Date: Monday, March 24, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Today, we announced several new initiatives and resources to promote greater transparency and accountability.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Thursday, March 20, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Today, we announced the immediate resumption of debt collection activities through the Treasury Offset Program (TOP) for debts accrued prior to March 2020. This decision comes after a suspension of collections due to the economic challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Visit our blog to learn more about these important changes.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Wednesday, March 19, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Yesterday, we announced that we will implement stronger identity verification procedures and expedite direct deposit change requests to one business day.
Visit our blog to learn more about these important changes.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Monday, March 17, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Yesterday, we announced that more than three million deaths are reported to the Social Security Administration each year and explained that the agency’s records are highly accurate. Of these millions of death reports received each year, less than one-third of 1 percent are erroneously reported deaths that need to be corrected.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Thursday, March 13, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Today, we announced that we will finish the nationwide rollout of our Hearing Recording and Transcriptions (HeaRT) system this month. The HeaRT system replaces an antiquated and bulky hardware system in each hearing office with a software only solution that records and produces transcripts for each case at the hearings level to ensure due process.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Friday, March 7, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Today, we shared that we will increase the default overpayment withholding rate for Social Security beneficiaries to 100 percent of a person’s monthly benefit.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Wednesday, March 5, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Today, we shared our significant progress in identifying and correcting beneficiary records of people 100 years old or older.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Wednesday, March 5, 2025
Dear Colleague,
We updated our Monthly Information Package (MIP) repository with new articles. The MIP is a compilation of articles about Social Security programs, services, and initiatives in English and Spanish that you can share with your members and colleagues. We recommend sharing the articles through channels like electronic newsletters, email blasts, and print periodicals. For the author, please use Social Security Administration.
If you post an article, please let us know or share the link by emailing OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov!
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Dawn Bystry
Associate Commissioner
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Wednesday, March 5, 2025
Dear Colleague,
We are pleased to announce our progress in implementing the Social Security Fairness Act. As of March 4, 2025, over 1 million people have received more than 7.5 billion in retroactive payments.
Read our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Friday, February 28, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Consistent with recent executive orders issued by the White House, the Social Security Administration will continue to implement efficiencies and reduce costs, with a renewed focus on mission critical work for the American people.
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Friday, February 28, 2025
Dear Colleague,
The Inspector General for the Social Security Administration (SSA) has designated March 6, 2025, as National “Slam the Scam” Day—an outreach campaign to raise public awareness of Social Security scams and other government imposter scams. This is part of National Consumer Protection Week, March 2 - 8, 2025. We are asking you to share information about “Slam the Scam” Day with your clients, friends, and family.
In 2024, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) received over 195,873 complaints of government imposter scams, with Social Security as the most frequently impersonated agency. Almost 12% said they lost money to a scammer— a total of more than $97.8 million for Social Security scams. Scammers often target the elderly, those with limited English proficiency, and veterans. To prevent further losses, we urge everyone to use caution when receiving calls from someone claiming to be from a government agency.
Recognizing the basic signs of a scam is helpful in stopping fraudulent activity. Remember:
Remind your clients, friends, and family to:
Read and share our Scam Awareness Toolkit and Scam Alert infographic. Visit FTC’s National Consumer Protection Week for additional resources and activities.
Together, we will remain vigilant against government imposter scams and help protect people from fraud.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Thursday, February 27, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Tax season is officially underway! By now, your clients should have received the necessary forms and documentation to file a complete and accurate tax return. The Social Security Benefit Statement, also known as the SSA-1099 or SSA-1042S, is a tax form we mail each year in January to people who receive Social Security benefits. It shows the total amount of benefits your clients received from us in the previous year, so they know how much Social Security income to report to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on their tax return.
If a client misplaces their Benefit Statement, they can instantly get a replacement form with a personal my Social Security account. Replacement tax forms for the previous tax year are typically available starting February 1 of each year.
To further assist your clients, the IRS Help webpage offers a wide range of resources that can simplify the tax preparation process. Individuals with a Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) can create or securely access their Individual Online Account to get the latest information about their federal tax account and take actions to support their tax filing experience and protect their tax-related information. They can also use the Interactive Tax Assistant Tool get answers to common tax questions and determine if their Social Security benefits are taxable. Additionally, the IRS offers free online and in-person tax preparation options for eligible taxpayers through IRS Free File, IRS Direct File, Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) programs. To locate a VITA or TCE site, your clients can use the VITA Locator Tool call 800-906-9887.
Visit our Information for Tax Preparers to learn more.
Please share this information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Tuesday, February 25, 2025
Dear Colleague,
Effective immediately, we will begin paying retroactive benefits and increasing monthly benefit payments for people affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).
Visit our blog to learn more.
Please share this important information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Wednesday, February 19, 2025
Dear Colleague,
The President has appointed Lee Dudek as Acting Commissioner of Social Security. Read his statement reaffirming his Commitment to Agency Transparency and Protecting Benefits and Information.
Please share this information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Dawn Bystry
Associate Commissioner
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Tuesday, February 18, 2025
Dear Colleague,
On February 14, we published an updated Tips and Best Practices for Appointed Representatives guide, now available under the Resources, fact sheets, and guides section on the Representing Claimants webpage. This guide provides key information about:
I encourage you to share this resource with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Thank you for your ongoing commitment to serving claimants.
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Monday, February 3, 2025
Dear Colleague,
We updated our Monthly Information Package (MIP) repository with new articles. The MIP is a compilation of articles about Social Security programs, services, and initiatives in English and Spanish that you can share with your members and colleagues. We recommend sharing the articles through channels like electronic newsletters, email blasts, and print periodicals. For the author, please use Social Security Administration.
If you post an article, please let us know or share the link by emailing OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov!
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Dawn Bystry
Associate Commissioner
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Friday, January 31, 2025
Dear Colleague,
We are excited to announce the launch of our redesigned Representing Claimants webpage. This new, task-oriented design aims to enhance customer service for appointed representatives and their staff by consolidating portals and services into one convenient location.
Thank you for your ongoing support and the valuable feedback you provided to improve this resource. Additional input can be provided by using the feedback button on the updated page.
Please share this information with your members, colleagues, affiliates, and other interested parties.
Sincerely,
Hope Grunberg
Associate Commissioner
Office of Disability Policy
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov
Date: Thursday, January 30, 2025
SAVE THE DATE!
National Slam the Scam Day
Thursday, March 6, 2025
The Social Security Administration and the Office of the Inspector General are partnering with other government agencies for the 6th Annual Slam the Scam Day. Please join us, as part of National Consumer Protection week, as we work to raise public awareness of government imposter scams.
We encourage you to visit our Slam the Scam Resources page for more information on this year’s campaign. This page will also highlight organizations dedicated to helping us “Slam the Scam!”.
Contact us at OEA.net.post@ssa.gov for more information.
Date: Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Dear Colleague,
As part of Identity Theft Awareness Week, we are teaming up with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to host a free webinar about how to spot, avoid, and report identity theft. Please join us on Thursday, January 30, 2025, from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. ET to learn more about this important topic.
During the session, we will cover:
For more information, please visit the event page.
We look forward to your participation!
Sincerely,
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
Date: Friday, January 3, 2025
Dear Colleague,
We updated our Monthly Information Package (MIP) repository with new articles. The MIP is a compilation of articles about Social Security programs, services, and initiatives in English and Spanish that you can share with your members and colleagues. We recommend sharing the articles through channels like electronic newsletters, email blasts, and print periodicals. For the author, please use Social Security Administration.
If you post an article, please let us know or share the link by emailing OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov!
Thank you for your continued support.
Sincerely,
Dawn Bystry
Associate Commissioner
Office of Strategic and Digital Communications
OEA.Net.Post@ssa.gov