A pending Social Security Totalization agreement with Mexico could leave the program "potentially" vulnerable to improper payments according to a new report by the General Accountability Office (GAO). If put into effect, the agreement with Mexico "will increase the number of beneficiaries receiving totalized Social Security benefits as well as the amount of benefits paid," the report said. The GAO found, however, that "historically the SSA has conducted only limited reviews" for assessing the accuracy and reliability of eligibility information from foreign countries, such as birth and death data. Because of this problem, TSCL believes that, unless Congress moves to disapprove the pending Totalization agreement with Mexico, improper payments due to fraud and abuse under the agreement would add to the strains on Social Security and increase the pressure for benefit cuts.
Totalization agreements eliminate dual Social Security taxation for workers who divide their careers in this country and a foreign nation. Under the agreements workers total their work credits under both countries to meet minimum benefit qualification requirements of one of the systems. The agreements also allow foreign workers to return to their home country but continue to draw Social Security benefits by waiving certain residency requirements.
The GAO said that the agency accepts the documentation from foreign countries without independently verifying its accuracy. The GAO cited the example of one particular country (which it did not name) where official documents such as birth certificates could easily be fraudulently obtained through bribes and other means.
The GAO also found that the SSA's main tools for determining an individual's continuing eligibility, consisting of surveys and questionnaires, "may be insufficient to ensure that only truly eligible individuals receive benefits." The questionnaires rely on beneficiaries to accurately (and honestly) self-report information that may affect their eligibility for benefits, such as whether they are working, but SSA conducts no additional verification. "Most of the overpayments detected in the surveys are attributable to unreported earnings, as well as unreported deaths, " the report said.
"The relatively limited scope of SSA's current verification procedures may not provide adequate assurance that the Trust Funds are protected from improper payments," the GAO said. "Moreover, because the agency lacks the ability to independently verify the information it receives from foreign beneficiaries on its questionnaires … SSA may not be aware of changes in beneficiaries' eligibility status, resulting in improper payments for an extended period of time."
Legislative Alert! TSCL is fighting Totalization with Mexico, viewing it as rewarding people who have broken our laws at the expense of those who legally worked and paid into the system. The League endorses two resolutions that would formally reject the Social Security pact with Mexico. We urge you to contact your Members of Congress asking them to support H. Con. Res. 50, a resolution telling President Bush not to submit the U.S. Mexico Social Security agreement to Congress, introduced by Representative Virgil Goode, Jr. (VA), and H. Res. 20, which would disapprove the U.S.-Mexico Social Security Agreement, stopping its implementation, introduced by Representative J.D. Hayworth (AZ). Adopting a formal resolution to disapprove the agreement is the only way for Congress to stop the U.S.-Mexico Social Security treaty. Once the President approves the agreement and sends it to Congress, lawmakers have only 60 session days to stop the treaty from going into effect.
Source: "A More Formal Approach Could Enhance SSA's Ability to Develop and Manage Totalization Agreements," General Accountability Office, February 2005.
June 2005
