Statement by Commissioner O’Malley on the President’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget
Reading Time: 3 MinutesLast Updated: March 11, 2024
The Biden-Harris Administration today released the President’s Budget for Fiscal Year 2025. Following historic progress made since the President took office—with nearly 15 million jobs created and inflation down two-thirds—the Budget protects and builds on this progress by lowering costs for working families, protecting and strengthening Social Security and Medicare, investing in America and the American people, and reducing the deficit by cracking down on fraud, cutting wasteful spending, and making the wealthy and corporations pay their fair share.
Key investments focus on improving the customer experience, reducing wait times at all stages of the disability process and on our National 800 Number, modernizing our information technology, improving overpayment and underpayment processes, and advancing equity by increasing access to our programs.
The Budget makes critical, targeted investments in the American people that will promote greater prosperity for decades to come. At the Social Security Administration (SSA), the Budget will:
- Protect the Social Security Benefits that Americans Have Earned. The Administration is committed to protecting and strengthening Social Security and opposes any attempt to cut Social Security benefits as well as proposals to privatize Social Security. The Administration believes that protecting Social Security should start with asking the highest-income Americans to pay their fair share. In addition, the Administration supports efforts to improve Social Security benefits, as well as SSI benefits, for seniors and people with disabilities, especially for those who face the greatest challenges making ends meet.
- Improve Service Delivery. The Administration is committed to improving service delivery for the more than six million retirement, survivor, and Medicare claimants, as well as the more than two million individuals applying for disability and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) every year. The Budget requests $15.4 billion in discretionary budget authority—a $1.3 billion or 9 percent increase over the 2023 enacted level—to improve customer service at SSA’s field offices, State disability determination services, and teleservice centers for retirees, individuals with disabilities, and their families. The Budget also improves access to SSA’s services by reducing wait times.
- Advance Equity and Accessibility. This Budget ensures we will deliver accessible Social Security services to all eligible individuals, while maintaining rigorous stewardship and oversight of our programs. Our programs must reach underserved communities and people facing barriers to accessing our services, including individuals with low income, limited English proficiency, mental and intellectual disabilities, and those facing homelessness. The Budget also supports our efforts to simplify and update the SSI application processes and expand access to agency programs and services through our outreach efforts, particularly for underserved communities. We will improve our IT systems to provide a more consistent, equitable, and accessible experience for our customers; reduce burdensome manual processes for our employees; increase self-service options on our National 800 Number; and expand our cybersecurity program. Further, the Budget prioritizes preventing and resolving improper payments.
- Provide National, Comprehensive Paid Family and Medical Leave. The vast majority of America’s workers do not have access to employer-provided paid family leave, including 73 percent of private sector workers. Among the lowest-paid workers, who are disproportionately women and workers of color, 94 percent lack access to paid family leave through their employers. In addition, as many as one in five retirees leave the workforce earlier than planned to care for an ill family member, which negatively impacts families, as well as the Nation’s labor supply and productivity. The Budget proposes to establish a national, comprehensive paid family and medical leave program administered by SSA. The program would: provide workers with progressive, partial wage replacement to take time off for family and medical reasons; include robust administrative funding; and use an inclusive family definition. The Budget would provide up to 12 weeks of leave to allow eligible workers to take time off to: care for and bond with a new child; care for a seriously ill loved one; heal from their own serious illness; address circumstances arising from a loved one’s military deployment; or find safety from domestic violence, sexual assault, or stalking —otherwise known as “safe leave”. The Budget would also provide up to three days to grieve the death of a loved one. The Administration looks forward to continuing to work with the Congress to make this critical investment and strengthen America’s economy.
The Budget builds on the President’s record while achieving meaningful deficit reduction through measures that cut wasteful spending and ask the wealthy to pay their fair share.
For more information on the President’s FY 2025 Budget, please visit: https://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/budget/.
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Tags: Benefits, Presidential Budget, Service Improvements
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Thomas S.
For over 33 years I paid into Medicare while a member of the New York City Police Department. In addition, for 13 years I paid into Medicare while employed by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), a government agency. That’s a total of 46 years paying into Medicare. Now, New York City Mayor Eric Adams wants to take NYC retirees out of Medicare and give them another plan. Commissioner O’Malley, is that how it works?
Please explain. Thank you!
Wendel B.
Yep, a typical Democratic idea that will continue to raise debt to a level that is impossible to fund and pay leaving America and the average person held hostage by another country removing your voice from government and managed by a leader with some common sense beneficial for him but not for you.
PD
The byline should read “By Martin O’Malley, Commissioner and Biden propagandist”. This article reads like a political manifesto, not an objective analysis of budget implications.
Gary
i agree with any number of others expanding a welfare program into S S just doesn’t make any good financial sense ..When will our leaders take a good look and shore up the program for what it was intended for . our defective spending has to be addressed
Rob F.
Retirees who have been paying in to the SSA system for decades are struggling to make ends meet and are worried about the long term availability of benefits. WHY are you turning this into something that is far more than benefits for the retirees who have paid into it??? WHY are you politicizing the agency and expanding benefits beyond the intended scope?? WHY does this read more like a political endorsement of the Biden administration and WHY are you pandering to Liberal interests?? If there is additional funding available, benefits should be increased for the retirees who have spent a lifetime paying into it!! Stop serving the political campaign of Joe Biden and serve the retirees, not every other special interest group with their hands out.
Sheryl
I so agree with you Rob. In addition, the baby boomer generation are all heading towards disability and have paid into this all their lives. So, what does the SSA do? They change the impairment listings to make it near impossible to be found disabled from old age on things like spinal conditions, vascular, heart, cancer. The government has used the SSA money like a big piggy bank they can tap into anytime they want, while telling the elderly and disabled, you cannot have what you paid into all your life. It is a disgrace. Shame on you.
P.S. The Commissioner’s statement reads more like a democratic party paid for it. Not once in this statement did he address all the overpayments that are their fault, and they still try to get us to pay it back. And do not get me started on the Payment Center which can hold a back pay for years that is due to the disabled and we as citizens cannot even contact the Payment Center, only they can.
Finally, the statement that inflation is improving is just nonsense.
Shame on you Commissioner!
Dave
The measly cola raises over the years doesn’t reflect the real cost of living that seniors are dealing with. There is talk every year of a supplemental increase but nothing ever happens.I can’t believe you didn’t address this in your statement. We are depending on you to help us all. Let this be the year for real Social Security reform! Everyone is hurting due to inflation but seniors even more so due to the fact that Social Security is our only means of support. HELP
Phil V.
Commissioner O’Malley, Your statement on the presidents 2025 budget appears to a reelection campaign endorsement from Social Security which is apolitical, what a disappointment. It’s a verbatim replay of President Biden’s State of the Union Address on a new 2025 budget to buy voted for reelection this November. As many retirees have pointed out the original of social security take a small portion of salary, matched by the employer. The analogy of ancient Greeks storing olive oil in a safe place for security in old age is quite apropos. Today’s US dollars taken from working people’s salary, matched by the employer are stored in the Trust Fund, which have proven to be an unsafe place. Social Security was never intended to be used to assist handicapped, widowed, widowers, children or other worthwhile causes who’s funding should come from other federal sources, not the social security trust fund. How can the president take credit creating New jobs that were only jobs lost during COVID. Most jobs were lost to over reaction to close down the country, over extend stimulus checks way past the time on necessity, create the germ of rapid inflation. Gross mismanagement. He is now using social security recipients with false promises as he is using College student loans to buy votes with tax payers dollars. In 2023 we added 1.7 trillion to the national debt of 581 trillion with interest of 870 billion this year. Your message is an insult to older Americans who worked, saved toiled, served our country during war and peace times. The “Greatest Generation” of which very few are still with would say ‘Same on you Commissioner O’Malley for allowing you and your office to be used as a reelection campaign tool.
Kevin S.
How political can you be? This is why the people don’t trust you. One lie after another. Do you not know that inflation is 19% higher now than it was 3 years ago. Has and food have nearly doubled and you are championing Bidenomics. This blog is a disgrace
Michael A.
I have received Social Security benefits for the past 12 years. Every payment came on time and in the correct amount. Social Security is the best program I have ever experienced!
Crystal B.
Hi, Michael A. Thanks for using our blog and for your feedback! Your thoughts are important to us and we’re pleased when feedback is positive. We try hard to provide the best possible service to our customers and your satisfaction is our reward.
Kebede H.
I would like to express my gratitude for the ample and expensive service of the office and high quality of its employees I am working I am happy
Crystal B.
Hi, Kebede H. Thanks for using our blog and for your feedback! Your thoughts are important to us and we’re pleased when feedback is positive. We try hard to provide the best possible service to our customers and your satisfaction is our reward. You can submit feedback by visiting our contact Social Security page. You can submit feedback by visiting our Once there, select the “Email Us” link. This will take you to the “Email A Question to our Support Team” form, where you can complete and submit a compliment, complaint, or suggestion.
E S.
Nothing but repeating the lies of the most corrupt and lying President in the history of the United States. Inflation is the highest it ever has been and cost of good is even higheer. What a joke from these to govt CLOWNS. DISGUSTING !!
Ja
Liar Liar !!
Pants on fire !!!
Sara
I’m sorry but maybe you need to get your facts straight before opening your mouth. I think President Biden is a very honorable person.
S.B.
Michael A.
Another happy and misinformed citizen.