,690 4,780 420,910 167,969 24,235 228,706

2006 433,612 50,803 382,809 163,108 20,825 198,876
2007 SSI Annual Report

86

1 Data for claims filed in 1991-2005 reflect results as of June 2006 at the DDS level and as of August 2006 at the ODAR level. The numbers of total claims

filed for 2003-05 are subject to change. Data for claims filed in 2006 are preliminary estimates as of February 2007. The ultimate numbers of allowances and

denials are subject to change until all initial decisions have been completed and all appeals are final.

2 Percentage of decisions at this level.

3 Includes certain cases which can be appealed directly to ODAR.

4 Percentage of denials at this level appealed to next level.

5 Includes cases appealed to ODAR, as well as beyond ODAR to the Federal courts. 6 Number of persons appealing beyond the reconsideration level.

7 Includes cases remanded to ODAR from the Federal courts. 8 Percentage of decisions at this level. For years in which decisions are still pending, the preliminary percentage shown is expected to ultimately be lower

as all cases are processed. This occurs because allowances are generally processed more quickly than denials.

9 Includes denied claims where the final administrative action was a dismissal of an appeal request (e.g., the appeal was not filed timely or the applicant

failed to appear at the scheduled hearing).

Table V.C2.—Disabled Child Claims: Disposition of Applications for SSI Disability Benefits by 

Year of Filing 1 and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Calendar year

of filing 

Selected summary case information by decision status

Numbers as a percentage of total claims filed Numbers as a percentage of total initial decisions

Initial

decision

pending Allowances

Denials

Allowances

Denials

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

Appeal

decision

pending

No

appeal

pending

1991 — 62.8 — 37.2 62.8 — 37.2

1992 — 55.2 — 44.8 55.2 — 44.8

1993 — 47.2 — 52.8 47.2 — 52.8

1994 — 37.4 — 62.6 37.4 — 62.6

1995 — 33.9 — 66.1 33.9 — 66.1

1996 — 32.1 — 67.9 32.1 — 67.9

1997 — 36.7 — 63.3 36.7 — 63.3

1998 — 41.1 — 58.9 41.1 — 58.9

1999 — 42.0 0.1 58.0 42.0 0.1 58.0

2000 — 43.8 .1 56.2 43.8 .1 56.2

2001 — 45.5 .1 54.4 45.5 .1 54.4

2002 — 45.1 .3 54.6 45.1 .3 54.6

2003 — 44.2 1.2 54.6 44.2 1.2 54.6

2004 — 42.5 3.8 53.6 42.5 3.8 53.6

2005 1.1 39.5 5.7 53.7 39.9 5.8 54.3

2006 11.7 37.6 4.8 45.9 42.6 5.4 52.0
87

2007 SSI Annual Report

D. HISTORICAL REDETERMINATION AND CONTINUING DISABILITY REVIEW DATA

1. Redeterminations

Redeterminations are reviews of all of the nonmedical factors of eligibility to determine whether a recipient is still eligible for SSI and still receiving the correct payment amount. There are two types of redeterminations: scheduled and unscheduled. Except for certain institutionalized individuals, all recipients are

periodically scheduled for a redetermination. Every year SSA schedules for redetermination the cases

most likely to have payment error, but even the cases unlikely to have payment error are scheduled for

review at least once every 6 years. Unscheduled redeterminations are completed on an as needed basis

when recipients report, or we discover, certain changes in circumstances that could affect the continuing

SSI payment amount. The numbers of redeterminations completed are subject to some year-to-year fluctuation because of variation in the numbers of unscheduled redeterminations completed and in the numbers

of scheduled redeterminations that were completed during the fiscal year due to administrative resource

limitations and the impact of other workload requirements on the field offices. When redeterminations

cannot be completed in the fiscal year scheduled, they are carried over into the next fiscal year. Table

V.D1 provides historical data on numbers of redeterminations completed by fiscal year. 

1 Decrease in number of redeterminations completed in fiscal

year 1994 due to low-error profile redeterminations not being

completed from January through September 1994.

2 Effective fiscal year 1995, approximately 200,000 fewer redeterminations were selected annually due to a change from a 3-year

to a 6-year redetermination cycle for low-error profile cases.

3 Fewer redeterminations were selected in fiscal years 2005 and

2006 due to limitations on administrative funding.

During periods between scheduled redeterminations, SSA uses the limited issue process to detect situations that have the potential to affect the continuing eligibility of SSI recipients and SSI payment amounts.

SSA conducts periodic computer matches between its own systems and the systems of other Federal and

State agencies to determine if the income and resources information on SSI recipients’ records is in conflict with data obtained from the other systems. Matches detecting conflicting information usually result in

the posting of an indicator to the Supplemental Security Record of the SSI recipient. The limited issue

case is then selected for a field office review of the issue for which the indicator was posted. In fiscal year

2006, SSA released over 350,000 limited issue cases for development by field offices. Ninety-nine percent

of limited issues released to the field offices were processed.

Table V.D1.—SSI Redeterminations Completed, Fiscal Years 1986-2006

[In thousands] 

Fiscal year

Number of

redeterminations

1986 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,278

1987 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,244

1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,997

1989 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,226

1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,103

1991 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,138

1992 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,321

1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,223

1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 1,900

1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 1,597

1996 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,763

1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,773

1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,853

1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,122

2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,182

2001 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,316

2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,311

2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,450

2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,279

2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31,725

2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31,071
2007 SSI Annual Report

88

2. Continuing Disability Reviews

Following enactment of the Social Security Disability Amendments of 1980, section 221(i) of the Social

Security Act generally requires SSA to review the continuing eligibility of title II disabled beneficiaries at

least every 3 years. A similar requirement was not put in place at that time for disabled title XVI recipients. Although the Committee on Finance of the Senate stated in its report on this legislation that the same

continuing disability review (CDR) procedures should be applied with respect to both the title II and

title XVI programs, title XVI was not amended to accomplish this. Section 1614(a)(4) of the Act gives

SSA discretionary authority to conduct periodic CDRs on SSI recipients. On September 28, 1994, SSA

issued a Federal Register notice that periodic SSI CDRs would begin on October 1, 1994. In 1994 and

again in 1996 legislation was enacted adding some mandates for the performance of CDRs under the SSI

program.

Public Law 103-296 specified that during each of fiscal years 1996, 1997, and 1998, SSA was required to

conduct CDRs on a minimum of 100,000 SSI recipients. In addition, during the same period, SSA was

required to redetermine the SSI eligibility of at least one-third of all SSI child recipients who reached age

18 after April 1995 during the 1-year period following attainment of age 18. Such redeterminations for

persons turning age 18 could count toward the 100,000 CDR requirement.

Public Law 104-193 extended the requirement of redetermination of SSI eligibility to all SSI child recipients who reach age 18, with such redetermination being based on the adult eligibility criteria. This law

also added the requirement that a CDR be performed:

 • At least once every 3 years for SSI recipients under age 18 who are eligible by reason of an impairment which is likely to improve, and

 • Not later than 12 months after birth for recipients whose low birth weight is a contributing factor

material to the determination of their disability unless the Commissioner determines that the impairment is not expected to improve within 12 months of the child’s birth.

Public Law 105-33 gave SSA some additional flexibility in the scheduling of these categories of CDRs.

In order to handle the large CDR workload mandated under these various provisions, SSA developed,

beginning in 1993, a process by which certain title II cases scheduled for a CDR would be screened using

the results of a profiling process which included a mailer interview for some cases. In 1996 the profiling

process was extended to title XVI adults who were scheduled for a CDR. The screening process resulted

in the deferral of full medical reviews for 215,050 cases for which a scheduled title XVI CDR was processed in fiscal year 2006.

For cases involving individuals who receive both title II and title XVI benefits, CDRs are typically initiated as title II CDRs with the results of the review affecting eligibility for benefits under both programs.

Tables V.D2 and V.D3 present the latest available summary of results1 on CDRs of title XVI recipients

performed under titles II and XVI since 1993. These tables include only cases for which a full medical

review was conducted. In particular they do not include:

 • Cases for which a mailer was completed, but for which a full medical review was deferred;

 • CDRs initiated as the result of work activity on the part of the beneficiary/recipient; and

1 The numbers of SSI recipients whose benefits are ceased as a result of CDRs are included in these tables. Estimates of Federal SSI program savings

resulting from the cessation of benefits are reported to Congress in the Annual Report of Continuing Disability Reviews. The most recent such report was

issued October 5, 2006, presenting estimates of the effects of CDRs conducted in fiscal year 2005.
89

2007 SSI Annual Report

 • Miscellaneous other CDRs processed by the State Disability Determination Services but not as part of

the normal CDR scheduling process (such as voluntary and third-party reports of medical improvement, post-transplant end-stage renal disease cases, and vocational rehabilitation reports).

In contrast with the allowance data presented in section V.C, the CDR data is tabulated on a cohort basis

by the date of initial decision.
2007 SSI Annual Report

90

Table V.D2.—SSI Disabled Adult Reviews: Disposition1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision

Fiscal year of

initial DDS

decision

Initial decisions

Total initial

DDS decisions

Continuations Cessations Appeals to reconsideration

Number Percent 2 Number Percent 2 Number Percent 3

Reviews of concurrent title II/XVI cases initiated under title II

1993 1,143 1,083 94.8 60 5.2 52 86.7

1994 10,945 9,127 83.4 1,818 16.6 1,253 68.9

1995 16,736 12,484 74.6 4,252 25.4 2,905 68.3

1996 26,884 20,636 76.8 6,248 23.2 4,119 65.9

1997 51,466 40,741 79.2 10,725 20.8 7,344 68.5

1998 81,185 68,533 84.4 12,652 15.6 8,723 68.9

1999 80,816 70,353 87.1 10,463 12.9 6,202 59.3

2000 105,787 93,962 88.8 11,825 11.2 6,851 57.9

2001 110,341 99,666 90.3 10,675 9.7 6,296 59.0

2002 103,947 92,069 88.6 11,878 11.4 7,102 59.8

2003 72,175 63,021 87.3 9,154 12.7 5,465 59.7

2004 84,622 75,047 88.7 9,575 11.3 5,928 61.9

2005 80,597 70,687 87.7 9,910 12.3 6,188 62.4

2006 71,825 63,789 88.8 8,036 11.2 4,875 60.7

Title XVI initiated reviews

1993 — — — — — — —

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 4,287 3,277 76.4 1,010 23.6 665 65.8

1996 55,025 46,273 84.1 8,752 15.9 6,146 70.2

1997 69,557 57,662 82.9 11,895 17.1 8,722 73.3

1998 75,071 64,829 86.4 10,242 13.6 7,239 70.7

1999 140,429 125,079 89.1 15,350 10.9 10,292 67.0

2000 173,470 156,065 90.0 17,405 10.0 10,925 62.8

2001 143,902 126,610 88.0 17,292 12.0 10,271 59.4

2002 172,527 150,837 87.4 21,690 12.6 13,385 61.7

2003 213,212 191,061 89.6 22,151 10.4 14,738 66.5

2004 221,129 199,938 90.4 21,191 9.6 14,661 69.2

2005 110,072 97,330 88.4 12,742 11.6 8,363 65.6

2006 40,605 35,957 88.6 4,648 11.4 2,794 60.1

Total reviews, SSI disabled adults

1993 1,143 1,083 94.8 60 5.2 52 86.7

1994 10,945 9,127 83.4 1,818 16.6 1,253 68.9

1995 21,023 15,761 75.0 5,262 25.0 3,570 67.8

1996 81,909 66,909 81.7 15,000 18.3 10,265 68.4

1997 121,023 98,403 81.3 22,620 18.7 16,066 71.0

1998 156,256 133,362 85.3 22,894 14.7 15,962 69.7

1999 221,245 195,432 88.3 25,813 11.7 16,494 63.9

2000 279,257 250,027 89.5 29,230 10.5 17,776 60.8

2001 254,243 226,276 89.0 27,967 11.0 16,567 59.2

2002 276,474 242,906 87.9 33,568 12.1 20,487 61.0

2003 285,387 254,082 89.0 31,305 11.0 20,203 64.5

2004 305,751 274,985 89.9 30,766 10.1 20,589 66.9

2005 190,669 168,017 88.1 22,652 11.9 14,551 64.2

2006 112,430 99,746 88.7 12,684 11.3 7,669 60.5
91

2007 SSI Annual Report

Table V.D2.—SSI Disabled Adult Reviews: Disposition 1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Fiscal year of

initial DDS

decision

Reconsiderations Appeals beyond reconsideration 4

Pending

Continuations

Cessations

Appeals to beyond

reconsideration

Pending

Continuations

Number Percent Cessations 2 Number 5 Percent 3 Number Percent

Reviews of concurrent title II/XVI cases initiated under title II

1993 — 22 42.3 30 14 46.7 — 9 64.3 5

1994 — 541 43.2 712 399 56.0 — 177 44.4 222

1995 — 1,245 42.9 1,660 1,007 60.7 — 382 37.9 625

1996 — 1,875 45.5 2,244 1,313 58.5 — 427 32.5 886

1997 — 4,297 58.5 3,047 2,257 74.1 — 973 43.1 1,284

1998 — 5,503 63.1 3,220 2,466 76.6 — 1,158 47.0 1,308

1999 1 3,974 64.1 2,227 1,542 69.2 — 679 44.0 863

2000 3 4,427 64.6 2,421 1,557 64.3 1 659 42.4 897

2001 8 4,177 66.4 2,111 1,240 58.7 — 494 39.8 746

2002 26 4,787 67.7 2,289 1,450 63.3 5 582 40.3 863

2003 26 3,575 65.7 1,864 1,182 63.4 37 456 39.8 689

2004 54 3,781 64.4 2,093 1,385 66.2 288 432 39.4 665

2005 374 3,828 65.8 1,986 1,279 64.4 691 228 38.8 360

2006 949 2,664 67.9 1,262 626 49.6 534 35 38.0 57

Title XVI initiated reviews

1993 — — — — — — — — — —

1994 — — — — — — — — — —

1995 — 241 36.2 424 267 63.0 — 87 32.6 180

1996 — 3,289 53.5 2,857 1,946 68.1 — 623 32.0 1,323

1997 — 5,271 60.4 3,451 2,575 74.6 — 986 38.3 1,589

1998 — 4,527 62.5 2,712 1,987 73.3 — 781 39.3 1,206

1999 — 6,610 64.2 3,682 2,508 68.1 — 973 38.8 1,535

2000 2 6,823 62.5 4,100 2,778 67.8 — 1,056 38.0 1,722

2001 9 6,224 60.7 4,038 2,621 64.9 3 928 35.4 1,690

2002 76 8,160 61.3 5,149 3,336 64.8 17 1,085 32.7 2,234

2003 77 9,656 65.9 5,005 3,358 67.1 87 1,158 35.4 2,113

2004 42 9,406 64.3 5,213 3,722 71.4 778 1,038 35.3 1,906

2005 329 5,232 65.1 2,802 1,853 66.1 1,001 281 33.0 571

2006 361 1,627 66.9 806 373 46.3 304 15 21.7 54

Total reviews, SSI disabled adults

1993 — 22 42.3 30 14 46.7 — 9 64.3 5

1994 — 541 43.2 712 399 56.0 — 177 44.4 222

1995 — 1,486 41.6 2,084 1,274 61.1 — 469 36.8 805

1996 — 5,164 50.3 5,101 3,259 63.9 — 1,050 32.2 2,209

1997 — 9,568 59.6 6,498 4,832 74.4 — 1,959 40.5 2,873

1998 — 10,030 62.8 5,932 4,453 75.1 — 1,939 43.5 2,514

1999 1 10,584 64.2 5,909 4,050 68.5 — 1,652 40.8 2,398

2000 5 11,250 63.3 6,521 4,335 66.5 1 1,715 39.6 2,619

2001 17 10,401 62.8 6,149 3,861 62.8 3 1,422 36.9 2,436

2002 102 12,947 63.5 7,438 4,786 64.3 22 1,667 35.0 3,097

2003 103 13,231 65.8 6,869 4,540 66.1 124 1,614 36.5 2,802

2004 96 13,187 64.3 7,306 5,107 69.9 1,066 1,470 36.4 2,571

2005 703 9,060 65.4 4,788 3,132 65.4 1,692 509 35.3 931

2006 1,310 4,291 67.5 2,068 999 48.3 838 50 31.1 111
2007 SSI Annual Report

92

1 Data reflect results as of March 2007. The ultimate numbers of continuations and cessations are subject to change until all appeals are final. 2 Percentage of decisions at this level.

3 Percentage of cessations at this level appealed to next level.

4 The status and disposition of cases in the Federal courts are not reflected here. However, for cases remanded by the courts to the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review, the status and disposition at ODAR are included. The excluded experience in the Federal courts has a minimal impact on the number of

continuations.

5 Number of persons appealing beyond the reconsideration level.

6 Less than 0.05 percent.

Table V.D2.—SSI Disabled Adult Reviews: Disposition 1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Fiscal year of

initial DDS

decision

Total initial

decisions

Selected summary case information by decision status as of March 2007

Numbers of cases Numbers as a percentage of total initial decisions

Continuations

Cessations

pending an

appeal decision

Cessations

with no

appeal pending Continuations

Cessations

pending an

appeal decision

Cessations

with no

appeal pending

Reviews of concurrent title II/XVI cases initiated under title II

1993 1,143 1,114 — 29 97.5 — 2.5

1994 10,945 9,845 — 1,100 89.9 — 10.1

1995 16,736 14,111 — 2,625 84.3 — 15.7

1996 26,884 22,938 — 3,946 85.3 — 14.7

1997 51,466 46,011 — 5,455 89.4 — 10.6

1998 81,185 75,194 — 5,991 92.6 — 7.4

1999 80,816 75,006 1 5,809 92.8 6/ 7.2

2000 105,787 99,048 4 6,735 93.6 6/ 6.4

2001 110,341 104,337 8 5,996 94.6 6/ 5.4

2002 103,947 97,438 31 6,478 93.7 6/ 6.2

2003 72,175 67,052 63 5,060 92.9 0.1 7.0

2004 84,622 79,260 342 5,020 93.7 .4 5.9

2005 80,597 74,743 1,065 4,789 92.7 1.3 5.9

2006 71,825 66,488 1,483 3,854 92.6 2.1 5.4

Title XVI initiated reviews

1993 — — — — — — —

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 4,287 3,605 — 682 84.1 — 15.9

1996 55,025 50,185 — 4,840 91.2 — 8.8

1997 69,557 63,919 — 5,638 91.9 — 8.1

1998 75,071 70,137 — 4,934 93.4 — 6.6

1999 140,429 132,662 — 7,767 94.5 — 5.5

2000 173,470 163,944 2 9,524 94.5 6/ 5.5

2001 143,902 133,762 12 10,128 93.0 6/ 7.0

2002 172,527 160,082 93 12,352 92.8 .1 7.2

2003 213,212 201,875 164 11,173 94.7 .1 5.2

2004 221,129 210,382 820 9,927 95.1 .4 4.5

2005 110,072 102,843 1,330 5,899 93.4 1.2 5.4

2006 40,605 37,599 665 2,341 92.6 1.6 5.8

Total reviews, SSI disabled adults

1993 1,143 1,114 — 29 97.5 — 2.5

1994 10,945 9,845 — 1,100 89.9 — 10.1

1995 21,023 17,716 — 3,307 84.3 — 15.7

1996 81,909 73,123 — 8,786 89.3 — 10.7

1997 121,023 109,930 — 11,093 90.8 — 9.2

1998 156,256 145,331 — 10,925 93.0 — 7.0

1999 221,245 207,668 1 13,576 93.9 6/ 6.1

2000 279,257 262,992 6 16,259 94.2 6/ 5.8

2001 254,243 238,099 20 16,124 93.7 6/ 6.3

2002 276,474 257,520 124 18,830 93.1 6/ 6.8

2003 285,387 268,927 227 16,233 94.2 .1 5.7

2004 305,751 289,642 1,162 14,947 94.7 .4 4.9

2005 190,669 177,586 2,395 10,688 93.1 1.3 5.6

2006 112,430 104,087 2,148 6,195 92.6 1.9 5.5
93

2007 SSI Annual Report

Table V.D3.—SSI Disabled Child Reviews: Disposition 1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision

Fiscal year of

initial DDS

decision

Initial decisions

Total initial

DDS decisions

Continuations Cessations Appeals to reconsideration

Number Percent 2 Number Percent 2 Number Percent 3

Reviews of low-birth-weight children

1994 1,225 771 62.9 454 37.1 159 35.0

1995 4,231 2,083 49.2 2,148 50.8 665 31.0

1996 5,709 2,491 43.6 3,218 56.4 904 28.1

1997 7,091 4,482 63.2 2,609 36.8 821 31.5

1998 17,620 6,092 34.6 11,528 65.4 3,640 31.6

1999 9,773 4,114 42.1 5,659 57.9 1,639 29.0

2000 10,178 4,566 44.9 5,612 55.1 1,562 27.8

2001 9,086 4,152 45.7 4,934 54.3 1,406 28.5

2002 12,732 5,869 46.1 6,863 53.9 1,969 28.7

2003 7,283 3,516 48.3 3,767 51.7 1,034 27.4

2004 12,060 6,075 50.4 5,985 49.6 1,784 29.8

2005 13,710 6,540 47.7 7,170 52.3 2,103 29.3

2006 8,303 4,030 48.5 4,273 51.5 1,253 29.3

Redeterminations at age 18

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 71 64 90.1 7 9.9 5 71.4

1996 12,640 8,158 64.5 4,482 35.5 2,055 45.9

1997 48,834 22,431 45.9 26,403 54.1 16,741 63.4

1998 40,945 21,453 52.4 19,492 47.6 10,915 56.0

1999 49,557 27,413 55.3 22,144 44.7 10,880 49.1

2000 51,713 28,863 55.8 22,850 44.2 11,024 48.2

2001 48,944 28,167 57.5 20,777 42.5 10,066 48.4

2002 54,947 32,388 58.9 22,559 41.1 11,604 51.4

2003 53,905 31,862 59.1 22,043 40.9 11,822 53.6

2004 53,232 31,890 59.9 21,342 40.1 11,597 54.3

2005 55,331 31,434 56.8 23,897 43.2 12,828 53.7

2006 40,640 21,796 53.6 18,844 46.4 9,467 50.2

All other reviews of SSI disabled children

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 3,535 2,501 70.7 1,034 29.3 541 52.3

1996 789 399 50.6 390 49.4 210 53.8

1997 14 8 57.1 6 42.9 3 50.0

1998 91,157 67,203 73.7 23,954 26.3 13,267 55.4

1999 183,211 129,420 70.6 53,791 29.4 28,411 52.8

2000 140,699 106,583 75.8 34,116 24.2 17,020 49.9

2001 95,835 72,896 76.1 22,939 23.9 11,837 51.6

2002 163,768 130,434 79.6 33,334 20.4 17,991 54.0

2003 127,444 100,522 78.9 26,922 21.1 14,976 55.6

2004 103,437 80,748 78.1 22,689 21.9 12,868 56.7

2005 61,387 45,597 74.3 15,790 25.7 8,713 55.2

2006 19,384 14,428 74.4 4,956 25.6 2,525 50.9

Total reviews, SSI disabled children

1994 1,225 771 62.9 454 37.1 159 35.0

1995 7,837 4,648 59.3 3,189 40.7 1,211 38.0

1996 19,138 11,048 57.7 8,090 42.3 3,169 39.2

1997 55,939 26,921 48.1 29,018 51.9 17,565 60.5

1998 149,722 94,748 63.3 54,974 36.7 27,822 50.6

1999 242,541 160,947 66.4 81,594 33.6 40,930 50.2

2000 202,590 140,012 69.1 62,578 30.9 29,606 47.3

2001 153,865 105,215 68.4 48,650 31.6 23,309 47.9

2002 231,447 168,691 72.9 62,756 27.1 31,564 50.3

2003 188,632 135,900 72.0 52,732 28.0 27,832 52.8

2004 168,729 118,713 70.4 50,016 29.6 26,249 52.5

2005 130,428 83,571 64.1 46,857 35.9 23,644 50.5

2006 68,327 40,254 58.9 28,073 41.1 13,245 47.2
2007 SSI Annual Report

94

Table V.D3.—SSI Disabled Child Reviews: Disposition 1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Fiscal year of 

initial DDS 

decision

Reconsiderations Appeals beyond reconsideration 4

Pending

Continuations

Cessations

Appeals to beyond

reconsideration

Pending

Continuations

Number Percent Cessations 2 Number 5 Percent 3 Number Percent

Reviews of low-birth-weight children

1994 — 44 27.7 115 51 44.3 — 15 29.4 36

1995 — 184 27.7 481 219 45.5 — 53 24.2 166

1996 — 329 36.4 575 232 40.3 — 44 19.0 188

1997 — 292 35.6 529 235 44.4 — 50 21.3 185

1998 — 1,231 33.8 2,409 1,142 47.4 — 244 21.4 898

1999 — 607 37.0 1,032 488 47.3 — 83 17.0 405

2000 1 609 39.0 952 452 47.5 — 99 21.9 353

2001 3 504 35.9 899 405 45.1 — 61 15.1 344

2002 16 698 35.7 1,255 557 44.4 8 111 20.2 438

2003 10 364 35.5 660 302 45.8 11 58 19.9 233

2004 8 644 36.3 1,132 544 48.1 133 55 13.4 356

2005 144 700 35.7 1,259 571 45.4 340 30 13.0 201

2006 272 375 38.2 606 209 34.5 181 7 25.0 21

Redeterminations at age 18

1994 — — — — — — — — — —

1995 — 2 40.0 3 2 66.7 — 1 50.0 1

1996 — 707 34.4 1,348 584 43.3 — 119 20.4 465

1997 — 4,591 27.4 12,150 6,429 52.9 — 1,517 23.6 4,912

1998 — 3,070 28.1 7,845 4,388 55.9 — 1,026 23.4 3,362

1999 2 3,356 30.9 7,522 4,304 57.2 1 1,058 24.6 3,245

2000 4 3,575 32.4 7,445 4,035 54.2 2 1,014 25.1 3,019

2001 17 3,256 32.4 6,793 3,734 55.0 12 957 25.7 2,765

2002 57 3,819 33.1 7,728 4,165 53.9 43 1,077 26.1 3,045

2003 87 3,818 32.5 7,917 4,338 54.8 132 1,055 25.1 3,151

2004 38 3,532 30.6 8,027 4,608 57.4 947 921 25.2 2,740

2005 769 3,766 31.2 8,293 4,524 54.6 2,442 499 24.0 1,583

2006 2,211 2,245 30.9 5,011 1,993 39.8 1,611 85 22.3 297

All other reviews of SSI disabled children

1994 — — — — — — — — — —

1995 — 177 32.7 364 202 55.5 — 52 25.7 150

1996 — 69 32.9 141 55 39.0 — 17 30.9 38

1997 — 1 33.3 2 1 50.0 — — — 1

1998 — 4,456 33.6 8,811 5,511 62.5 — 1,305 23.7 4,206

1999 1 9,324 32.8 19,086 11,712 61.4 1 2,615 22.3 9,096

2000 6 6,434 37.8 10,580 6,239 59.0 2 1,425 22.8 4,812

2001 30 4,619 39.1 7,188 4,273 59.4 17 954 22.4 3,302

2002 106 7,239 40.5 10,646 6,209 58.3 67 1,349 22.0 4,793

2003 104 6,248 42.0 8,624 5,046 58.5 145 1,079 22.0 3,822

2004 41 4,871 38.0 7,956 4,925 61.9 1,128 817 21.5 2,980

2005 499 3,117 37.9 5,097 2,982 58.5 1,732 243 19.4 1,007

2006 351 863 39.7 1,311 602 45.9 503 20 20.2 79

Total reviews, SSI disabled children

1994 — 44 27.7 115 51 44.3 — 15 29.4 36

1995 — 363 30.0 848 423 49.9 — 106 25.1 317

1996 — 1,105 34.9 2,064 871 42.2 — 180 20.7 691

1997 — 4,884 27.8 12,681 6,665 52.6 — 1,567 23.5 5,098

1998 — 8,757 31.5 19,065 11,041 57.9 — 2,575 23.3 8,466

1999 3 13,287 32.5 27,640 16,504 59.7 2 3,756 22.8 12,746

2000 11 10,618 35.9 18,977 10,726 56.5 4 2,538 23.7 8,184

2001 50 8,379 36.0 14,880 8,412 56.5 29 1,972 23.5 6,411

2002 179 11,756 37.5 19,629 10,931 55.7 118 2,537 23.5 8,276

2003 201 10,430 37.7 17,201 9,686 56.3 288 2,192 23.3 7,206

2004 87 9,047 34.6 17,115 10,077 58.9 2,208 1,793 22.8 6,076

2005 1,412 7,583 34.1 14,649 8,077 55.1 4,514 772 21.7 2,791

2006 2,834 3,483 33.5 6,928 2,804 40.5 2,295 112 22.0 397
95

2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Data reflect results as of March 2007. The ultimate numbers of continuations and cessations are subject to change until all appeals are final. 2 Percentage of decisions at this level.

3 Percentage of cessations at this level appealed to next level.

4 The status and disposition of cases in the Federal courts are not reflected here. However, for cases remanded by the courts to the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review, the status and disposition at ODAR are included. The excluded experience in the Federal courts has a minimal impact on the number of

continuations.

5 Number of persons appealing beyond the reconsideration level.

6 Less than 0.05 percent.

Table V.D3.—SSI Disabled Child Reviews: Disposition 1 of Continuing Disability Medical Reviews by Fiscal Year of 

Initial Decision and Level of Decision (Cont.)

Fiscal year of

initial DDS

decision

Total initial

decisions

Selected summary case information by decision status as of March 2007

Numbers of cases Numbers as a percentage of total initial decisions

Continuations

Cessations

pending an

appeal decision

Cessations

with no

appeal pending Continuations

Cessations

pending an

appeal decision

Cessations

with no

appeal pending

Reviews of low-birth-weight children

1994 1,225 830 — 395 67.8 — 32.2

1995 4,231 2,320 — 1,911 54.8 — 45.2

1996 5,709 2,864 — 2,845 50.2 — 49.8

1997 7,091 4,824 — 2,267 68.0 — 32.0

1998 17,620 7,567 — 10,053 42.9 — 57.1

1999 9,773 4,804 — 4,969 49.2 — 50.8

2000 10,178 5,274 1 4,903 51.8 6/ 48.2

2001 9,086 4,717 3 4,366 51.9 6/ 48.1

2002 12,732 6,678 24 6,030 52.5 0.2 47.4

2003 7,283 3,938 21 3,324 54.1 .3 45.6

2004 12,060 6,774 141 5,145 56.2 1.2 42.7

2005 13,710 7,270 484 5,956 53.0 3.5 43.4

2006 8,303 4,412 453 3,438 53.1 5.5 41.4

Redeterminations at age 18

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 71 67 — 4 94.4 — 5.6

1996 12,640 8,984 — 3,656 71.1 — 28.9

1997 48,834 28,539 — 20,295 58.4 — 41.6

1998 40,945 25,549 — 15,396 62.4 — 37.6

1999 49,557 31,827 3 17,727 64.2 6/ 35.8

2000 51,713 33,452 6 18,255 64.7 6/ 35.3

2001 48,944 32,380 29 16,535 66.2 .1 33.8

2002 54,947 37,284 100 17,563 67.9 .2 32.0

2003 53,905 36,735 219 16,951 68.1 .4 31.4

2004 53,232 36,343 985 15,904 68.3 1.9 29.9

2005 55,331 35,699 3,211 16,421 64.5 5.8 29.7

2006 40,640 24,126 3,822 12,692 59.4 9.4 31.2

All other reviews of SSI disabled children

1994 — — — — — — —

1995 3,535 2,730 — 805 77.2 — 22.8

1996 789 485 — 304 61.5 — 38.5

1997 14 9 — 5 64.3 — 35.7

1998 91,157 72,964 — 18,193 80.0 — 20.0

1999 183,211 141,359 2 41,850 77.2 6/ 22.8

2000 140,699 114,442 8 26,249 81.3 6/ 18.7

2001 95,835 78,469 47 17,319 81.9 6/ 18.1

2002 163,768 139,022 173 24,573 84.9 .1 15.0

2003 127,444 107,849 249 19,346 84.6 .2 15.2

2004 103,437 86,436 1,169 15,832 83.6 1.1 15.3

2005 61,387 48,957 2,231 10,199 79.8 3.6 16.6

2006 19,384 15,311 854 3,219 79.0 4.4 16.6

Total reviews, SSI disabled children

1994 1,225 830 — 395 67.8 — 32.2

1995 7,837 5,117 — 2,720 65.3 — 34.7

1996 19,138 12,333 — 6,805 64.4 — 35.6

1997 55,939 33,372 — 22,567 59.7 — 40.3

1998 149,722 106,080 — 43,642 70.9 — 29.1

1999 242,541 177,990 5 64,546 73.4 6/ 26.6

2000 202,590 153,168 15 49,407 75.6 6/ 24.4

2001 153,865 115,566 79 38,220 75.1 .1 24.8

2002 231,447 182,984 297 48,166 79.1 .1 20.8

2003 188,632 148,522 489 39,621 78.7 .3 21.0

2004 168,729 129,553 2,295 36,881 76.8 1.4 21.9

2005 130,428 91,926 5,926 32,576 70.5 4.5 25.0

2006 68,327 43,849 5,129 19,349 64.2 7.5 28.3
2007 SSI Annual Report

96

E. INCENTIVES FOR WORK AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR REHABILITATION

1. Work Incentives

Since the beginning of the SSI program, a number of disabled or blind recipients have worked and

received SSI payments. Initially, the program contained a basic earned income exclusion that recognized

the additional costs associated with employment. In addition, the law contained a number of special

income exclusions which were intended as work incentives. Among these provisions were the income

exclusion for blind work expenses (BWE), plan to achieve self-support (PASS), and student earned

income exclusion (SEIE).

In the 1980 amendments to the Social Security Act, Congress provided additional incentives to help SSI

disabled recipients become self-supporting. These incentives included:

 • Providing for an earned income exclusion for impairment-related work expenses (IRWE);

 • Changing the treatment of sheltered workshop earnings from unearned income to earned income,

thereby qualifying sheltered workshop earnings for the earned income exclusion;

 • Providing for the continuation of SSI payments for certain disabled individuals enrolled in vocational

rehabilitation programs whose disability ceased due to medical recovery (extended to SSI blind recipients, effective April, 1988);

 • Establishing section 1619 which provided:

 — In subsection 1619(a), special SSI cash benefits to disabled individuals who lose eligibility for

SSI payments because they have earnings exceeding the level that is ordinarily considered to

represent substantial gainful activity (SGA), and

 — In subsection 1619(b), special SSI recipient status for Medicaid purposes to working disabled or

blind individuals when their earnings make them ineligible for cash payments.

The incentives for work and opportunities for rehabilitation are discussed in more detail in section III.E. In

the tables that follow we provide historical information on participation by SSI recipients in work incentive programs.1

a. Numbers of Participants in Work Incentive Programs

In this section, we present historical data on participation by SSI recipients in work incentive programs.

Table V.E1 presents historical numbers of SSI recipients categorized according to their section 1619 status. Figure V.E1 presents this information in graphical form.

1 More detailed information on participation by SSI recipients in work incentive programs is provided in the SSI Disabled Recipients Who Work. Pub. No.

13-11829, prepared by the Office of Research, Evaluation, and Statistics, Social Security Administration.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

1 Increases in 2001 and subsequent years are based on increases in the national average wage index.

2 Workers’ earnings are above SGA level.

3 Workers’ earnings are at or below SGA level.

4 1619(b) recipients are not in current-payment status but retain SSI recipient status for Medicaid purposes.

5 Increased to $700 in July 1999.

Table V.E1.—SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Working Recipients as of December, 1987-2006

Year

SGA

level 1

In current-payment status 1619(b)

workers 4 Total1619(a) workers workers 2 Other workers 3

1987 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $300 14,559 142,664 15,632 172,855

1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 19,920 153,599 15,625 189,144

1989 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300 25,655 161,928 18,254 205,837

1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 13,994 182,421 23,517 219,932

1991 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 15,531 186,824 27,264 229,619

1992 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 17,603 199,665 31,649 248,917

1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 20,028 210,322 35,299 265,649

1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 24,315 217,478 40,683 282,476

1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 28,060 223,573 47,002 298,635

1996 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 31,085 225,310 51,905 308,300

1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 34,673 228,093 57,089 319,855

1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500 37,271 229,662 59,542 326,475

1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 700 25,528 245,825 69,265 340,618

2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 700 27,542 249,313 83,572 360,427

2001 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 740 22,100 247,555 76,455 346,110

2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 780 17,271 241,462 82,177 340,910

2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 800 17,132 235,453 71,097 323,682

2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 810 17,114 237,409 73,681 328,204

2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 830 17,621 240,744 78,205 336,570

2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 860 17,394 242,676 89,350 349,420

 Figure V.E1.—SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Working Recipients 

as of December, 1987-2006

[In thousands]

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

1987

1988

1989

1990

1991

1992

1993

1994

1995

1996

1997

1998

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

Calendar year

1619(b) workers

1619(a) workers

Recipients in current-pay

working at or below SGA
2007 SSI Annual Report

98

Table V.E2 presents historical numbers of SSI recipients who benefit from other selected work incentive

provisions: (1) plan to achieve self-support (PASS), (2) impairment-related work expense exclusion

(IRWE), and (3) blind work expense exclusion (BWE). These recipients may be benefiting from more than

one of these selected work incentive provisions. This information is available only for calendar years 1990

and later.

1 For years 1990 through 1996, data do not include PASS plans which exclude only resources. 

Note: Working recipients participating in these other work incentives may be 1619(a) recipients, 1619(b) recipients or working

recipients whose earnings are at or below the SGA level.

b. Average Earnings of Participants in Work Incentive Programs

In this section, we present historical data on average earnings of SSI working recipients. Table V.E3 presents average earnings of SSI recipients categorized according to their section 1619 status.

1 In January, 1990, the SGA level was raised from $300 to $500 and section 1619(a) participants with earnings at or below $500

became eligible for regular SSI benefits rather than the special cash payments under section 1619(a). The SGA level was further

increased to $700 in July 1999, with increases in 2001 and subsequent years based on increases in the national average wage index.

In January 2007 the SGA level was increased to $900.

2 Workers’ earnings are at or below the SGA level.

3 1619(b) recipients are not in current-payment status but retain SSI recipient status for Medicaid purposes.

4 Estimated.

Table V.E2.—SSI Federally-Administered Blind or Disabled Individuals with SSI Recipient Status Participating 

in Other Work Incentives as of December, 1990-2006

Year

PASS 1

Non-workers Workers Total IRWE BWE

1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,215 1,040 2,255 5,384 4,385

1991 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,969 1,601 3,570 6,546 4,330

1992 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,189 2,658 5,847 7,813 4,454

1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4,528 3,602 8,130 8,629 4,406

1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,842 4,487 10,329 9,484 4,380

1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,719 4,603 10,322 9,940 4,433

1996 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2,760 1,944 4,704 9,799 4,230

1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,290 708 1,998 9,637 4,116

1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 712 362 1,074 9,301 3,802

1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 698 347 1,045 9,520 3,971

2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 862 520 1,382 9,422 3,895

2001 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,024 576 1,600 8,798 3,642

2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,150 571 1,721 8,047 3,386

2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,181 524 1,705 7,604 3,074

2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,112 486 1,598 6,874 2,827

2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,089 493 1,582 6,310 2,552

2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,098 485 1,583 5,650 2,370

Table V.E3.—Average Monthly Earnings of SSI Federally-Administered Blind or

Disabled Working Recipients, as of December, 1987-2006 

Year

Blind or disabled workers with SSI recipient status

In current-payment status 1619(b)

workers 3 Total1619(a) workers workers 1 Other workers 2

1987 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . $494 4 $124 $739 4 $211

1988 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522 4 127 721 4 218

1989 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518 4 131 712 4 231

1990 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 712 145 746 245

1991 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 724 148 780 262

1992 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 726 150 781 271

1993 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 728 153 784 280

1994 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 746 157 803 301

1995 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 754 160 834 322

1996 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 764 162 881 344

1997 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772 164 932 367

1998 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 772 182 954 390

1999 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 926 207 980 418

2000 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 945 239 1,048 481

2001 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,004 252 1,043 475

2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,043 253 1,094 495

2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,059 241 1,081 469

2004 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,076 246 1,070 474

2005 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,111 255 1,118 500

2006 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,166 258 1,193 542
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2007 SSI Annual Report

2. Vocational Rehabilitation/Ticket to Work Program 

Provisions designed to make vocational rehabilitation (VR) services available to SSI blind or disabled

recipients have been part of the SSI program since its inception. From the beginning, SSI recipients were

referred to State VR agencies, which provided services to those recipients who were accepted as clients.

Prior to 1981, SSA made block grants to VR agencies to fund services to disabled beneficiaries. The 1981

amendments changed this and established a “cost” reimbursement provision. VR agencies would be

reimbursed for the cost of VR services furnished to blind or disabled SSI recipients only if the services

resulted in the recipient returning to work. For reimbursement purposes, recipients are considered to have

returned to work if they have had earnings exceeding the SGA level for 9 continuous months. 

The 1984 amendments authorized reimbursement for cases1 where the recipient medically recovers while

engaged in a program of rehabilitation services approved by SSA and SSA determines that continuation or

completion of such a program would increase the likelihood the individual will be permanently removed

from the rolls. Effective with the 1990 amendments, reimbursement for the cost of VR services was authorized for services provided in months in which the individual was not receiving Federal SSI benefits if the

individual: 

 • Had special SSI recipient status for Medicaid purposes under section 1619(b) of the Social Security

Act, 

 • Received a Federally-administered State supplementary payment, or 

 • Had SSI benefits suspended for fewer than 13 consecutive months for a reason other than cessation of

disability or blindness. 

In 1994, the regulations were amended to include reimbursement to alternate private and non-State public

VR providers (referred to as “alternate participants”) that provided VR services to recipients that a State

VR agency had not accepted as clients. The alternate provider program has subsequently been replaced by

the Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program (Ticket to Work program) established by the Ticket to

Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999.

Under the Ticket to Work program, a disabled beneficiary may obtain vocational rehabilitation,

employment and other support services from qualified private or public providers that are referred to as

“Employment Networks” (ENs). The Ticket to Work program authorized the Commissioner to provide

payments to ENs under either an outcome payment system or an outcome-milestone payment system.

(State VR agencies were provided the option to elect on a case-by-case basis to be paid either under the

traditional VR reimbursement system, or either the outcome or outcome-milestone payment system.) By

expanding the pool of providers and giving the providers incentives for achieving success, this program

expands access to these services for persons with disabilities to assist them in finding, entering, and

retaining employment as well as reducing their dependence on cash benefits. 

The Ticket to Work program was implemented on a State-by-State basis beginning in February 2002 and

has been fully implemented nationwide since November 2003. As the Ticket to Work program was

implemented in a State, the alternate provider and the traditional VR referral process described earlier

were eliminated. SSA provided eligible individuals who received SSI benefits due to blindness or

disability in such State with a Ticket to Work document (“ticket”). Beneficiaries who receive a ticket may

use it to obtain from ENs or their State VR agencies vocational rehabilitation services, employment

services and other support services needed to return to work or go to work for the first time. Individuals

1 The 1980 amendments provided for benefit continuation for such SSI recipients who were continuing in a VR program after their disability had ceased.

The provision was extended to blind recipients effective April, 1988.
2007 SSI Annual Report

100

not eligible for a ticket may still request services from a State VR agency; the VR agency continues to

decide whether each beneficiary is eligible for services under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. 

The Ticket legislation required that SSA establish a corps of work incentives specialists to disseminate

accurate information about work incentives. In addition, the Social Security Protection Act of 2004

mandated that SSA provide a work report receipt to the beneficiary. In response to these mandates, SSA:

 • In fiscal year 2003, established the Area Work Incentives Coordinator (AWIC) position and trained a

total of 58 AWICs, with at least one AWIC being assigned to each Area Office. The AWIC position

was created to improve the quality of employment support services provided to beneficiaries through

training, outreach, and better coordination of support services. As of fiscal year 2007, there are 51

AWICs on duty.

 • In fiscal year 2004, released a web-based design application known as eWork that provides the

agency with a uniform electronic system to process and control title II return to work cases. Since

eWork does not communicate with any title XVI systems, the agency developed a web-based application, the SSI Monthly Wage Verification (SSIMWV), to process and control SSI work reports. The

SSIMWV allows SSA employees to issue the mandated work report receipt in addition to processing

the wage report. The SSIMWV was released nationally in November 2006. 

 • In fiscal year 2006, SSA awarded cooperative agreements under the new Work Incentives Planning

and Assistance (WIPA) program, which replaced and enhanced the former Benefits Planning, Assistance, and Outreach (BPAO) program. The WIPA program provides information as well as planning

and assistance services in all States and Territories to SSA’s beneficiaries with disabilities who want

to work.

In fiscal year 2003, AWIC employees provided refresher training on employment supports to the local

Work Incentive Liaisons (WIL) located in each of the 1,335 local field offices. The systems application

phase of this training was updated beginning in fiscal year 2004 with the release of eWork. Training has

been provided to all direct service employees in field offices, teleservice centers and the payment processing centers. This training initiative was completed in November 2004.

AWICs have also been very active in participating in outreach activities in their local areas and continue to

be the primary point of contact for public information outreach in the communities. They have strengthened the relationship with our Ticket to Work partners: the ENs; WIPAs; Protection and Advocacy (P&A)

agencies and Disability Program Navigators. AWICs also work closely with the regional Plan to Achieve

Self-Support (PASS) cadres in SSA to make joint educational presentations to the community about our

employment support programs. The partnership has strengthened support of one of the objectives of the

Ticket to Work program which is to educate the public about the benefits of returning to work and becoming self-sufficient. Presentations that have been made directly to persons with disabilities and/or entities

that provide services to this target group include presentations at:

 • Disability Employment Fairs

 • Disability Forums and Expos

 • Technical Colleges

 • Universities

 • Disability Resource Centers

 • One Stop Centers
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2007 SSI Annual Report

 • Small Business Administration Groups

 • Workforce Investment Fairs

 • Independent Living Councils’ Conferences

 • United Way Agencies

 • State Advocacy Groups

See section V.G.1.c for information on the evaluation of the Ticket to Work program.

Table V.E4 provides historical data on the number of reimbursement claims allowed and the amount of

such awards for SSI recipients.

1 For concurrent title II/XVI claims, amounts shown represent title XVI portion of claim.

2 For fiscal years 1987-89, data on title II reimbursement claims involving concurrent title XVI reimbursement claims are not available.

Note: Totals do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components.

Table V.E4.—Vocational Rehabilitation Reimbursement Claims Allowed, Fiscal Years 1987-2006

Fiscal year

Concurrent title II/XVI claims Title XVI only claims Total claims

Number

Amount 1

(in thousands) Number

Amount

(in thousands) Number

Amount 1

(in thousands)

1987 . . . . . . . 2/ 2/ 1,493 $10,010 2/ 2/

1988 . . . . . . . 2/ 2/ 1,720 14,831 2/ 2/

1989 . . . . . . . 2/ 2/ 1,871 18,366 2/ 2/

1990 . . . . . . . 1,267 $3,290 2,819 22,832 4,086 $26,122

1991 . . . . . . . 1,445 4,325 2,171 20,615 3,616 24,940

1992 . . . . . . . 1,634 5,312 2,834 28,276 4,468 33,588

1993 . . . . . . . 1,928 6,670 2,158 22,264 4,086 28,934

1994 . . . . . . . 1,880 7,057 2,074 23,400 3,954 30,457

1995 . . . . . . . 2,140 7,761 2,229 26,402 4,369 34,162

1996 . . . . . . . 2,033 6,518 2,138 24,334 4,171 30,852

1997 . . . . . . . 2,735 8,541 2,914 31,532 5,649 40,073

1998 . . . . . . . 3,329 10,089 3,446 36,313 6,775 46,402

1999 . . . . . . . 3,572 11,403 4,046 42,281 7,618 53,684

2000 . . . . . . . 3,260 11,357 3,589 40,793 6,849 52,150

2001 . . . . . . . 2,388 9,590 2,763 34,842 5,151 44,432

2002 . . . . . . . 3,241 12,201 3,474 43,244 6,715 55,445

2003 . . . . . . . 2,139 8,110 1,993 25,238 4,132 33,348

2004 . . . . . . . 1,999 7,759 2,150 26,390 4,149 34,149

2005 . . . . . . . 1,883 7,420 1,692 21,866 3,575 29,286

2006 . . . . . . . 2,581 10,382 2,257 28,597 4,838 38,979
2007 SSI Annual Report

102

F. INVOLVEMENT OF SSI RECIPIENTS IN OTHER PROGRAMS

In this appendix we present statistics on participation by SSI recipients in other programs based on data

from the Supplemental Security Record (SSR), the main administrative file for the SSI program. Data

summarized from the SSR are representative of the overall SSI recipient population since the information

is generally based on a 100-percent extract; however, information on previous participation in other programs by SSI recipients is based on a 10-percent extract from the SSR. Data from the SSR are presented

below. Since the amount of an individual’s income is used to determine both the eligibility for, and the

amount of his/her SSI benefit, it is necessary for the SSR to contain information on participation by SSI

recipients in certain other programs which may provide countable income to the SSI recipient. A significant number of SSI recipients are Social Security beneficiaries whose total countable income, including

OASDI benefits, is less than the Federal benefit rate plus the amount of applicable Federally-administered

State supplementary payment. A smaller number of SSI recipients participate in other programs and

receive income such as Worker’s Compensation benefits or disability cash benefits from the Department

of Veterans Affairs.

SSA does not maintain complete information in its administrative files concerning the involvement of SSI

recipients in other assistance programs, because under the law payments from such programs are excluded

from countable income attributable to the individual. We do, however, have some data with regard to entitlement to benefits under two other programs—Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) (which

replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC)) and State Interim Assistance Reimbursement—at the point that the individual applied for SSI benefits. TANF (and AFDC previously) is a State

program funded under Part A of title IV of the Social Security Act. Interim assistance is assistance a State

gives to SSI applicants in cash or vendor payments for meeting basic needs while they are awaiting the

outcome of the SSI eligibility determination process.

Table V.F1 presents percentages of SSI recipients who (1) concurrently receive payments from certain

other selected programs or (2) have previously been enrolled in TANF/AFDC or received Interim Assistance Reimbursement.

1 SSI recipients or the households of SSI recipients may participate in more than one of these programs.

2 Less than 0.05 percent of SSI recipients in this gender/age grouping participate in the program.

Note: Total numbers of recipients do not necessarily equal the sums of rounded components.

Table V.F1.—Percentage of SSI Federally-Administered Recipients in Current-Payment Status with Participation 1

in Selected Programs Based on SSA Administrative Records, December, 2006

Age groups

0-17 18-64 All

65 or

older

Number of Federally-administered recipients, 

December, 2006 (in thousands). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,079 4,152 2,004 7,236

Program (In percent)

Program participation by SSI recipients, December, 2006

Federal SSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99.8 96.4 92.7 95.9

Federally-administered State SSI supplementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20.4 28.0 44.2 31.4

OASDI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7.2 31.5 57.0 35.0

Black Lung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/ 2/ 2/ 2/

Railroad Retirement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/ 2/ 0.1 2/

Veterans Affairs disability cash benefits. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.1 0.5 1.9 0.8

Worker’s Compensation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2/ 0.1 2/ 0.1

Previous program participation by SSI recipients, December, 2006

TANF/AFDC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38.0 26.9 9.3 23.7

Interim Assistance Reimbursement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0.6 14.8 10.2 11.4
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2007 SSI Annual Report

There are other potential sources for information on SSI recipients when that information is not available

on the SSI administrative files. One source in particular is the Survey of Income and Program Participation

(SIPP), a U.S. Census Bureau sample survey that collects information such as the source and amount of

income, program participation and general demographic characteristics for the U.S. civilian noninstitutionalized population. Data from the SIPP were last presented in the 2005 SSI Annual Report. The SIPP is

being phased out, and the Census Bureau has started planning for a replacement survey called the Dynamics of Economic Well-Being System (DEWS). SSA staff are participating in the DEWS planning process

to ensure that data needed for studying the characteristics and behavior of SSI recipients are collected.
2007 SSI Annual Report

104

G. RESEARCH ON RELATED TOPICS

The legislative mandate for this report requires inclusion of information about “relevant research on the

SSI program by the Social Security Administration (SSA) and others.” Section 1 of this appendix

describes major ongoing projects. Section 2 presents a bibliography of studies regarding SSI payment levels, recipients, and reform proposals that were published in the past 10 years by both public and private

entities.

1. Ongoing Research

a. Analyses Using Survey of Income and Program Participation Data

Using Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) data matched to administrative records, SSA

researchers have developed a model of financial eligibility for SSI that has been used to estimate the rate

of participation among the eligible elderly and the effects of various options to modify the SSI program

(see Davies et al. 2001/2002). The model suggests that the rate of participation among the eligible elderly

was about 62 percent in 1991. The comparable participation rate estimate at the end of 1996 was also

62 percent.

The model was also utilized to simulate the potential effects of several approaches to expand the SSI program to fight poverty among the elderly. Approaches focusing on incremental changes in the Federal benefit rate, the general income exclusion, and the resources test appear roughly equally effective in reducing

the poverty gap among the elderly on a cost-equivalent basis, while two approaches focusing on relaxing

the earned income exclusion are less effective (Davies, Rupp, and Strand, 2004). More recently, the model

has been expanded to address SSI participation and financial eligibility among the working-age disabled,

and to assess SSI benefit restructuring options for the entire SSI population. The working-aged model

allows for the identification of working-aged persons by their SSI financial eligibility, DI insured status,

and participation in both programs. The model is currently being used to assess SSI’s role in complementing and enhancing the safety net for the working-aged disabled. The model has been used to simulate the

effects of several approaches to changing in-kind support and maintenance rules and options for altering

the calculation of the Federal benefit rate for certain living arrangement categories. Simulation results are

applied to current elderly, working-age, and child SSI populations in order to provide up-to-date estimates

for potential program changes. The financial eligibility model has also been utilized to study eligibility for

Medicare buy-in programs (see Rupp and Sears 2000; Sears 2001/2002). More recently the model has

been extensively utilized to estimate the size of the population potentially eligible for the Medicare Part D

low income subsidy.

Additional research using the matched SIPP records focused on the estimation of the prevalence of households and families with multiple SSI recipients and on the assessment of the poverty status of multirecipient households (Koenig and Rupp, 2003/2004). In another study, the 1984 SIPP survey respondents were

followed up for 14 years based on administrative records on SSI and DI participation and death events to

assess the relationship between self-reported health status, disabilities, mortality, and participation in the

SSI and DI programs (Rupp and Davies, 2004). Currently ongoing work using the 1996 SIPP survey

matched to SSI and DI administrative records replicates key results from this analysis of the 1984 matched

data set, and expands the analysis on the basis of month-to-month SSI and DI participation data through

the end of 2006.

In 2003 and again in 2005 SSA provided funding for interviewing supplemental samples of SSI and DI

beneficiaries to increase the SIPP sample size available for analyses of these target groups. SSA is also

providing substantial technical expertise to efforts by the Census Bureau to design a SIPP replacement sur-
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vey, to be called the Dynamics of Economic Well-Being System. SSA’s input into the redesign effort

includes critical data needs for future relevant research on the SSI program.

b. National Survey of SSI Children and Families

The National Survey of SSI Children and Families (NSCF) was designed to address a number of SSA policy and program objectives. Originally, the NSCF was envisioned to address issues specifically pertaining

to the effects of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (welfare

reform). However, the survey as designed is useful for the study of a broader range of issues of current

interest to policy makers. Most importantly it allows for the analysis of a nationally representative crosssection of SSI beneficiary children aged 0-17 and young-adults aged 18-23. Among the questions the survey answers are the following: 

 • What are the characteristics of SSI children? 

 • What alternative sources of care are available to disabled children who lose SSI benefits?

 • How is quality of life and utilization of medical services impacted by gaining or losing SSI benefits?

 • What is the cost of caring for a child with disabilities?

 • What are the uses of SSI benefits?

 • What is the impact of the nature and severity of the child’s disabilities on parental labor force participation? 

The first NSCF data collection began July 2001 and concluded June 2002. The NSCF sample size was

considerably larger for SSI children and young adults than the sample size available in other surveys.

Altogether, 8,535 interviews were completed for the NSCF, including 5,006 who received SSI benefits in

December 2000 and 5,033 who received SSI benefits in December 1996. A public use file and documentation from the NSCF are available on the SSA website at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/disabilityresearch/

nscf.htm. In addition, two papers have been published in the Social Security Bulletin. Davies and Rupp

(2005/2006) provides an overview of the survey and describes some key features. Rupp et al. (2005/2006)

presents highlights from the survey characterizing SSI children with disabilities and their families.

Research with NSCF data is currently underway to study employment and caregiving patterns of parents

of SSI children to examine employment and program outcomes among young adults after their eligibility

redetermination at age 18, and to analyze factors affecting out-of-pocket medical expenses and unmet

health care needs of disabled children.

The NSCF is providing valuable insights into SSA priorities. Although it was a cross-sectional data collection effort, longitudinal data on SSI program participation are being added to the NSCF through continuing efforts to update the match between NSCF and SSI administrative records.

c. Evaluation of the Ticket to Work Program

The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 requires the Commissioner of Social

Security to provide for independent evaluations to assess the effectiveness of the Ticket to Work program,

and to submit three separate evaluation reports to Congress. In May 2003, SSA awarded two 5-year contracts to Mathematica Policy Research to conduct the evaluation of the Ticket to Work program. The first

contract focuses on data development, qualitative data collection, and implementation of the comprehensive evaluation analyses. The second contract focuses on a survey of beneficiaries which is designed to

collect information on the health and well-being of beneficiaries and on how beneficiaries use the Ticket

to Work program.
2007 SSI Annual Report

106

The first evaluation report was submitted to Congress in 2004 and found low but growing participation

rates, but with State vocational rehabilitation agencies dominating ticket assignments. The report included

recommendations for methods to adjust payment rates to ensure adequate incentives for the provision of

services by employment networks (see Thornton, et al. 2004)1.

SSA also published the first interim evaluation report early in 2006 (see Thornton, et al. 2006)1. That

report included early survey results which found only about 36 percent of ticket-eligible beneficiaries were

aware of the ticket program even though many beneficiaries have personal goals that include work and

career advancement. Growth in EN participation in the ticket program was also found to be difficult and

there was evidence provider interest in the program is waning due to concerns that the program is too

risky.

Rounds one, two, and three of the National Beneficiary Survey (NBS) have concluded with an overall

response rate of 78 percent. SSA now has completed interviews with more than 20,000 beneficiaries with

disabilities. Comprehensive analysis of the first round survey data will be included in the next evaluation

report for Congress, expected in 2007.

d. Homeless Outreach Projects and Evaluation (HOPE)

In fiscal years 2003-05, SSA’s appropriations included earmarked funds totaling $24 million to conduct

outreach to homeless and other under-served populations in support of the President’s initiative to end

chronic homelessness within 10 years. In 2004, SSA awarded funds to 41 service providers in 20 States

and the District of Columbia that currently provide outreach services to the homeless population. The service providers began enrolling project participants in September 2004. As of October 31, 2006, HOPE

grantees assisted 6,764 homeless individuals with their applications for SSI. Of those, 1,982 have been

awarded SSI benefits based on disability.

The HOPE initiative is focused on assisting eligible, homeless individuals in applying for SSI and DI

benefits. The HOPE projects will help SSA demonstrate the effectiveness of using skilled medical and

social service providers to identify and engage homeless individuals with disabilities as well as assist them

with the application process.

e. Youth Transition Demonstration (YTD)

The Youth Transition Demonstration (YTD) began in 2003 with seven cooperative agreements in six

States: one each in California, Colorado, Iowa, Maryland, and Mississippi, and two in New York. The

YTD will add three new projects to the three current projects (Colorado, New York CUNY and New York

Erie) that have elected to use random assignment. The three new sites will be selected from five projects

(Florida, Maryland, Vermont, Washington, and West Virginia) that will conduct six-month pilots beginning in 2007. Site selection criteria are under development, but central elements for selection include a

site’s ability to create strong service delivery projects that can be effectively evaluated using random

assignment.

The purpose of each YTD project is to develop innovative systems to assist youth with disabilities to

successfully transition from school to work. During this critical period of transition to adulthood, the

services provided to youth with disabilities will prepare them for postsecondary education, employment,

and economic self-sufficiency.

1 Available at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/disabilityresearch/research.htm.
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The projects have established partnerships to improve employment outcomes for youth ages 14-25 who

receive SSI or DI payments on the basis of their own disability. The projects provide a broad array of transition-related services and supports to youth who receive or are at risk of becoming eligible to receive SSI

or DI benefits. As of January 2007, 232 of 866 YTD participants (27 percent) were employed full-time or

part-time. Most are students, so the nature of the work varies widely and some of it is short term (8 percent

summer employment). By way of rough comparison, approximately 11 percent of SSI recipients aged 18-

21 were working at the end of December 2005 (SSI Disabled Recipients Who Work, 2005).

In March 2007, all of the YTD projects met for the YTD Annual Conference in Denver, Colorado.

f. Disability Program Navigators (DPNs)

In September 2002, SSA and the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employment and Training Administration

agreed to fund a 2-year pilot and evaluation of the DPN. In October 2005, DOL and SSA agreed to fund

the project for a third year. In June 2006, DOL awarded funds to an additional 13 States and the District of

Columbia. As of November 2006, there were approximately 372 DPN positions in 30 States and the District of Columbia.

Disability Program Navigators operate in DOL’s One-Stop Career Centers and provide seamless employment services to individuals seeking to enter the workforce. They also provide an important link to the

local employment market and facilitate access to programs and services that impact the success of individuals with disabilities who are seeking employment.

g. Pediatric Medical Units (PMUs)

SSA has begun the second year of a multi-year project to design, implement, and evaluate PMUs and test

their ability to make pediatric medical expertise available to State and Federal adjudicators to assist them

to develop and review the most complex childhood disability cases. PMUs are designed to provide adjudicators with sufficient medical documentation to make the right disability determination as early as possible in the process. The Association of University Centers on Disabilities (AUCD) is conducting this

demonstration project. AUCD has been working with SSA on the childhood disability determination process since 1999. Four pilot sites are currently operational. The Disability Determination Services (DDS) in

six States—Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, Tennessee and Washington—have been referring cases to

three PMU sites since the first quarter of fiscal year 2006. New PMU sites have recently been selected to

begin operation this spring serving DDSs in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio,

South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming.

2. Bibliography of Recent Publications

Alterman, A. I., Q. Shen, J. C. Merrill, A. T. McLellan, J. Durell, and J. R. McKay. “Treatment Services

Received by Supplemental Security Income Drug and Alcohol Clients.” Journal of Substance Abuse

Treatment 18, 3 (2000): 209-215.

American Academy of Pediatrics. Committee on Children with Disabilities. “The Continued Importance

of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) for Children and Adolescents with Disabilities.” Pediatrics 107, 4,

Part 1 of 2 (April 2001): 790-793.

Angel, Ronald J. “Living Arrangements and Supplemental Security Income Use Among Elderly Asians

and Hispanics in the United States: The Role of Nativity and Citizenship.” Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies 28, 3 (2002): 553-563.
2007 SSI Annual Report

108

Angel, Ronald J., Jacqueline L. Angel, Geum-Yong Lee, and Kyriakos S. Markides. “Age at Migration

and Family Dependency Among Older Mexican Immigrants: Recent Evidence from the Mexican American EPESE.” Gerontologist 39, 1 (February 1999): 59-65.

Autor, David H. and Mark G. Duggan. The Rise in Disability Recipiency and the Decline in Unemployment. JCPR Working Paper No. 226, Joint Center for Poverty Research, June 2001.

Auxter, David, William Halloran, Hugh G. Berry, and Susan O’Mara. “The Precarious Safety Net: The

Supplemental Security Income and Age 18 Redeterminations.” Focus on Autism & Other Developmental

Disabilities 14, 4 (Winter 1999): 194-203, 211.

Balkus, Richard and Susan Wilschke. “Annual Wage Trends for Supplemental Security Income Recipients.” Social Security Bulletin 65, 2 (2003/2004): 49-58.

________. Treatment of Married Couples in the SSI Program. Issue Paper No. 2003-01. Washington, DC:

Office of Disability and Income Assistance Policy, Office of Policy, Social Security Administration,

December 2003.

Balkus, Richard L., L. Scott Muller, Mark Nadel, and Michael Wiseman. “The Challenge of Growth: Public Disability Benefits in the United States.” In Sick Societies? Trends in Disability Benefits in Post-Industrial Welfare States, edited by Peter A. Kemp, Annika Sunden, and Bernhard Bakker Tauritz. Geneva,

Switzerland: International Social Security Association, 2006.

Barrilleaux, Charles and Ethan Bernick. “Deservingness, Discretion, and the State Politics of Welfare

Spending, 1990-96.” State Politics & Policy Quarterly 3, 1 (Spring 2003): 1-23.

Battaglia, Carol. “SSI and Medicaid Recipients Have a Responsibility to Report Changes that Can Affect

Benefits.” Exceptional Parent 37, 2 (February 2007): 47-48.

Beedon, Laurel and Charles Ford. “Supplemental Security Income (SSI): Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow.” Data Digest AARP Public Policy Institute 43 (February 2000): 1-4.

Beekman, John A. and Eli N. Donkar. “The Relationship Between the Supplemental Security Income and

the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance Programs During the 1990s.” North American Actuarial

Journal 5, 4 (2001): 1-23.

Beers, Nathaniel S., Alexa Kemeny, Lon Sherritt, and Judith S. Palfrey. “Variations in State-Level Definitions: Children with Special Health Care Needs.” Public Health Reports 118, 5 (September/October

2003): 434-447.

Benitez-Silva, Hugo, Moshe Buchinsky, and John Rust. How Large are the Classification Errors in the

Social Security Disability Award Process? National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper No.

10219, January 2004.

Berry, Hugh G. “The Supplemental Security Income Program and Employment for Young Adults with

Disabilities: An Analysis of the National Health Interview Survey on Disability.” Focus on Autism &

Other Developmental Disabilities 15, 3 (Fall 2000): 176-182.

Bound, John, Julie Berry Cullen, Austin Nichols, and Lucie Schmidt. “The Welfare Implications of

Increasing Disability Insurance Benefit Generosity” Journal of Public Economics 88, 12 (December

2004): 2487-2514.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

Bound, John and Richard V. Burkhauser. Tracking the Household Income of SSDI and SSI Applicants.

Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 99-03, Michigan Retirement Research Center at

the University of Michigan, May 2001.

Bound, John, Michael Schoenbaum, and Timothy A. Waidman. Health Limitations and Early Retirement.

Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 99-Q2, Michigan Retirement Research Center

at the University of Michigan, September 2000.

Brown, Michael Hayden. Geographic and Group Variation in Supplemental Security Income. Ph.D. dissertation, University of Kentucky, 2002.

Burkhauser, Richard V. and Mary C. Daly. “U.S. Disability Policy in a Changing Environment.” Journal

of Economic Perspectives 16, 1 (2002): 213-224.

Burstein, Nancy R., Erik Beecroft, Jordan Hiller, and Michelle L. Wood. “Effects of the Project NetWork

Demonstration Waiver Provisions: Final Report.” Bethesda, MD: Abt Associates Inc., 1999.

Campbell, Kevin, Jim Baumohl, and Sharon R. Hunt. “The Bottom Line: Employment and Barriers to

Work among Former SSI DA&A Beneficiaries.” Contemporary Drug Problems 30, 1-2 (Spring/Summer

2003): 195-240.

Choi, Namkee G. “A Comparative Study of Elderly SSI Recipients, Denied Applicants, and Eligible Nonapplicants.” Journal of Aging & Social Policy 10, 2 (1998): 7-28.

Clarke, George R.G. “The Effect of Medicaid on Cash Assistance to the Aged and Disabled Poor.” Public

Finance Review 31, 1 (January 2003): 3- 43.

Daly, Mary C. and Richard V. Burkhauser. The Supplemental Security Income Program. Federal Reserve

Bank of San Francisco Working Paper No. 2001-06, September 2000.

Davies, Paul S. “SSI Eligibility and Participation Among the Oldest Old: Evidence from the AHEAD.”

Social Security Bulletin 64, 3 (2001/2002): 38-63.

Davies, Paul S. and Kalman Rupp. “An Overview of the National Survey of SSI Children and Families

and Related Products.” Social Security Bulletin 66, 2 (2005/2006): 7-20.

Davies, Paul S. and Melissa M. Favreault. Interactions between Social Security Reform and the Supplemental Security Income for the Aged. Center for Retirement Research Working Paper No. 2004-02, Center

for Retirement Research at Boston College, February 2004.

Davies, Paul S. and Michael J. Greenwood. Welfare Reform and Immigrant Participation in the Supplemental Security Income Program. Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 2004-087,

Michigan Retirement Research Center at the University of Michigan, September 2004.

Davies, Paul S., Howard Iams, and Kalman Rupp. “The Effect of Welfare Reform on SSA’s Disability

Programs: Design of Policy Evaluation and Early Evidence.” Social Security Bulletin 63, 1 (2000): 3-11.

Davies, Paul S., Kalman Rupp, and Alexander Strand. “The Potential of the SSI Program to Fight Poverty

among the Poorest Elderly.” Journal of Aging and Social Policy 16, 1 (2004): 21-42.
2007 SSI Annual Report

110

Davies, Paul S., Minh Huynh, Chad Newcomb, Paul O’Leary, Kalman Rupp, and Jim Sears. “Modeling

SSI Financial Eligibility and Simulating the Effect of Policy Options.” Social Security Bulletin 64, 2

(2001/2002): 16-45. 

Dietz, Tracy L. “Mexican American Elderly and Supplemental Security Income: Reasons and Characteristics Associated with Nonuse.” Journal of Applied Gerontology 20, 3 (September 2001): 292-306.

Diller, M. “Dissonant Disability Policies: The Tensions Between the Americans with Disabilities Act and

Federal Disability Benefit Programs.” Texas Law Review 76, 5 (April 1998): 1003-1082.

DosReis, Susan, Julie Magno Zito, Daniel J. Safer, and Karen L. Soeken. “Mental Health Services for

Youths in Foster Care and Disabled Youths.” American Journal of Public Health 91, 7 (July 2001): 

1094-1099.

Duggan, Mark and Melissa Schettini Kearney. The Impact of Child SSI Enrollment on Household Outcomes: Evidence from the Survey of Income and Program Participation. National Bureau of Economic

Research Working Paper No. 11568, August 2005.

Elder, Todd and Elizabeth Powers. “The Incredible Shrinking Program: Trends in SSI Participation of the

Aged.” Research on Aging 28, 3 (May 2006): 341-358.

________. Public Health Insurance and SSI Program Participation Among the Aged. Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 2006-117, Michigan Retirement Research Center at the University of Michigan, April 2006.

Ettner, Susan L., Karen Kuhlthau, Thomas J. McLaughlin, James M. Perrin, and Steven L. Gortmaker.

“Impact of Expanding SSI on Medical Expenditures of Disabled Children.” Health Care Financing

Review 21 (Spring 2000): 185-201.

Favreault, Melissa M. and Douglas A. Wolf. Living Arrangements and Supplemental Security Income

Receipt Among the Aged. Center for Retirement Research Working Paper No. 2004-03, Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, February 2004.

Feldstein, Martin S. and Jeffrey B. Liebman. Eds. The Distributional Aspects of Social Security and Social

Security Reform. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2002.

Fitzpatrick, Collen. “Report Highlights Impact of Welfare Reform on Addicted Population.” Alcoholism &

Drug Abuse Weekly 15, 31 (August 2003): 1-3.

Friedberg, Leora. The Effect of Old Age Assistance on Retirement. National Bureau of Economic Research

Working Paper No. 6548, May 1998.

Fujiwara, Lynn H. “The Impact of Welfare Reform on Asian Immigrant Communities.” Social Justice 25

(Spring 1998): 82-104.

Gallmeier, C. P. and J. A. Levy. “Holding the Check Hostage—Representative Payees, Clients, and the

Underground Economy.” Journal of Contemporary Ethnography 26, 4 (January 1998): 395-425.

Garrett, Bowen and Sherry Glied. “Does State AFDC Generosity Affect Child SSI Participation?” Journal

of Policy Analysis and Management 19, 2 (Spring 2000): 275-295.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

Gibson, Nancy P. “SSI Rules Simplification Provides Helpful Changes.” The Exceptional Parent 35, 4

(April 2005): 64-65.

Giertz, Seth. An Examination of the Impact of Federal Disability Programs On Family Labor Supply: Evidence from the Health and Retirement Study, Center for Retirement Research Dissertation, Center for

Retirement Research at Boston College, May, 2001.

Gilmer, Todd, Richard Kronick, Paul Fishman, and Theodore G. Ganiats. “The Medicaid Rx Model: Pharmacy-Based Risk Adjustment for Public Programs.” Medical Care 39, 11 (November 2001): 1188-1202.

Goulet, Joseph L., Robert Rosenheck, and Leslie Douglas. “Effectiveness of a Targeted Mailing Outreach

Program on SSI Applications and Awards.” The Social Service Review 73, 4 (Dec. 1999): 579-587.

Grady, April. Primer on Disability Benefits: Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Washington, DC: Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service Report

No. RL32279, March 2005.

Gresenz, C. R., K. Watkins and D. Podus. “Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Disability Insurance

(DI), and Substance Abusers.” Community Mental Health Journal 34, 4 (August 1998): 337-350.

Gruber, Jonathan and Jeffrey Kubik. Health Insurance Coverage and the Disability Insurance Application

Decision. Center for Retirement Research Working Paper No. 2002-04, Center for Retirement Research at

Boston College, September 2002.

Guydish, Joseph, Claudia Ponath, Alan Bostrom, Kevin M. Campbell, and Nancy Barron. “Effects of Losing SSI Benefits on Standard Drug and Alcohol Outcomes Measures.” Contemporary Drug Problems 30,

1-2 (Spring/Summer 2003): 169-193.

Haider, Steven J., Alison Jacknowitz, and Robert F. Schoeni. The Economic Status of Elderly Divorced

Women. Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 2003-046, Michigan Retirement

Research Center at the University of Michigan, May 2003.

Hanrahan, Patricia, Daniel J. Luchin, Lea Cloninger, and James Swartz. “Medicaid Eligibility of Former

Supplemental Security Income Recipients with Drug or Alcoholism Disability.” American Journal of Public Health 94, 1 (January 2004): 46-47.

Hao, Lingxin and Yukio Kawano. “Immigrants’ Welfare Use and Opportunity for Contact with Co-Ethnics.” Demography 38, 3 (August 2001): 376-389.

Hill, Steven C. and Judith Wooldridge. “Informed Participation in TennCare by People with Disabilities.”

Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved 17, 4 (November 2006): 851-875.

________. “SSI Enrollees’ Health Care in TennCare.” Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved 14, 2 (May 2003): 229-243.

________. “Plan Characteristics and SSI Enrollees’ Access to and Quality of Care in Four TennCare

MCOs.” Health Services Research 37, 5 (2002): 1197-1220.

Hill, Steven C., Craig Thornton, Christopher Trenholm, and Judith Wooldridge. “Risk Selection Among

SSI Enrollees in TennCare.” Inquiry 39, 2 (Summer 2002): 152-167.
2007 SSI Annual Report

112

Hunt, Sharon R. and Jim Baumohl. “Now Invited to Testify: Former Beneficiaries Appraise the SSI Drug

Addiction and Alcoholism Program.” Contemporary Drug Problems 30, 1-2 (Spring/Summer 2003): 

169-193.

Huynh, Minh, Kalman Rupp, and James Sears. The Assessment of Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) Benefit Data Using Longitudinal Administrative Records. SIPP Working Paper No. 238.

Census Bureau, 2002.

Inkelas, Moira, Melissa Rowe, Lynn A. Karoly, and Jeannette A. Rogowski. Policy Evaluation of the

Effects of the 1996 Welfare Reform Legislation on SSI Benefits for Disabled Children: Second Round Case

Study Findings. RAND Corporation Report DRU-2224, May 2000.

________. Policy Evaluation of the Effects of the 1996 Welfare Reform Legislation on SSI Benefits for

Disabled Children: First Round Case Study Findings. RAND Corporation Report DRU-2017, June 1999.

Karoly, Lynn A. and Paul S. Davies. Impact of the 1996 Childhood Disability Reforms: Evidence from

Matched SIPP-SSA Data. Michigan Retirement Research Center Working Paper No. 2004-079, Michigan

Retirement Research Center at the University of Michigan, June 2004.

Karoly, Lynn A., Randall A. Hirscher, and Jeannette A. Rogowski. A Descriptive Analysis of the SSI

Childhood and Age-18 Disability Redetermination Process: Results through August 28, 1999. RAND Corporation Report DRU-2328, August 2000.

Katz, Marsha R. Don’t Look for Logic: An Advocate’s Manual for Negotiating the SSI and SSDI Programs.

Missoula, MT: University of Montana Rural Institute, 2005.

Kelly, Rachel. Supplemental Security Income: Efforts to Prevent Prisoners from Receiving Benefits. Washington, DC: Library of Congress, Congressional Research Service, 1999.

Kennedy, Lenna D. “Earnings Histories of SSI Beneficiaries Working in December 1997.” Social Security

Bulletin 63, 3 (2000): 34-46.

________. “SSI At Its 25th Year.” Social Security Bulletin 62, 2 (1999): 52-58.

Kijakazi, Kilolo. Women’s Retirement Income: The Case for Improving Supplemental Security Income.

Washington, DC: Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 2001.

Kingson, Eric R., Margaret Morse, and Gary Calhoun. The Evolution of Social Security Disabled

Widow(er)s Benefits. Center for Retirement Research Working Paper No. 2003-9, Center for Retirement

Research at Boston College, May 2003.

Kochhar, Satya and Charles Scott. “SSI Case Closures.” Social Security Bulletin 61, 1 (1998): 20-33.

Koenig, Melissa and Kalman Rupp. “SSI Recipients in Households and Families with Multiple Recipients: Prevalence and Poverty Outcomes.” Social Security Bulletin 65,2 (2003/2004): 14-27.

Kornfeld, Robert and Kalman Rupp. “The Net Effects of the Project NetWork Return-to-Work Case Management Experiment on Participant Earnings, Benefit Receipt, and Other Outcomes.” Social Security Bulletin 63, 1 (2000): 12-33.
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Kornfeld, Robert J., Michelle L. Wood, Larry L. Orr, and David A. Long. Impact of the Project NetWork

Demonstration: Final Report. Bethesda, MD: Abt Associates Inc., March 1999.

Kubik, Jeffrey D. “Fiscal Federalism and Welfare Policy: The Role of States in the Growth of Child SSI.”

National Tax Journal 56, 1 (March 2003): 61-79.

________. “Incentives for the Identification and Treatment of Children with Disabilities: The Supplemental Security Income Program.” Journal of Public Economics 73, 2 (1999): 187-215.

Kuhlthau, K., J. M. Perrin, S. L. Ettner, T. J. McLaughlin, and S. L. Gortmaker. “High-Expenditure Children with Supplemental Security Income.” Pediatrics 102, 3 (September 1998): 610-615.

Lee, Julie, Mark McClellan, and Jonathan Skinner. The Distributional Effects of Medicare. In “Tax Policy

and the Economy,” James Poterba, editor, Volume 13, 1999.

Lewin Group. Evaluation Design for the Ticket to Work Program: Preliminary Process Evaluation. Report

prepared for the Social Security Administration. March 2003.

________. Evaluation Design for the Ticket to Work Program: Preliminary Report on Evaluation Design.

Report prepared for the Social Security Administration. June 2002.

Loprest, Pamela J. Supplemental Security Income for Children with Disabilities: Part of the Federal

Safety Net. Urban Institute Number A-10 in Series Issues and Options for States, 2000.

Loprest, Pamela J. and David Wittenburg. Choices, Challenges, and Options: Child SSI Recipients Preparing for the Transition to Adult Life, report prepared under contract to the Social Security Administration, May 2005.

Lo Sasso, Anthony T. and Deborah A. Freund. “A Longitudinal Evaluation of the Effect of Medi-Cal

Managed Care on Supplemental Security Income and Aid to Families with Dependent Children Enrollees

in Two California Counties.” Medical Care 38, 9 (2000): 937-948.

Luchansky, Bill, Dan Fordlund, Sharon Estee, Peter Lund, Antoinette Krupski, and Kenneth Stark. “Substance Abuse Treatment and Criminal Justice Involvement for SSI Recipients: Results from Washington

State.” American Journal on Addictions 15, 5 (September-October 2006): 370-379.

MaCurdy, Thomas and Margaret O’Brien-Strain. Reform Reversed? The Restoration of Welfare Benefits to

Immigrants in California. Public Policy Institute, December 1998.

Martin, Teran and Paul S. Davies. “Changes in the Demographic and Economic Characteristics of SSI and

DI Beneficiaries between 1984 and 1999.” Social Security Bulletin 65, 2 (2003/2004): 1-13.

Matherlee, Karen. Bridging Silos, Part I: Linkages among the DI, SSI, Medicare, and Medicaid Programs.

National Health Policy Forum Background Paper. Washington, DC: National Health Policy Forum.

November 2003.

________. Bridging Silos, Part II: DI, SSI, Medicare, and Medicaid Issues and Incentives. National

Health Policy Forum Background Paper. Washington, DC: National Health Policy Forum. November

2003.
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Mayer, Susan E. Why Welfare Caseloads Fluctuate: A Review of Research on AFDC, SSI, and the Food

Stamp Program. Joint Center for Poverty Research Working Paper 166 (April 2000).

McGarry, Kathleen. Guaranteed Income: SSI and the Well-Being of the Elderly Poor. National Bureau of

Economic Research Working Paper No. W7574, March 2000.

McKay, J. R., A. T. McLellan, J. Durell, C. Ruetsch, and A. I. Alterman. “Characteristics of Recipients of

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits for Drug Addicts and Alcoholics.” Journal of Nervous and

Mental Disease 186, 5 (May 1998): 290-298.

Mitchell, Jean M. and Darrell J. Gaskin. “Factors Affecting Plan Choice and Unmet Need Among Supplemental Security Income Eligible Children with Disabilities.” Health Services Research 40, 5, pt. 1 (October 2005): 1379-1399.

________. “Do Children Receiving Supplemental Security Income Who Are Enrolled in Medicaid Fare

Better Under a Fee-for-Service or Comprehensive Capitation Model?” Pediatrics 114, 1 (July 2004): 196-

204.

Mitchell, Susan, Colette Lamothe-Galette, and Frank Potter. Survey Response Incentives for a LowIncome Population: What Works? Mathematica Policy Research Issue Brief Number 2003-2. Princeton,

NJ: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc. November 2003.

Moffitt, Robert. Economic Effects of Means-Tested Transfers in the U.S. National Bureau of Economic

Research Working Paper No. 8730, January 2002.

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Watkins, Katherine E., Deborah Podus, and Emilia Lombardi. “The Health and Mental Health of Disabled

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Wilschke, Susan and Richard Balkus. “Child Support Payments and the SSI Program.” Policy Brief No.

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Wittenburg, David and Melissa Favreault. Safety Net or Tangled Web? An Overview of Programs and Services for Adults with Disabilities. Assessing the New Federalism, Occasional Paper Number 68. Washington, DC: Urban Institute. November 2003.

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H. GLOSSARY

Administrative Expenses (or Costs). Expenses incurred by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in

administering the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. Such administrative expenses are initially

paid from the OASI and DI Trust Funds as provided for in section 201(g)(1) of the Social Security Act.

The trust funds are subsequently reimbursed for such expenditures, including any interest lost, from the

General Fund of the Treasury.

Affidavit of Support. A contract under which a United States citizen or legal resident agrees to provide

support to maintain (i.e., to sponsor) an immigrant as a condition of the immigrant’s admission into the

United States.

Aged. Individuals aged 65 or older.

Aid—Old-Age Assistance (OAA), Aid to the Blind (AB), and Aid to the Permanently and Totally

Disabled (APTD). The former Federal-State programs of adult cash assistance under titles I, X, and XVI

respectively, that were replaced in the 50 States and the District of Columbia by the SSI program in 1974.

These programs still operate in Guam, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico and are administered at the Federal level by the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

Alien Lawfully Admitted for Permanent Residence. A noncitizen lawfully accorded the privilege of

residing permanently in the United States. Such individuals may be issued immigrant visas overseas by the

Department of State, or adjusted to permanent resident status while living in the United States by the U.S.

Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Appeal Rights Process. The administrative review process followed by SSA in determining an individual’s rights under the Social Security Act. The administrative review process consists of several steps,

which must be requested after the unfavorable initial determination within certain time periods. 

Assistance Based on Need. Assistance that is provided by certain programs which use income as a factor

of eligibility. The assistance must be funded wholly by a State, a political subdivision of a State, or a combination of such jurisdictions.

Assumptions. Values relating to future trends in certain key factors which affect the eligibility for SSI

benefits and the level of such SSI payments. Demographic assumptions include fertility, mortality, net

immigration, marriage, divorce, retirement patterns, disability incidence and termination rates, and

changes in the labor force. Economic assumptions include unemployment, average earnings, inflation,

interest rates, and productivity. The assumptions underlying the projections presented in this report are

consistent with the intermediate assumptions of the 2007 OASDI Trustees Report.

Asylee. A noncitizen already in the United States or at a port-of-entry who is granted asylum in the

United States. Asylum may be granted to an individual who is unable or unwilling to return to his/her

country of nationality, or to seek the protection of that country, because of persecution (or a well-founded

fear of persecution) based on the noncitizen’s race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social

group or political opinion.

Attendant Care Services. Services (including personal care assistance) that are paid for from Federal,

State or local funds and which are provided by a paid attendant required to assist with work related and/or

personal functions. 

Automatic Cost-of-Living Increase. The annual increase in SSI Federal benefit rates, effective for January of the current year, reflecting the change in the cost of living. The increase equals the percentage

increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers measured from the

average over July, August, and September of the second preceding year to the average for the same

3 months in the preceding year. If the increase is less than one-tenth of 1 percent, when rounded, there is
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no automatic increase for the current year; the increase for the next year would reflect the increase in the

cost of living over a 2-year period.

Award. An administrative determination that an individual is eligible for an SSI benefit.

Blind. For purposes of the SSI program, an individual is considered to be blind if he/she has 20/200 or

less vision in the better eye with the use of a correcting lens, has tunnel vision of 20 degrees or less, or met

the October 1972 State definition of blindness and received benefits under the State’s former program of

Aid to the Blind in December 1973.

Blind Work Expenses (BWE). Any expenses incurred by a blind individual that are reasonably attributable to earning income. The BWE provision permits the exclusion of these expenses from the earned

income of a blind individual. (See “Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE)” for the related exclusions

for disabled individuals.)

Burial Funds. A comprehensive term that for SSI purposes includes revocable burial contracts, trusts and

other burial arrangements (including amounts paid on installment sales contracts for burial spaces), cash,

accounts, or other financial instruments with a definite cash value clearly designated for the individual’s

burial expenses.

Child. A blind or disabled individual who is neither married nor the head of household and who is (1)

under age 18 or (2) under the age of 22 and a student regularly attending a school, college or university, or

a course of vocational or technical training designed to prepare him/her for gainful employment. A child

18 or older is subject to the adult definition of disability and is not subject to parental deeming. 

Comparable Severity. The phrase in the Social Security Act that defined disability for children prior to

the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-193).

Under prior law, an individual under age 18 would have been considered disabled if he/she had an impairment of comparable severity to that required for individuals 18 or older.

Constant Dollars. Dollar amounts adjusted by the CPI to the value of the dollar in a particular year.

Consumer Price Index (CPI). An official measure of inflation in consumer prices. In this report, all references to the CPI relate to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers

(CPI-W). Historical values for the CPI-W are published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Department of

Labor.

Continuing Disability Review (CDR). An evaluation of an individual’s impairment(s) to determine

whether the person is still disabled within the meaning of the law for purposes of eligibility for SSI and

OASDI benefits.

Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA). See “Automatic Cost-of-Living Increase.”

Countable Income. An individual’s income less all-applicable exclusions. This amount is used to determine SSI eligibility and benefit amount.

Countable Resources. The amount of resources after all exclusions. This amount is used in determining

an individual’s or couple’s SSI eligibility. A resource may be cash or other liquid assets or any real or personal property that an individual (or his/her spouse) owns and could convert to cash to be used for support

and maintenance. SSI law stipulates what items are to be excluded from resources. 

Current Dollars. Amounts expressed in nominal dollars with no adjustment for inflationary changes in

the value of the dollar over time.

Current-Payment Status. Status of an SSI recipient to whom a benefit is being paid for a given month.

SSI benefits for a month are usually payable on the first day of that month.
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Dedicated Account. An account in a financial institution established for a disabled or blind child to contain retroactive SSI payments that exceed six times the Federal benefit rate (FBR) plus State supplementation (certain smaller retroactive payments may be placed in the account once it is established).

Representative payees may only use dedicated account funds for the following allowable expenses: 

 • Education or job skills training;

 • Personal needs assistance;

 • Special equipment or housing modifications;

 • Medical treatment;

 • Therapy or rehabilitation; or

 • Other items or services that the Commissioner deems appropriate—

provided that the expense benefits the child and, in the case of the last five items, is related to the child’s

impairment. Money from a dedicated account which is knowingly misapplied must be repaid. These

accounts are excluded from resources and the interest earned is excluded from income.

Deeming. The process by which the income and resources of an ineligible individual are considered to be

available to a recipient when determining eligibility or payment amount. Deeming applies only between:

 • The living-with ineligible spouse and the eligible spouse;

 • The living-with ineligible parent(s) and eligible child(ren) under age 18; and

 • The immigration sponsors of some noncitizens and the noncitizen(s).

Demographic Assumptions. See “Assumptions.”

Disability. For individuals aged 18 or older, the inability to engage in any substantial gainful activity

(SGA) by reason of any medically determinable physical or mental impairment that can be expected to

result in death or that has lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months.

An individual under age 18 must have a medically determinable physical or mental impairment, which

results in marked and severe functional limitations and that can be expected to result in death or that has

lasted or can be expected to last for a continuous period of at least 12 months. 

Disability Determination Services (DDS). Federally funded State agencies that make disability determinations for SSA.

Disaster Assistance. Assistance from Federal programs and agencies, joint Federal and State programs,

State or local government programs, and private organizations (e.g., the Red Cross) provided to victims of

a Presidentially declared disaster.

Disposal of Resources for Less Than Fair Market Value. Transferring resources, either liquid, real, or

personal property, for less than the resources are worth.

Earned Income. For SSI purposes, wages, net earnings from self-employment, remuneration for work in

a sheltered workshop, royalties on published work, and honoraria for services rendered are considered

earned income. The distinction between earned and unearned income is significant because more liberal

exclusions are applied to earned income.

Earned Income Exclusion. The first $65 of a recipient’s monthly earnings and one-half of the earnings

in excess of $65 are excluded in computing the SSI benefit payable.
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Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). A special tax credit that reduces the Federal tax liability of certain

low-income working taxpayers. This tax credit may or may not result in a payment to the taxpayer.

Economic Assumptions. See “Assumptions.”

Effective Date of Application. An application for SSI benefits is effective on the first day of the month

following the date on which the application is filed, or on which the individual first becomes eligible,

whichever is later. 

Eligible Couple. Two persons married and living together in the same household or living together as

married, both being aged, blind, or disabled and eligible for SSI.

Eligible Individual. An aged, blind or disabled person who meets all the requirements for eligibility

under the SSI program, including filing an application.

Emergency Advance Payments (EAP). Special SSI payments that are available only at the time of initial application for eligible individuals who face financial emergencies and need assistance before their

first benefits would otherwise be received. The amount of the EAP an individual receives is recovered

from subsequent benefit payments.

Essential Person. An individual whose presence in the home of an SSI recipient who was transferred

from a State assistance program to SSI in January 1974 results in an increase in the FBR of the SSI recipient. The essential person must have been (1) living in the household of the SSI recipient in December

1973 and continuously thereafter; (2) never eligible for SSI; (3) not eligible for State assistance in December 1973; and (4) taken into account when the SSI recipient’s need for State assistance was determined in

December 1973.

Federal Benefit Rate (FBR). The basic standard used in computing the amount of Federal SSI benefits

for individuals and couples. The FBRs are increased annually to reflect increases in the cost of living. (See

table IV.A2.)

Fiscal Year (FY). The accounting year of the United States Government. Since 1976, a fiscal year is the

12-month period ending September 30. For example, fiscal year 2007 began October 1, 2006 and will end

September 30, 2007.

Food Stamps. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), under cooperative Federal-State agreements,

issues Food Stamp Program benefits in the form of paper food coupons (commonly known as food

stamps) and through electronic benefit transfer, to provide nutrition for low-income families. Food stamps

can be used only to buy food at stores authorized by USDA to accept them.

General Fund of the Treasury. Funds held by the Treasury of the United States, other than receipts collected for a specific purpose (such as Social Security) and maintained in a separate account for that purpose.

Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The total market value of goods and services produced by labor and

property located in the United States, regardless of who supplies the labor or property. 

Holding-Out Marriage. A situation in which a man and woman who are not legally married to each

other are living together in the same household and holding out to the community that they are husband

and wife and, as such, are treated as a couple for purposes of determining eligibility and payment amount

under SSI.

Home Energy Assistance. A Federal Government block grant program that provides funds to States for

energy assistance (including weatherization) to low-income households. This assistance may be provided

by a variety of agencies (e.g., State or local welfare offices, community action agencies, special energy

offices, etc.) and may be known by a variety of names (e.g., Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), Project Safe, etc.).
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Household. A group of two or more individuals who use a single dwelling unit as primary quarters for

living and eating separate from other individuals’ living units.

Household of Another. An individual is considered to be living in the household of another when the

individual lives with others, does not own or rent the shelter, and does not pay a pro rata share of the

household’s food and shelter expenses. An individual who provides all of his/her own food, or lives in a

public assistance household or in noninstitutional care, is not considered to be living in the household of

another. An individual who is determined to be living in the household of another is considered to be

receiving in-kind support and maintenance from that household, and his/her SSI benefit is reduced by onethird of the FBR. 

Impairment-Related Work Expenses (IRWE). The provision that permits the exclusion from earnings

of the costs of items and services which are needed in order for a disabled individual to work, which are

paid for by the individual, and which are necessarily incurred by that individual because of a physical or

mental impairment. These IRWEs are excluded from earnings when determining substantial gainful activity (SGA) or computing eligibility and ongoing SSI monthly payments. (See “Blind Work Expenses

(BWE)” for the related exclusions for blind individuals.)

Income. See—“Earned Income,” “In-Kind Income” and “Unearned Income.”

Individual Development Account (IDA). A savings account which low-income individuals, including

SSI recipients, may establish in order to save for purchasing a first home, meeting the costs of post-secondary education, or capitalizing a business. An individual’s deposits into an IDA are matched by a sponsoring nonprofit organization, or State or local government participating in the program.

Ineligible Spouse. The husband or wife of an eligible individual who is not eligible for SSI benefits.

Inflation. An increase in the volume of money and credit relative to available goods, resulting in an

increase in the general price level.

Infrequent or Irregular Income. Income that is received either infrequently or irregularly that can be

excluded from the determination of an individual’s income. “Infrequent” means that it is not received

more than once in a calendar quarter from a single source and is not also received in the month immediately preceding or the month immediately following the month of receipt, regardless of whether or not

these payments occur in different calendar quarters.1 “Irregular” means that an individual could not reasonably expect to receive the income. In any given quarter up to $30 of earned and $60 of unearned infrequent or irregular income is excluded.

Initial Determination. A determination SSA makes about an individual’s eligibility for benefits or about

any other matter that gives that person a right to further administrative and/or judicial review.

In-Kind Income. Income that is not cash, but is food or shelter or something an individual can use to

obtain food or shelter.

In-Kind Support and Maintenance (ISM). Unearned income in the form of food or shelter.

Interim Assistance Reimbursement (IAR). The process used for reimbursing for basic assistance provided by a State to an individual either while the individual’s application for SSI was pending or during

the period in which an individual’s SSI benefits were suspended. SSA may reimburse a State that has provided this assistance. The individual’s retroactive SSI payment is sent to the State as reimbursement if: (1)

the State has an agreement with SSA to participate in IAR, (2) the individual has given SSA written authorization to have his/her retroactive payment sent to the State as reimbursement, and (3) the individual is

found eligible for SSI benefits or has had his/her benefits reinstated for the same period of suspense. 

1 The definition of infrequent income was modified in final rules published on August 9, 2006 (71 FR 45375). Previously, infrequent income was defined

as income not received more than once a quarter from a single source.
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Under IAR, after States reimburse themselves from an individual’s retroactive benefit, they must forward

any remainder to the individual within 10 days.

Living With. A required condition for parent-to-child and spouse-to-spouse deeming. Deeming of

income and resources occurs if an eligible child lives with his/her ineligible parent(s) or an eligible individual lives with his/her ineligible spouse. 

Maintenance-of-Effort. See “Passalong.”

Mandatory State Supplementation. See “State Supplementation.”

Means-Testing. The measuring of income and resources against specified amounts as eligibility factors

for certain assistance benefits. SSI is a means-tested benefit program.

Medicaid. The program authorized under title XIX of the Social Security Act, which provides medical

assistance to certain low-income individuals and families and certain disabled and medically needy individuals. Medicaid is administered by the States with support from the Federal Government in the form of

matching grants. The Federal Government provides guidelines to the States for formulating their programs. Because these guidelines afford great leeway, Medicaid programs vary widely among the States.

Medicaid Facility. A medical treatment facility such as a hospital, extended care facility, nursing home,

or intermediate care facility, where Medicaid pays more than 50 percent of the cost of a person’s care.

Medical Facility. An establishment that makes available some treatment or services in addition to food

and shelter to four or more persons who are not related to the proprietor.

New Recipient. An SSI recipient in the first month of SSI payment receipt.

Noncitizen. An individual who is not a United States citizen. Also referred to in welfare and immigration

law as an alien. (See “Alien Lawfully Admitted for Permanent Residence,” “Asylee,” “Parolee” and “Refugee.”)

Nonqualified Alien. A noncitizen who is not in a qualified alien category for SSI eligibility purposes. 

OASDI. The Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance programs established under title II of the

Social Security Act.

One-Third Reduction. The reduction of an individual’s SSI payment that occurs when an individual is

living in the household of another. Instead of determining the actual dollar value of in-kind support and

maintenance, one-third of the Federal benefit rate is counted as additional income to an individual living in

another person’s household for a full calendar month and receiving both food and shelter from the household.

Optional State Supplementation. See “State Supplementation.”

Overpayment. The payment of more than the amount due for any period, including any amounts of

Federally-administered State supplementary payments.

Parent. For SSI purposes, the natural mother or father of the child, or the person who legally adopted the

child, or the stepparent who lives in the same household as the child.

Parolee. A noncitizen who appears to be inadmissible to the inspecting USCIS officer but is allowed to

enter the United States under emergency humanitarian conditions or when the noncitizen’s entry is determined to be in the public interest. Parole does not constitute a formal admission to the United States and

confers temporary admission status only, requiring parolees to leave when the conditions supporting their

parole cease to exist.
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Passalong. A requirement that States must meet in order to be eligible for Medicaid reimbursement. Any

State making supplementary payments (see “State Supplementation”) after June 30, 1977, must continue

making such payments and must pass along any cost-of-living increase to the Federal benefit rate. Two

methods are available to ensure that cost-of-living increases are passed on to the recipients.

 • Total Expenditures Method—State expenditures for supplementary payments in the current calendar

year must at least equal expenditures in the preceding calendar year. If expenditures are less in the

current year (shortfall), the State must increase expenditures in the next calendar year by an amount at

least equal to the shortfall.

 • Payment Levels Method—States may not lower their supplementary payment for any of the living

arrangement categories below their adjusted March 1983 levels. The adjusted level is the State’s

March 1983 payment level minus that portion of the July 1983 increase in the Federal benefit rate that

was not attributable to the increase in the cost of living (i.e., $10.30 per individual and $15.40 per

couple).

Personal Needs Allowance. The amount allowed for an institutionalized recipient’s personal needs (currently $30). If an SSI recipient is in a Medicaid facility, the law requires that the SSI benefit be used only

for the recipient’s personal needs (i.e., that the institution cannot retain the benefit in repayment of the cost

of the individual’s care).

Plan to Achieve Self-Support (PASS). A plan that permits a disabled or blind SSI recipient to set aside

income (earned and/or unearned) and/or resources for a work goal. The income and resources set aside

under a PASS are used to pay for goods or services needed to reach that goal, such as education, vocational training, starting a business, or purchasing work-related equipment. Income and resources set aside

under a PASS are excluded from SSI income and resources. SSA must approve an individual’s PASS.

Population in the Social Security Area. The population comprised of (i) residents of the 50 States and

the District of Columbia (adjusted for net census undercount); (ii) civilian residents of Puerto Rico, the

Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa and the Northern Mariana Islands; (iii) Federal civilian employees

and persons in the Armed Forces abroad and their dependents; (iv) crew members of merchant vessels;

and (v) all other U.S. citizens abroad.

Presumptive Disability or Blindness. A finding that SSI payments may be made before SSA makes a

formal determination as to whether or not the individual is disabled or blind. The individual’s impairment

must be apparent and meet specified criteria. In addition, the individual must meet all other requirements

for eligibility. These payments may be made for no more than 6 months. The presumptive payments will

not be considered overpayments if SSA later finds that the individual is not blind or disabled.

Property Essential for Self-Support (PESS). The real and personal property used in a trade or business,

nonbusiness income-producing property and property used to produce goods or services essential to the

individual’s daily activities. PESS may be excluded from resources under certain conditions.

Proration of Benefits. The method of computing benefit amounts in months in which the individual reacquires eligibility after a month or more of ineligibility. In such months, an individual’s SSI benefit will be

paid according to the number of days in the month that he/she is eligible, beginning with the first day in

the month on which all eligibility requirements are met. In order to determine the benefit payable in a prorated month SSA counts the number of days an individual is eligible in the month. The amount of the individual’s regular monthly payment is multiplied by the number of days for which he/she is eligible for

benefits. That figure is divided by the number of days in the month for which the benefit is being determined. The resulting amount is the amount due for the prorated month. Effective with claims filed August

22, 1996, proration for months of initial eligibility was eliminated.
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130

Public Educational Institution. An institution that is operated by or controlled by the Federal Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State such as a city or county for the primary purpose of providing educational or vocational training. 

Public Emergency Shelter for the Homeless. A shelter for individuals whose homelessness poses a

threat to their life or health.

Public Institution. An institution that is operated by or controlled by the Federal Government, a State, or

a political subdivision of a State such as a city or county. 

Publicly Operated Community Residence. A facility that provides food and shelter and some other service such as social services, help with personal living activities, training in socialization and life skills, or

occasional or incidental medical or remedial care. In order to be publicly operated it must be operated or

controlled by the Federal Government, a State, or a political subdivision of a State such as a city or county.

The facility must serve no more than 16 residents and must be located in a community setting.

Qualified Alien. An individual who is:

 • Lawfully admitted for permanent residence under the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA);

 • A refugee under section 207 of the INA;

 • An asylee under section 208 of the INA;

 • A person whose deportation is withheld under section 243(h) of the INA as in effect prior to April 1,

1997, or whose removal has been withheld under section 241(b)(3) of the INA;

 • A parolee under section 212(d)(5) of the INA for at least 1 year;

 • A person granted conditional entry under section 203(a)(7) of the INA as in effect prior to

April 1, 1980;

 • A Cuban or Haitian entrant as defined by Federal statute, including Section 501(e) of the Refugee

Education Assistance Act of 1980;

 — Former parolees and other aliens who became residents under the Cuban Adjustment Act of

1966;

 — Aliens who became permanent residents under the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act;

or

 — Aliens who became permanent residents under the Haitian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act.

 • A certain alien, or an alien parent of a child, or an alien child of a parent who:

 — Has been battered or subjected to extreme cruelty in the United States by a spouse, parent, or certain other family members the alien, parent and/or child lived with;

 — Is not living in the same household with the abusive individual;

 — Has been determined to need SSI because of this abuse; and

 — Has a determination from the USCIS for a certain change in status.

Qualifying Quarter of Earnings. Credit for a requisite amount of earnings assigned to a calendar quarter

for the purpose of determining the SSI eligibility of a lawfully admitted permanent resident.
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2007 SSI Annual Report

Quarter of Coverage. The crediting of coverage needed for insured status under the Social Security program. In 2007, a worker receives one quarter of coverage (up to four a year) for each $1,000 of annual

earnings reported from employment or self-employment. This dollar amount is subject to annual automatic

increases in proportion to increases in average earnings.

Recipient. A person who has been awarded SSI payments based on an evaluation of his/her own countable income and resources, age, and disability status.

Reconsideration. The first step in the administrative review process if an individual is dissatisfied with

SSA’s initial determination.

Redetermination. A periodic review of eligibility for SSI recipients to assure that requirements for eligibility continue to be met and that payment levels are in the proper amount. Income, resources, living

arrangements and other factors are reviewed. The redetermination process does not review the determination of disability. 

Refugee. A noncitizen outside of his/her country of nationality who is unable or unwilling to return to his/

her country of nationality or to seek the protection of that country because of persecution (or a wellfounded fear of persecution) based on the noncitizen’s race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion. Unlike asylees, refugees apply for and receive this status prior to

entry into the United States.

Relocation Assistance. A type of assistance provided to persons displaced by projects that acquire real

property. Examples of types of reimbursement, allowances, and help provided are:

 • Moving expenses;

 • Reimbursement for losses of tangible property;

 • Displacement allowances;

 • Amounts required to replace a dwelling which exceed the agency’s acquisition cost for the prior

dwelling;

 • Rental expenses for displaced tenants;

 • Amounts for down payments on replacement housing for tenants who decide to buy;

 • Mortgage insurance through Federal programs with waiver of requirements that borrowers must usually meet; and

 • Replacement housing.

Representative Payee. A person who receives SSI payments on behalf of an SSI recipient. SSA will pay

benefits to a representative payee on behalf of an individual 18 years old or older when it appears that such

method of payment will be in the interest of the individual. A representative payee will be appointed if the

individual is legally incompetent or mentally or physically incapable of managing or directing the management of his/her benefits. Also, in general, if the individual is under the age of 18, a representative

payee will be appointed. The law and regulations require that every beneficiary under age 15 must have a

representative payee.

Resident of a Public Institution. An individual who can receive substantially all of his/her food and

shelter while living in a public institution is considered a resident of the public institution. Generally, an

individual who is a resident of a public institution throughout a month is ineligible for SSI.
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132

Resident of the United States. A person who has established an actual dwelling place within the geographical limits of the United States with the intent to continue to live in the United States. (See “United

States.”)

Resource. The cash or other liquid assets or any real or personal property of an individual (or his/her

spouse, if any) that he/she could use or could convert to cash to be used for his/her support and maintenance.

Retroactive Payments. The SSI payments made in a month later than the month or months in which they

were due. Also referred to as “past-due” benefits.

Retrospective Monthly Accounting (RMA). The calculation method used in the SSI program to determine an individual’s eligibility for each month. RMA has two parts: an eligibility determination and a payment computation. If the individual is ineligible based on the current month’s factors (including the

current month’s countable income), no payment is due and none is paid. If the individual is eligible based

on the current month’s factors, payment is computed. The benefit for a month is generally based on the

countable income from the second month before the current month. The basic formula is to subtract the

countable income from 2 months previous from the current month’s Federal benefit rate.

Section 1619(a) Status. The special SSI cash benefits provided to disabled individuals who lose eligibility for SSI benefits under the regular rules because they have earnings at the level that is ordinarily considered to represent substantial gainful activity.

Section 1619(b) Status. The special SSI recipient status for Medicaid purposes provided to working disabled or blind individuals when their earnings make them ineligible for regular or special cash payments.

Sponsor. An individual who has signed an affidavit of support for a noncitizen entering the country.

State Supplementation. The payments made by a State or one of its political subdivisions to aged, blind,

or disabled individuals.

 • Administration—The governmental unit responsible for administering State supplementary payments

may be either a State or local agency or SSA. Under State administration, the State must absorb both

program benefits and administrative costs. Under Federal administration, the State is responsible for

the program benefits and, as of January 1, 2007, pays a $9.69 administrative fee for each benefit paid.

 • Mandatory Supplementation—The supplementary payments that are made only to beneficiaries who

were converted to the SSI program from former State assistance programs at the inception of the SSI

program. Mandatory minimum State supplementary payments are required to maintain the December

1972 payment levels that these beneficiaries received under the former State assistance programs.

States are required to provide the supplementation to maintain their Federal matching funds for Medicaid.

 • Optional Supplementation—The payments made by States to help persons meet needs not fully covered by Federal SSI benefits. The State determines whether it will make a payment, to whom, and in

what amount. These supplements, paid on a regular basis, are intended to cover such items as food,

shelter, clothing, utilities, and other daily necessities. Some States provide optional supplementary

payments to all persons eligible for SSI benefits, while others may limit them to certain SSI recipients

such as the blind or residents of domiciliary-care facilities, or they may extend payments to persons

ineligible for SSI because of SSI income.
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Statutory Blindness. See “Blind.”

Student. An individual who is regularly attending a school, college or university, or a course of vocational or technical training designed to prepare him/her for gainful employment.

Student Earned Income Exclusion (SEIE). An earned income exclusion for a student under age 22 with

certain limitations established by regulations. For 2007, up to $1,510 earned income in a month, but no

more than $6,100 per year, may be excluded.

Substantial Gainful Activity (SGA). The level of work activity used to establish disability. A finding of

disability requires that a person be unable to engage in SGA. For 2007, a person who is not statutorily

blind and is earning more than $900 a month (net of impairment-related work expenses) is ordinarily considered to be engaging in substantial gainful activity.

Supplemental Security Record (SSR). The computerized database maintained by SSA and containing

identifying information, income, resources and other eligibility factors, for all SSI recipients. The SSR

includes the history of SSI payments made to an individual.

Suspension. An ineligibility status which causes the nonpayment of benefits for a period of anywhere

from 1 to 12 months for any of a number of reasons such as income or resources over allowable levels,

absence from the United States, residence in a public institution, etc. Benefits can resume without reapplication, when all requirements for entitlement are again met. Suspense that lasts more than 12 months (24

months for individuals who were made ineligible because of their spouses or parent being called to active

military duty) results in a termination of the SSI record. (Once a record is terminated, reapplication is necessary.)

TANF. See “Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).”

Temporary Absence. An individual’s physical move from his/her permanent place of residence that does

not constitute a change in living arrangement. In general, a temporary absence is an absence from a permanent residence which is not intended to, and does not, exceed a full calendar month. 

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF). The State grant program of assistance for needy

families established by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996

(Public Law 104-193). TANF replaced the Aid to Families with Dependent Children program.

Termination. For an individual, cessation of benefits, which can occur for a number of reasons, including

death, medical improvement, or a period of suspension lasting longer than 12 months. 

Terminations. As used in section IV, the net reduction (after accounting for new entrants) in the number

of SSI recipients in current-payment status during a period. 

Ticket to Work Program. The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act of 1999 established a voluntary Ticket to Work and Self-Sufficiency program (Ticket to Work program) under which a

blind or disabled beneficiary may obtain vocational rehabilitation (VR), employment and other support

services from a qualified private or public provider referred to as an “employment network,” or from a

State VR agency. 

Trusts. A legal arrangement involving property and ownership interests. Generally, property held in a

trust will be considered a resource for SSI purposes if the assets of the trust could be used for the benefit of

the individual or spouse. 

Unearned Income. The income that is not earned income. Unearned income may be in cash or in-kind.

Some examples of unearned income are:

 • Annuities, pensions, and other periodic payments;

 • Retirement and disability benefits;
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134

 • Veterans’, workers’ and unemployment compensation;

 • Alimony and support payments;

 • Dividends, interest and certain royalties; and

 • Rents. 

United States. For purposes of the SSI program, the United States consists of the 50 States, District of

Columbia and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Vocational Rehabilitation (VR). The process of restoring individuals with disabilities to full capabilities.

VR services are designed to provide an individual with the training or other services that are needed to

return to work, begin working or to enter a new line of work.

Windfall Offset. A provision to prevent a person from receiving monthly SSI and OASDI benefits in

excess of the total amount which would have been paid if the OASDI benefits had been paid when they

were due rather than retroactively. 

Work Incentives. Provisions in the SSI program that are intended to act as incentives for disabled or

blind individuals to work. Examples of work incentives under the SSI program are:

 • Earned income exclusions;

 • Impairment related work expenses;

 • Blind work expenses;

 • PASS;

 • Section 1619 benefits; and

 • Ticket to Work program.
SOCIAL SECURITY ADVISORY BOARD 

STATEMENT ON THE SUPPLEMENTAL 

SECURITY INCOME PROGRAM 

Public Law 104-193 requires that members of the Social Security Advisory Board be 

given an opportunity, either individually or jointly, to include their views in the Social 

Security Administration’s annual report to the President and the Congress on the 

Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program. 

We appreciate the opportunity to present our views on this important program, and we 

have asked the Social Security Administration (SSA) to include in this year’s annual 

report the following statement of views, which focuses on the interactions between the 

SSI program and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. 

SSI as part of the national economic safety net 

As part of our national economic safety net, the SSI program provides a monthly income 

to help meet the basic needs of people who have little or no income and are age 65 or 

over, have a severe disability, or are blind. The SSI program has a strict disability 

standard. To qualify as disabled, an applicant must show that he or she is unable to 

engage in any substantial gainful employment as a result of a medically determinable 

impairment that can be expected to result in death or has lasted, or can be expected to 

last, at least 12 months. SSI also has strict income and resource limits. In 2007 the 

maximum federal SSI monthly benefit amount is $623 for an individual and $934 for a 

couple. Most states supplement these amounts; state supplements account for about 

14 percent of total benefits. 

SSI beneficiaries rely to a large extent on these benefits. According to SSA statistical 

reports, for non-institutionalized SSI beneficiaries between the ages of 18 and 64, SSI 

benefits account for more than three-quarters of their income. For 47 percent of them, SSI 

was their sole income. 

Program Benefits as Percentage of Personal 

Income of SSI Beneficiaries Ages 18 to 64

0

10

20

30

40

50

Under 25 25-49 50-74 75-99 100

Percent of Income

Percent of 

Beneficiaries

Source: Social Security Administration, SSI Annual Statistical Report, 2004, table 36.

1
By themselves, federal SSI benefits are not enough to raise beneficiaries out of poverty. 

The federal benefit level for an individual is about 74 percent of the poverty level for 

non-elderly persons, and the federal benefit for a couple is about 82 percent of that 

poverty level. SSI benefits do, however, reduce the extent and the depth of poverty. Some 

families are lifted above the poverty line when other benefits or the earnings of family 

members are added to their SSI benefits. For others, their SSI benefits reduce the distance 

between their income and the poverty line. 

Both TANF and SSI serve individuals with physical and mental impairments 

The population served by SSI overlaps to some extent the population served by 

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. TANF is a block grant program established in 

1996 to replace Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC). TANF was not 

designed specifically for people with disabilities, but many TANF recipients have 

physical and mental impairments. 

National studies have found relatively high levels of disability among TANF recipients. 

A Government Accountability Office (GAO) analysis of 1999 data found that 44 percent 

of TANF recipients reported at least one physical or mental impairment (three times the 

rate of impairments among adults not receiving TANF), and 38 percent reported a severe 

impairment.1

 Studies by the Urban Institute and the Manpower Demonstration Research 

Corporation also found relatively high rates of impairments among TANF recipients.2

GAO analysis of 1999 data also found that TANF recipients with impairments tend to 

rely on TANF benefits for longer periods than recipients without impairments. Adult 

recipients with impairments were half as likely to leave TANF as adult recipients without 

impairments. Recipients caring for children with impairments were less than half as 

likely to leave TANF as all other recipients.3

Administrative data have long shown an overlap in the populations served by TANF and 

SSI.4

 More recent research has shown that the overlap is even greater than had been 

thought. The law establishing TANF included what are known as maintenance-of-effort 

(MOE) requirements. These required that states sustain a certain level of spending, 

relative to their spending in 1994, on TANF-related programs. One way that states could 

 

1 Welfare Reform: More Coordinated Federal Effort Could Help States and Localities Move TANF 

Recipients with Impairments Toward Employment, GAO-02-37. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d0237.pdf 2

 Sheila R. Zedlewski and Donald W. Alderson, Before and After Reform: How Have Families on Welfare 

Changed?, Urban Institute, April 2001, http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/anf_b32.pdf; Denise F. Polit, 

Andrew S. London, and John M. Martinez, The Health of Poor Urban Women: Findings from the Project 

on Devolution and Urban Change, Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, May 2001, 

http://www.mdrc.org/Reports2001/UC-HealthReport/UC-HealthRpt-FullRpt2001.pdf. 3 Welfare Reform: Former TANF Recipients with Impairments Less Likely to Be Employed and More Likely 

to Receive Federal Supports, GAO-03-210. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d03210.pdf 4

 TANF recipients who have sufficient work credits may also qualify for Social Security Disability 

Insurance (SSDI) benefits. Applicants for SSI benefits are also screened for SSDI eligibility. For the sake 

of simplicity, we will refer in this paper only to the SSI program, but it should be understood that some SSI 

applicants will also apply for SSDI. 

2
use this MOE requirement to their advantage was by establishing Separate State 

Programs (SSPs), administered by TANF agencies but paid for from state funds. State 

money spent on these programs can count toward the state’s MOE requirement. The 

advantage to states was that families receiving income support through SSPs were not 

subject to TANF work participation requirements. Using SSPs to pay benefits to families 

with adults who have disabilities, therefore, removed those families from the workparticipation calculations and made it easier for states to meet work participation goals. 

Some states assign families with adults who are applying for SSI to SSPs while their SSI 

applications are pending. SSPs accounted for only 6.8 percent of total TANF-related cash 

assistance cases in 2003, but they accounted for almost 15 percent of adult recipients, up 

from 9 percent in 2000.5

Including data for SSPs with those for TANF gives a more accurate picture of the impact 

of TANF on SSI. A recent study estimates that from 2001 through 2003, 34 percent of 

SSI awards to children and 12 percent of SSI awards to adults came from TANF/SSP 

households. The study estimates that as many as a third of SSI awards to women ages 22 

through 39 are to TANF/SSP recipients. It also notes that the incidence of SSI awards 

among TANF/SSP recipients in the early part of the current decade was much higher than 

the incidence among recipients of AFDC, the welfare program that preceded TANF, in 

the early 1990s.6

Potential for an increased flow from TANF to SSI 

Because of changes to the program in the 2005 reauthorization of TANF, we may see an 

increased flow of applicants from TANF to SSI. There were already financial incentives 

to urge TANF recipients to apply for SSI and to facilitate those applications. Under the 

AFDC program that preceded TANF, if an AFDC recipient became entitled to SSI and 

left the AFDC rolls, the state saved its share of the federal-state benefit cost. TANF, by 

contrast, is funded by a block grant, so the state saves the full amount of the TANF 

benefit cost when a recipient goes from TANF to SSI. 

TANF imposes financial penalties on states that do not meet goals for having recipients 

participate in work. Helping recipients move onto SSI increases states’ prospects of 

avoiding those penalties. Disability is not taken into consideration in measuring this 

performance; consequently, removing from TANF rolls disabled recipients who are not 

likely to work improves the measures of state performance.

Recipients also gain by moving to SSI, because their benefits are higher. The gain to 

recipients has been increasing, as TANF benefits have been declining in value, while SSI 

benefits, indexed to the cost of living, have maintained their value. SSI also offers more 

security, as most states have time limits on the receipt of TANF and require recipients to 

perform work or work-related activities. 

 

5

 Steve Wamhoff and Michael Wiseman, “The TANF/SSI Connection,” Social Security Bulletin, 66(4), 

2005/2006, 1-17. (Because of delays in publication, this issue of the 2005/2006 volume was not published 

until 2007.) 

6

 Wamhoff and Wiseman. 

3
Recent changes provide further incentives for states to facilitate the movement of 

TANF/SSP recipients onto SSI. The Deficit Reduction Act of 2005 (DRA) reauthorized 

the TANF program through FY2010. That act increased federal work participation 

requirements for TANF recipients, increasing the importance to states of assuring that 

disabled recipients apply for SSI. The act also made the work participation requirements 

apply to recipients in SSPs that are funded by maintenance-of-effort funds. Those SSPs, 

therefore, will no longer provide exemption from work requirements for disabled 

recipients who are in the process of applying for SSI benefits. States can, however, 

exclude from the work rate calculation families in which a parent is receiving SSI, again 

increasing the incentive to assist recipients in establishing eligibility for the SSI program. 

The need to improve TANF services provided to people with disabilities 

We are concerned that the TANF program may be failing to provide TANF recipients 

with disabilities and parents of children with disabilities the services and supports which 

will help them to secure employment. The National Council on Disability (NCD) has 

noted that disabled TANF recipients face many employment challenges that non-disabled 

recipients do not. The NCD has cited anecdotal evidence that TANF recipients with 

disabilities have been shifted off TANF and onto SSI before they could benefit from 

TANF supports and services that could have led to employment. 

The National Council on Disability has noted that “TANF creates a great opportunity to 

creatively design programs that can give parents with disabilities, and parents of children 

with disabilities, the training and support they need to secure and maintain employment. 

Some states and communities are already collaboratively working to help people with 

disabilities prepare for and sustain employment. Greater national emphasis on systemic 

collaboration and review of policies and legislation among federal, state, and local 

entities that bring consumers with disabilities to the table and begin dialogue and actions 

would serve to remove barriers and create real opportunities for people with disabilities 

to transition from welfare to work.”7

A report published by the Urban Institute comments on the disjointed nature of programs 

for low-income adults with disabilities and the tendency of administrators and 

policymakers to view them in isolation rather than in the context of the larger safety net. 

It comments specifically on the movement of TANF recipients to SSI as an example of 

the lack of coordinated disability policy and observes, “While this transition might have 

improved the short-term income prospects of some people, it is unclear if this transition is 

always the best long-term economic outcome for all recipients, particularly those who 

might have some future employment potential.”8

 Clearly, there is a need for TANF to 

improve its employment services to those recipients who would benefit from them as 

 

7

 “TANF and Disability – Importance of Supports for Families with Disabilities in Welfare Reform,” 

March 14, 2003. http://www.ncd.gov/newsroom/publications/2003/familysupports.htm 8

 David Wittenburg and Melissa Favreault, Safety Net or Tangled Web? An Overview of Programs and 

Services for Adults with Disabilities, Occasional Paper Number 68, Urban Institute, November 2003, 

pp. 18-19. http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/310884_OP68.pdf 

4
well as a need for TANF agencies and SSA to enhance their interactions on behalf of 

individuals whose impairments are severe enough to make them eligible for SSI. 

Need for collaboration between TANF and SSA offices

In September 2004, GAO issued a report containing a survey of county TANF offices. In 

that survey, 86 percent of offices reported that they either sometimes or always exempt 

from work requirements adult TANF recipients who have applied for SSI. GAO reported 

that, about 51 percent of county TANF offices did not require adult TANF recipients 

awaiting SSI determinations to participate in any type of job services, education services, 

work experience programs, or other employment services. Among those counties that 

reported offering services, utilization of services was low. GAO found that 40 percent of 

county TANF offices reported one of the reasons adult TANF recipients with 

impairments, who were awaiting SSI eligibility determinations, were not participating in 

work activities was that there were an insufficient number of job training or related 

services available for them to use. In addition, some TANF offices interviewed by GAO 

believed that SSI applicants were afraid that participating in work activities or even in 

work-related services would jeopardize their chances of receiving SSI benefits. However, 

41 percent of county TANF offices reported that their recipients with impairments, 

awaiting SSI eligibility determinations, were unsure whether or not the demonstration of 

any work ability would hinder or disqualify their chances for SSI eligibility. It should be 

noted that, in order to qualify for SSI, adult applicants under age 65 have to show that 

they are unable to perform work at the level of substantial gainful employment, currently 

$900 per month. “One county TANF official we interviewed said that on one hand, 

recipients are being told about using TANF services to obtain employment, and then, on 

the other hand, recipients are being told to apply for SSI benefits, which require an 

applicant to focus on his or her inability to work.”9

The same GAO report of a survey of county TANF offices noted that 97 percent of all 

counties refer at least some of the adult TANF recipients with impairments to SSA to 

apply for SSI. All offices rely on the individual to disclose his or her impairment, but 

96 percent of the counties also rely on caseworker observation. More than half the offices 

also rely on screening tools and intensive assessments. In deciding whether to refer the 

impaired individual to SSI, 94 percent of the offices use physician documentation and 

95 percent use self-reported information. 10

In response to the GAO report, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 

(HHS), which is responsible for administering the TANF program, has pointed out that 

promoting self-sufficiency through work is inherently in conflict with helping TANF 

recipients apply for SSI. It noted that when TANF agencies identify a TANF recipient as 

being potentially eligible for SSI, they frequently stop their work-oriented efforts for 

those recipients.11 Both HHS and SSA agreed with GAO that TANF agencies should 

 

9 TANF and SSI: Opportunities Exist to Help People with Impairments Become Self-Sufficient. GAO-04-

878, September 2004. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d04878.pdf 

10 TANF and SSI. 11 DHHS comments in GAO, TANF and SSI, p. 26. 

5
establish closer relationships with SSA offices in order to improve services for those 

potentially eligible for SSI. 

In 2002, Representative Benjamin Cardin, Ranking Member of the Human Resources 

Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee, asked GAO to provide information on 

how people with impairments fare in the current welfare environment, specifically: 

(1) how prevalent impairments were among TANF recipients; (2) whether recipients with 

impairments were as likely to exit TANF as recipients without impairments; and (3) what 

sources of income people with impairments had after leaving TANF, compared with 

people without impairments. As we have noted already, GAO reported that TANF 

recipients who had impairments were half as likely to exit TANF as recipients without 

impairments, and recipients caring for children with impairments were less than half as 

likely to exit TANF as recipients not caring for children with impairments. In addition, 

GAO noted that, after leaving TANF, people with impairments were one-third as likely to 

be employed as people without impairments and that 40 percent of families with 

impairments who left TANF received SSI. GAO also stated, “TANF often serves, as did 

AFDC, as a temporary stopping point for low-income individuals with physical or mental 

impairments that may be considered severe enough to make them eligible for the federal 

SSI program.”12

GAO concluded: “a key challenge will be to ensure that recipients with impairments and 

those caring for children with impairments receive the supports they need to meet the 

work-focused goals and requirements of TANF. Our findings underscore the magnitude 

and complexity of this challenge. Our findings that both adult recipients with 

impairments and recipients caring for children with impairments are less likely to exit 

TANF, and that adult leavers with impairments are less likely to be employed, suggest 

that in the early years of welfare reform at least, these families were not as successful as 

those without impairments at leaving welfare through work. Our finding that 40 percent 

of families with impairments who did leave welfare received SSI after leaving TANF 

shows that SSI is an important source of support for many of these families. This finding 

raises the difficult question of how best to use their time on TANF while awaiting SSI 

eligibility determination, such as what work expectations to have for these recipients. 

These findings also raise the more general question for policymakers about how best to 

promote work and personal responsibility – through work requirements and time limits – 

while at the same time taking into consideration the particular needs of recipients with 

impairments and those caring for children with impairments. While our analysis provides 

descriptive information on outcomes for TANF recipients with impairments, much 

remains unknown about how best to help people with different types of impairments 

become self-sufficient.”13

These GAO reports demonstrate a need for, not only improved TANF employment 

services for the disabled, but enhanced cooperation between TANF and SSI offices. 

 

12 Welfare Reform: Former TANF Recipients with Impairments Less Likely to Be Employed and More 

Likely to Receive Federal Supports, GAO-03-210, p 5-6. http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d03210.pdf 13 Ibid., p. 19-20. 

6
Recommendation for improved collaboration 

In its response to the September 2004 GAO report on TANF and SSI, the U.S. 

Department of Health and Human Services acknowledged that better coordination and 

collaboration between TANF and SSA offices could help individuals with impairments 

become more self-sufficient. It offered to have its Administration for Children and 

Families (ACF) work with SSA to develop tools and processes to accomplish this. SSA 

agreed that such an approach had potential to help people become self-sufficient. In 

December 2006, SSA and ACF met for the first time to discuss such a collaborative 

effort. They met again in January 2007. As this is written in early May 2007, they have 

not met again and no meeting is scheduled. 

There is too much at stake here and time is being squandered while ACF and SSA 

continue leisurely discussions, without sufficient concern about the individuals they are 

charged with assisting. The SSI and TANF programs both are grounded in the Social 

Security Act and to a significant extent serve overlapping populations. They should be 

aggressively pursuing program coordination and enhancements that will improve the 

outcomes for people with disabilities. There are clear gaps in the nation’s safety net, 

some of which the Board highlighted in its September 2005 report, A Disability System 

for the 21st Century. Old paradigms must be set aside and we must look more broadly at 

what is possible. It is time to reexamine our national disability programs with a view to 

investing in human capital – our most valuable asset. There needs to be a larger systemic 

change that facilitates coordination and integration of services and supports. ACF and 

SSA should be charged with conducting research and developing demonstrations that will 

provide 21st century policy guidance. For example, research that explores viable options 

for people with disabilities should be considered. 

• Are there demonstrations that could be designed to test program changes in TANF 

and/or SSI that address program restrictions that limit an individual’s ability to 

achieve self-sufficiency? 

• What is the most cost-effective way to serve this overlapping population at the 

federal and state level? 

• Are there lessons to be learned from European systems that are more effective in 

linking rehabilitation services to cash benefits? 

At the same time, we want to assure that new barriers are not erected to programs such as 

SSI and SSDI. Therefore, the administering agencies should make certain that individuals 

with disabilities severe enough to make them eligible for SSI and SSDI are not impeded 

in obtaining the benefits they need. 

We urge the administering agencies to resume and strengthen their efforts to work 

collaboratively and to improve their understanding of each other’s roles and 

responsibilities. They must identify and remove obstacles in the current system that keep 

disabled applicants from obtaining on an integrated basis the benefits and services they 

need, including services that will assist them in seeking to attain the maximum feasible 

levels of independence and self-support. It is time to develop a national disability system 

7
based on the best interests of recipients and not on a desire to shift financial responsibility 

among levels of government. 

Sylvester J. Schieber 

Chairman 

 Dana K. Bilyeu Jeffrey R. Brown Dorcas R. Hardy 

Marsha Rose Katz Barbara B. Kennelly Mark J. Warshawsky 

8