U.S. Senate: leave Bristol Social Security office open

Lieberman press release, issued this afternoon:

Lieberman, Dodd Win Significant Battle in Bristol SSA Fight

Rep. Larson and Senators continue push to keep office open

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Senators Joe Lieberman (ID-CT) and Chris Dodd (D-CT) took a significant step forward in the fight to prevent the Social Security Administration (SSA) from closing its field office in Bristol. The Senate unanimously passed an amendment introduced by both Senators to the appropriations bill that funds the Departments of Education, Labor and Health and Human Services (HHS) that would not allow SSA to close the Bristol office until they meet certain requirements (outlined below). The bill now must go to President Bush.

SSA could close the Bristol office as early as November 2, if the legislation has not become law. Lieberman, Dodd and Congressman John B Larson (CT-01) are writing a letter to SSA Commissioner Michael Astrue urging him to respect the wishes of Congress and not close the office at least until the requirements of the amendment have been met.

"The Senate has sent a loud and clear message to the Social Security Administration that they should keep the Bristol office open," Lieberman said. "I hope SSA will not rush to disregard the will of the Senate and close the Bristol office before this amendment has a chance to become law."

"I am pleased that the full Senate agreed that the Bristol Social Security office should remain open," said Dodd. "Our senior citizens face enough challenges without having to travel unreasonable distances or conforming to limited timeframes for access to services they need and deserve. I urge the SSA to accept the recommendation of the Senate and keep the Bristol Office open."

Congressman Larson, Vice Chair of the Democratic Caucus, said: "I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate in conference to make sure that this amendment is included in any legislation that hits the President's desk. I will also continue to work with the Social Security Administration, which has been greatly under-funded, to keep the Bristol office open. The Bristol Social Security Office is vital to the residents of the community. We are doing everything within our power in Congress to make sure it stays open."

The amendment requires SSA to provide the following to Congress before closing the Bristol field office:

• A thorough analysis of the criteria used for selecting field offices for closure and how the SSA analyzes and considers factors relating to transportation and communication burdens faced by seniors and the disabled as a result of field office closures;

• A cost-benefit analysis of closing the office that takes the following into account:

o The savings anticipated by the closure;

o The burdens placed on seniors and the disabled;

o Any costs associated with replacing the services lost by closing the office.


Below is the text of the letter sent by Senators Lieberman and Dodd and Rep. Larson to SSA:

October 24, 2007

Michael J. Astrue
Commissioner
Social Security Administration
6401 Security Boulevard
Baltimore, MD 21235-0001

Dear Commissioner Astrue:

We are again writing to ask your reconsideration of the proposal to close the Bristol Office and to bring to your attention an amendment passed today by the United States Senate regarding this proposal.

Today, the Senate unanimously adopted an amendment we all supported to prevent any funds from being used to close the Bristol office at this time. We continue to believe that this proposal is ill-advised and that the selection of the Bristol office for closure was not based on a sound analysis of the impact on elderly citizens in our state as compared to the relatively minimal savings to be achieved.

As we have previously pointed out, the Bristol office serves over 12,000 elderly and disabled citizens each year. According to documents provided by the Social Security Administration, the Bristol office handles 25 to 35 unscheduled walk-ins each day, in addition to regularly scheduled appointments. A good many of these walk-ins are residents that rely on public transportation. Asking them to travel to New Britain is a hardship: in many cases it would require them to transfer buses or take a taxi each way. We further want to emphasize that this is a population that often is not comfortable negotiating transactions over the telephone, and is not knowledgeable about navigating online services.

We continue to believe that the criteria for selecting the Bristol office and other offices for closure has not been articulated and that a comprehensive cost-benefit analysis has not been conducted that adequately considers the transportation and communication burdens placed on the elderly. Hence the amendment adopted by the Senate states that the office should not be closed at least until such time as such criteria are identified and such analysis has been submitted.

We hope you will honor the will of the Senate. We also hope you will continue to explore with us other options to achieve cost savings while keeping open the Bristol office.

Sincerely,
Joseph I. Lieberman UNITED STATES SENATOR
Christopher J. Dodd UNITED STATES SENATOR
John B. Larson MEMBER OF CONGRESS

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Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com