Neal, Ways and Means Democrats Demand Social Security Commissioner Correct the Record After Misleading More Than 90 Million Americans with Partisan Email
WASHINGTON, DC— Ways and Means Democrats, led by Ranking Member Richard E. Neal (D-MA), are demanding Social Security Administration (SSA) Commissioner Frank Bisignano immediately contact the more than 90 million Americans who received a misleading and partisan email on July 3rd which falsely claimed Social Security benefits would no longer be subject to taxation due to the passage of H.R.1. The bill creates a temporary, income-based deduction for seniors that applies to all retirement income, not just Social Security. Many Social Security beneficiaries, including most low-income seniors won’t benefit at all, and the provision expires in just a few years, at the end of 2028.
“SSA has a proud tradition of being a reliable source of clear, useful information, and has spent years earning the American people’s trust, in part so that it can educate vulnerable seniors to avoid phishing email and other scams,” the lawmakers wrote. “Your July 3rd email shattered this well-earned trust.”
The lawmakers corrected the record on Republicans’ broken Social Security promises: “H.R. 1 does nothing to protect Social Security, despite your assertion, and if anything will weaken Social Security’s revenue… our offices have been flooded with questions from constituents who are confused and frustrated to have received what looked to them like political spam from SSA.”
“Social Security has been the bedrock of Americans’ financial security since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed it into law 90 years ago. Social Security’s earned benefits help millions of seniors, people with disabilities, survivors, and their families to put food on their table, pay for rent, heat their homes, cover medical bills, and more. Social Security’s importance to the American people and its approximately 70 million beneficiaries cannot be overstated, nor can the critical role SSA plays in administering this essential program.” Ways and Means Democrats closed.
Damaging SSA’s hard-earned public trust by using it for political communication is reckless and must never happen again, and that’s why Ways and Means Democrats are demanding that SSA immediately issues a correction and an apology to the millions of current and future beneficiaries who received this inappropriate and fact-free email.
Read the full letter to Commissioner Bisignano HERE