Open Government Initiative (Subscribe)

This is an archival or historical document and may not reflect current policies or procedures.

Open Government Plan 4.1 Implementation Progress

On February 17, 2017, we launched our refreshed Open Government Plan 4.1. We made several commitments in our plan, and will share our progress with you regularly. Below is our report on milestones.

Goal I: Increase Transparency
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Issue refreshed Open Government Plan and share it with public and employees Completed
Expand and enhance our public open government web presence Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    The Open Government Portal was updated to add new information to:
    • Our Themes webpage,
    • Our Open Data webpages, and
    • Our geospatial maps.
    Detailed activities beginning in October 2016 are below.
  • July 2018 – Added the GovDelivery subscribe button to each webpage and added the ability to receive data only updates.
  • April 2018 – SSA released a news item on its collaboration with 19 federal agencies to provide information about financial literacy.
  • January 2018 – Added news items.
  • August 2017 – Renovated and updated information available on the Open Government website.
  • June 2017 – Added data for application developers to the Developer Support Webpage.
  • November 2016 – Added three new geospatial maps to our Open Government Map Gallery (OASDI Beneficiaries and Benefits by State 2013, OASDI Beneficiaries and Benefits by State 2015, and the American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) Outreach Map).
Use social media and other tools more effectively to share information, engage the public, and provide easily accessible and relevant data to the public Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    To quickly notify the public and increase awareness, transparency, and engagement, the SSA provided information to the public via various electronic media channels, such as:
    • Social media platforms,
    • Mailing lists (via GovDelivery),
    • GitHub (open source code repository), and
    • Crowdsourcing and feedback tools.
    Detailed activities beginning in October 2016 are below.
  • September 2018 – SSA leveraged its social media channels to quickly notify the public of office closings due to Hurricane Florence. The notification included both English and Spanish messages.
  • August 2018 – In preparation for the August 22, 2018 National Disability Forum, we promoted the event using:
  • June 2018 – SSA partnered with the Administration for Community Living, Health and Human Services (HHS) to highlight World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. We used the SSA blog as well as other social media tools.
  • June 2018 – SSA conducted a Facebook Live event titled, "The Future of Social Security 2018." The live broadcast featured Social Security Chief Actuary, Steve Goss. Mr. Goss discussed the newly released Social Security Trustees Report. He took several questions from the audience ranging from questions about the annual cost-of-living adjustment to questions about the Social Security and Medicare programs. There were over 8,000 views.
  • May 2018 – SSA updated the open source code on Code.gov around code asset ANDI.
  • April 2018 – SSA shares metadata about its open source code on Code.gov. The SSA uses the tool GitHub as a repository for more detailed information.
  • April 2018 – Video: What is my Social Security was released on YouTube.
  • April 2018 – New Engage SSA platform includes Open Data engagement.
  • March 2018 – Promoted Sunshine Week 2018 using Facebook and Twitter posts.
  • January 2018 – Produced Facebook Live event on retirement planning.
  • September 2017 – Produced Facebook Live event, titled “The Future of Social Security Part II” to discuss the newly released 2017 Trustees Report. Featured SSA’s Chief Actuary, Steve Goss.
  • June 2017 – We continue to use two-way feedback, crowdsourcing tool, IdeaScale, to host the Open Data Project, as a way to engage with internal and external data researchers.
  • May 2017 – Produced Facebook Live event to promote the release of 2016 Top Baby Names.
  • March 2017 – Held National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE Webinar): "The ABLE Act: Achieving a Better Life Experience."
  • February 2017 – Held National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE Webinar): "Choosing a Service Provider That's Right for You."
  • January 2017 – Held National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE Webinar): "Make it Happen: The Ticket to Financial Freedom."
  • December 2016 – Held National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE Webinar): "Debunking the Three Biggest Myths about Disability Benefits and Work."
  • November 2016 – Held National Work Incentives Seminar Event (WISE Webinar): "Ticket to Work and Mentorship: Achieving Financial Independence."
  • October 2016 – For the National Disability Forum (NDF) held on October 27, 2016, we used SSA's Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and blog to promote and engage stakeholders.
Continue to identify and release data in an open, accessible, and machine-readable format Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA increased the number of Open Data data assets from 1,538 at the beginning of FY 2017 (October 2016) to 1,848 at the end of FY 2018 (September 2018).
  • September 2018 – Collaborated with SSA's research component to link the Disability Analysis File (DAF) to Data.gov.
  • August 2018 – The Open Data Progress webpage has been updated for every month of fiscal year 2018.
  • April 2018 – New data on 2017 FOIA added to inventory and Data.gov.
  • February 2018 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • September 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • August 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • July 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • June 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • May 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • April 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • March 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • February 2017 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • December 2016 – Open Data Progress webpage updated.
  • November 2016 – We continue to publish an Open Data Progress webpage with a chart tallying the data assets added to the enterprise data inventory. This chart is updated at the end of each month and contains data totals back to August 2014.
Continue to identify public Social Security data to adapt into geospatial maps and Application Programming Interfaces (API) Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA published maps with facility information, voting verification information, and benefits data. SSA also contributed API interfaces to the Enterprise Data Inventory (EDI) and ultimately Data.gov and GeoPlatform.gov.
  • September 2018 – Added new Video Service Delivery (VSD) locations to the AIAN geospatial map.
  • September 2018 – The Ticket to Work Choose Work web interface provides data, by zip code, about access to employment support services for Social Security Disability beneficiaries who want to work. The interface has data about:
    • Employment Networks (EN),
    • Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies (VR),
    • Benefits Counseling (WIPA), and
    • Legal Services (PABSS).
  • May 2018 – Added two new Video Service Delivery (VSD) locations to the AIAN geospatial map.
  • March 2018 – Updated the geospatial map tutorials.
  • February 2018 – Added new locations to geospatial map.
  • September 2017 – Reviewed office locations and coding to ensure data accuracy.
  • June 2017 – Released field office and resident station address information with an API service.
  • November 2016 – Adapted three datasets into new geospatial maps featured in our Open Government Map Gallery (OASDI Beneficiaries and Benefits by State 2013, OASDI Beneficiaries and Benefits by State 2015, and American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) Outreach Map.)
Foster the use of agency data through ongoing contacts with stakeholders and interested parties Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Outreach included other government agencies, the general public, and advocate organizations.
  • September 2018 – SSA is working with the Department of Justice, Elder Justice Working Group to identify the federal-level data needs for improving understanding of the scope and implications of elder abuse.
  • September 2018 – Shared code for checking the Enterprise Data Inventory (EDI) file which assists government agencies in implementing OMB M-13-13.
  • June 2018 – SSA collaborated with the National Council on Aging to release data about notices mailed to beneficiaries who SSA found potentially eligible for either a Medicare Savings Programs (MSP) or Extra Help with Medicare Prescription Drug Plan Costs. For the benefit of their colleagues, we made it available on Data.gov.
  • May 2018 – Communicated with interested stakeholders regarding the release of baby names data.
  • February 2018 – Met with Federal agencies on geoplatform and Data.gov.
  • August-September 2017 – Benchmarked with other federal agencies and departments about how they are organized to support the principles of open government and open data. More in-depth discussions were held with the Department of Health and Human Services to discuss both data and other initiatives.
  • August 2017 – Developed a flyer for use at conferences with stakeholders to highlight data available to the public. Used a targeted version of the flyer at the 2017 Home and Community Based Services Conference held in Baltimore.
  • June 2016 – Conducted conference calls with researchers and business users about data and new tools that can provide insights into our processes.
  • December 2016 – We continue to engage with data users, stakeholders, and other interested parties through our moderated Open Data Project engagement.
Explore implementation of new FOIA system Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA uses the eFOIA system. In FY 2018, almost 1400 requests were received through FOIAonline.
  • February 2018 – New system selected for March 2018 Sunshine material.
  • May 2017 – The agency started using the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) FOIA solution, FOIAonline. All new FOIA are being processed in FOIAonline so all the processing is now in a fully electronic format instead of the paper files needed for our old system.
Expand the release of proactive disclosure items to FOIA Proactive Disclosure webpage Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See Proactive Disclosures in the FOIA Reading Room.
  • March 2018 – New items added to the FOIA Reading Room.
  • November 2017 – New items added to the FOIA Reading Room.
  • September 2017 – Additional proactive disclosure items added to our Reading Room.
  • June 2017 – Agency continues to expand proactive disclosure items in our Reading Room, including annual reports regarding ALJ disposition data, SSI payment and award information, sanctioned representatives, etc. We have been posting more documents to our FOIA Library and now that we are using FOIAonline, this fully electronic system is designed so FOIA documents and proactive disclosure items can be automatically placed into the Reading Room.
  • December 2016 – Agency continues to expand proactive disclosure items in our Reading Room, including annual reports regarding ALJ disposition data, SSI payment and award information, sanctioned representatives, etc. With SSA transitioning to FOIAonline next year, we will be implementing the new system’s FOIA Reading Room for proactive disclosures. FOIAonline is a fully electronic system, so FOIA documents and proactive disclosure items can be automatically placed into the Reading Room.
Provide our employees with training, new tools, and access to data to use innovation methods in support of our core mission Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA used multiple tools to disseminate information and provide employees with the ability to access and interpret data. Some examples are:
    • Training regarding data visualization tools and data driven decision making,
    • Communications Outreach Activity Reporting System (COARS) system,
    • Employee retirement information portal, and
    • SSA open source software.
    Detailed activities beginning in October 2016 are below.
  • September 2018 – SSA leveraged its LinkedIn channel to notify its employees (and interested members of the public) of priority job vacancies at the agency, including a senior executive position in the Office of the Chief Actuary.
  • September 2018 – SSA's Government Retirement and Benefits (GRB) Platform offers employees a resource library, benefit estimates, and information about retirement.
  • May 2018 – Continued to hold internal meetings about Google Analytics for data driven decision making.
  • April 2018 – SSA published a newsletter providing the latest activity on the BI Tools Migration project.
  • February 2018 – Accessible Name and Description Inspector (ANDI) code added to Github. ANDI detects accessibility issues.
  • September 2017 – Agency workgroups such as the Business Intelligence and the GIS working groups regularly meet and share information about tools, training opportunities and innovations in data analytics to promote access and use of data in support of our mission.
  • September 2017 – Agency continues to develop, and consistently improve, the internal Communications Outreach Activity Reporting System (COARS) system. Employees across the agency are being trained on COARS reporting as a means of tracking external/public engagement.
  • January - June, 2017 – Tableau training for SSA employees. Tableau is an interactive data visualization tool focused on business intelligence for SSA.
  • In FY 16, ODEPP implemented an interim solution to improve the centralized tracking of interagency data sharing requests. The SharePoint-based tracking tool allows for reporting on certain data exchange performance measures, tracks the workflow for incoming data exchange requests (new requests and modifications to existing agreements), and separately tracks the administrative/legal and financial agreement workflows (including annual renewals). The data exchange tracker contains all FY 15 and FY 16 data exchange requests received to date. Additionally, ODEPP is in the process of developing an Integrated Data Exchange Application (IDEA), which will establish a single interface using a universal business process for processing, administering, tracking, and reporting on all data exchange agreements within the agency. This is critical for the long-term leadership and enterprise governance of our data sharing services.
Continue to provide Open Data quarterly reports to OMB, as required Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    OMB reported that SSA has maintained the highest possible rating for our open data inventory.
  • August 2018 – SSA submitted the report to OMB.
  • July 2018 – OMB is developing a federal data strategy. It will be made actionable through upcoming milestones in a cross agency performance goal. More information has been posted at Performance.gov.
  • May 2018 – SSA submits report.
  • February 2018 – SSA submits report.
  • November 2017 – SSA submits report.
  • August 2017 – Quarterly report to OMB on open data accomplishments was submitted on time, as required.
  • May 2017 – Quarterly report to OMB on open data and accomplishments, was submitted on time, as required.
  • February 2017 – Quarterly report on the Open Data CAP Goal was submitted to OMB on time by the due date of February 28, 2017.
  • November 2016 – Quarterly report on the Open Data CAP Goal was completed submitted to OMB on time by the due date of November 30, 2016.
  • May 2017 – Quarterly report to OMB on open data and accomplishments, was submitted on time, as required.
Complete records management requirements in the timeframe contained in the M-12-18 issued by OMB on August 24, 2012 Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See activities related to OMB M-12-18.
  • 2018 – Completed gap analysis and began identifying requirements to electronically manage electronic permanent records. Submitted seven Flexible schedules to NARA for their approval.
  • 2017 – Initiated market research and gap analysis for electronically managing permanent electronic records.
  • November 2016 – SSA began managing permanent and temporary email records in an accessible electronic format in 2016. We submitted NA Form 1005 to NARA for approval on November 4, 2016.
  • 2014 – In preparation to manage records electronically, SSA began work to consolidate and update record schedules by drafting Flexible schedules.
Goal II: Expand Participation
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Use crowdsourcing tools and techniques to expand public participation and collaboration opportunities on our program policy developments, strategic planning, and other program initiatives Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See references below to IdeaScale engagements, as well as the use of social media to encourage participation.
  • September 2018 – National Disability Forum IdeaScale engagement about Acquiring and using Electronic Medical Records.
  • April 2018 – National Disability Forum IdeaScale engagement for Financial Independence: Directing the Management of One’s Social Security Benefits.
  • February 2018 – Social Security employees participated in new Innovation.gov + Better Government Movement meetings. This new effort expands on traditional crowdsourcing ideas and methods.
  • July 2017 – For the National Disability Forum on Disability Best Practices, we used SSA’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and IdeaScale to increase visibility of the key disability policy topics, and encourage participation from attendees throughout the country.
  • June 2017 – We continue to use two-way feedback, crowdsourcing tool, IdeaScale, to host the Open Data Project, as a way to engage with internal and external data researchers.
  • March 2017 – For the National Disability Forum on Ticket to Work Regulations, we will use SSA’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and IdeaScale to increase visibility of the key disability policy topics, and encourage participation from attendees throughout the country.
  • September 2016 – Using crowdsourcing tool IdeaScale, launched public engagement on the topic of "Exploring Opportunities to Advance the Disability Program through Telehealth and Telemedicine" in anticipation of the National Disability Forum held on Oct 27, 2016. IdeaScale engages stakeholders to provide strategic comments and possible solutions.
Promote the feedback mechanisms we have in place for gathering information for our programs and services Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA uses a variety of public websites and online tools to provide access and methods for public input on our programs and services. See Crowdsourcing and Participation Opportunities.
  • August 2018 - The annual meetings of the Disability Research Consortium (DRC) and Retirement Research Consortium (RRC) brought together SSA employees – as well as policy analysts and policymakers from other agencies and organizations – with DRC and RRC researchers from Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research, the Michigan Retirement Research Center, the National Bureau of Economic Research, and Mathematica Policy Research. The researchers presented their most recent, policy-relevant research on Social Security, disability, and retirement. They answered questions from the audience.
  • April 2018 - SSA released a set of FAQs to assist SSA employees with understanding the crowdsourcing site, Engage SSA.
  • February 2018 - We updated the Crowdsourcing and Participation Opportunities webpage.
  • August 2017 – We actively promoted a National Disability Forum held on August 1 which focused on “Serving Individuals with Disabilities: Best Practices and the Modern Day Workforce”. At this session, we gathered ideas and feedback from stakeholders interested in this topic.
  • April 2017 – Social Security conducted its first ever National Social Security Month (NSSM), a month dedicated to educating the public about who we are, why we exist, and the programs and services available to help our customers. The NSSM activities and events allowed Social Security to communicate about all things related to Social Security program, with a focus of expanding knowledge and understanding of Social Security’s importance to the public. We provided resources and tools for retirement planning, and leveraged NSSM as a springboard for speaking engagements, exhibits, conferences, events at local venues (i.e. housing units, libraries, and assisted living facilities), etc.
  • April 2017 – Following the National Disability Forum on April 5, 2017, we opened IdeaScale for comments for two weeks to allow stakeholders to provide comments they could not share during the National Disability Forum. This post-Forum comment period also gives stakeholders the opportunity to submit feedback after they have reviewed the presentations and considered the discussion.
  • October 2016 – Following each National Disability Forum, we open IdeaScale for comments for two weeks to allow stakeholders to provide comments they could not share during the National Disability Forum. This post-Forum comment period also gives stakeholders the opportunity to submit feedback after they have reviewed the presentations and considered the discussion.
Provide the public with the opportunity to comment on our proposed regulations Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See Regulations.gov for information about collections and proposed rules.
  • SSA provides the public with opportunity to comment on proposed regulations through the Regulations.gov portal.
Use focus group and usability testing with members of the public before launching online services Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA’s User Experience Group (UXG) worked with SSA to successfully launch new services at my Social Security where there are a number of high-volume online components.
  • Throughout FY2018 - SSA designed and sent surveys to participants of our public meetings, including our National Disability Forums (NDF) and vendor meetings on information technology.
  • April 2018 – SSA employees set up usability testing with members of the public at Howard County, MD libraries.
  • September 2017 – Click-to-Chat will use a soft-launch, in FY 2018, to gather feedback from my Social Security customers, and test usability. The soft launch will only be accessible to 10% of the total population of my Social Security customers, and will allow for adjustments of the new online service before a wider release and marketing efforts are implemented.
Goal III: Increase Collaboration
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Collaborate with external agencies to promote SSA services Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    During the life of the two-year Open Government Plan, the Social Security Administration’s Acting Commissioner, Agency executives and staff conducted approximately 1,500 events and activities with external partners and the public. These events and activities included conferences, conference calls, meetings, speaking engagements, panel discussions, Facebook Lives, webinars, and telethons. SSA utilizes these interactions to connect with external partners such as government (federal, state, local, and tribal) agencies, national advocacy groups and organizations, and key influencers to share information about our programs, policies, and initiatives. At the same time, we promoted our services and service delivery options. See below for examples.
  • September 2018 – The Icon project is a collaboration with various external agencies and local community organizations (such as libraries, veteran’s centers, retirement homes, etc.) where partner sites install the SSA Express Icon. The Icon is a portal that links to the most commonly used online services on SSA.gov. Currently, there are approximately 1,000 partnering sites.
  • August 2018 – SSA participated in the 2018 Internal Revenue Service (IRS) National Tax Forums. The IRS holds nationwide tax forums in five locations across the country each year. Each forum is three days and includes networking, training, and informational sessions on the latest tax law information for businesses. The IRS provided a complimentary exhibit table for Social Security, where agency staff shared information and conducted my Social Security sign ups. In addition, agency staff conducted a presentation on “What Tax Professionals Should Know About Social Security”. Over 2,000 tax and payroll professionals attended the event.
  • July 2018 – SSA participated in the 2018 National Council on Independent Living (NCIL) in Washington, DC. NCIL is the longest-running national organization for people with disabilities. We hosted an exhibit booth where we distributed publications, promoted the agency’s online services, and conducted my Social Security sign-ups. We had about 85 visitors, many of whom asked questions about working and receiving disability benefits. The visitors included people with physical and mental disabilities, service providers, and staff from independent living centers.
  • June 2018 – SSA worked with the Alliance of Information and Referral Systems (AIRS) to promote information about Social Security services for seniors and people with disabilities.
  • January 2018 – SSA met with AARP's representative for multicultural engagement regarding how SSA can provide information about SSA services to the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.
  • September 2017 – SSA hosted a Facebook Live event featuring Social Security Chief Actuary, Steve Goss, titled, The Future of Social Security, Part 2. Mr. Goss highlighted key points in the latest Social Security Trustees’ Report, provided insight on the future of Social Security, and took live questions. The event had a reach of about 28,000 and generated over 11,200 views. The video had about 950 reactions (comments, shares, and likes) from the public.
  • August 2017 – SSA met the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) about our data exchange agreements on benefit verifications. We discussed opportunities to increase the number of verifications done through data exchanges.
  • April 2017 – Social Security conducted its first ever National Social Security Month (NSSM), a month dedicated to educating the public about who we are, why we exist, and the programs and services available to help our customers. The NSSM activities and events allowed Social Security to communicate about all things related to Social Security program, with a focus of expanding knowledge and understanding of Social Security’s importance to the public. We provided resources and tools for retirement planning, and leveraged NSSM as a springboard for speaking engagements, exhibits, conferences, events at local venues (i.e. housing units, libraries, and assisted living facilities), etc.
  • March 2017 – SSA met with the Maryland Family Administration to promote SSA services. They agreed to post a link to my Social Security on their website and place the SSA Express Icon on self-service lab computers.
Collaboration with American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) populations Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    In addition to regular outreach to tribal communities, SSA participated in national conferences.
  • September 2018 – SSA participated in the 2018 National Indian Council on Aging Conference in Temecula, CA. Acting Commissioner Nancy Berryhill delivered remarks at the conference. In addition, agency staff promoted Social Security online services, conducted my Social Security sign ups, and distributed publications. Approximately 1,000 people attended this event.
  • September 2018 – SSA committed to the Department of Justice (DoJ) that it will participate in the Rural and Tribal Justice Summit which will be held in November 2018 in Iowa. The summit will highlight innovative practices, available resources, and ongoing initiatives to enhance the ability of elder justice professionals to more robustly respond to elder abuse and support victims in rural and tribal communities. SSA's Acting Commissioner is scheduled to speak.
  • June 2018 – SSA hosted an exhibit table at the 2018 Society of American Indian Government Employees 15th Annual National Training Program with an exhibit table in Green Bay, Wisconsin. About 200 people attended this event, including Acting Social Security Commissioner Nancy Berryhill. We promoted Social Security online services and distributed publications, including the updated Tribal Benefits Coordinator Guide.
  • May 2018 – SSA hosted a national webinar on representative payee issues for tribal benefit coordinators. Over 100 advocates of the tribal community participated in the call.
  • April 2018 – SSA shared more than 700 copies of the Tribal Benefits Coordinator Guide with tribal communities.
  • February 2018 – SSA exhibited at United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) Sovereignty Protection Fund Impact Week in Arlington, VA. We shared the updated AIAN Map information and conducted my Social Security account signups. We also distributed pamphlets and resources with conference attendees. Approximately 250 people attended the conference.
  • January 2018 – SSA attended a meeting with the National Congress of American Indians’ (NCAI) in Washington, DC. We met with their external affairs staff to discuss upcoming conferences and collaborative outreach opportunities.
  • August 2017 – SSA promoted VSD services and provided training to tribal communities in various states.
  • November 2016 – Video Service Delivery Centers (VSD) have been set up in some communities to help make Social Security services more accessible in rural and reservation communities. AIAN populations can find VSD locations using this interactive AIAN map.
Develop SSA videos to share information with the public Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See examples below.
  • September 2018 – SSA has released many videos during the last 2 years. The information presented frequently involves collaborative efforts with other governmental organizations. In 2018, SSA worked with the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to highlight Elder Abuse issues. See the Facebook Live event; Facebook Live: How You Can Help Prevent Elder Abuse. Previously, SSA conducted Facebook Live events on the Treasury Department, Medicare, and SSA 2017 Trustees Report, Facebook Live: The Future of Social Security - Part 1.
Encourage and increase the use of internal knowledge-sharing databases as a way to increase collaboration and employee engagement Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA developed a number of new engagement opportunities and knowledge sharing databases. This includes Engage SSA where community summary information is available based upon employee collaboration and engagement. SkillsConnect continues as a talent-sharing program for virtual projects.
  • August 2018 - Redesigned the SSA Intranet's Employee Dashboard highlighting links to the improved Office of Human Resources search functionality and Office of Learning employee trainings.
  • March 2018 - Trained SSA employees about the database used to maintain the SSA's enterprise data inventory.
  • February 2018 - Engage SSA provides employee engagement.
  • June 2017 – As of June, 59 projects have been posted to the SkillsConnect site. These projects offer 178 employees the opportunity to share their skills across the agency. As of June 9, 2017, employees had filed 774 applications and 118 employees had been selected to participate on projects.
  • March 2017 – Since the agency-wide launch on September 30, 2016, 41 projects have been posted to the SkillsConnect site. These projects offer 129 employees the opportunity to share their skills across the agency. As of March 2, 2017, employees had filed 465 applications and 82 employees had been selected to participate on projects.
  • November 2016 – SSA won second place for the Human Capital Management for Government's (HCMG) "Public Sector Innovation Award for the 21st Century," which recognized SkillsConnect as an innovative approach to mobilizing talent to accomplish important agency work.
  • September 2016 – SkillsConnect program launched agency-wide to an additional 40,000 employees.
Conduct a Proof of Concept at various third-party locations using stand up kiosks with the Social Security Express Customer Service Stations. If successful, this concept would be piloted at other businesses targeting the same partners as the Icon Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See below.
  • December 2016 – The Customer Service Station Proof of Concept (POC) ended on 12/31/2016. We have decommissioned all 7 kiosks. Although there were some technical issues during the POC, overall 96% of our customers were satisfied with their experience. We are currently conducting market research and planning for a possible expansion to a pilot contingent upon available funding and executive concurrence.
Goal IV: Internalize Open Government Principles
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Give open government honor awards for employees to recognize achievements in advancing open government principles Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Executives will determine if future awards are warranted.
  • January 2017 – FY2016 awards were given in Jan 2017 for efforts in transparency and excellence in collaboration.
Post our Open Government Progress Report showing progress made against the commitments in our plan Completed
Flagship: National Disability Forum (NDF)
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Continue to conduct National Disability Forum meetings Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    With the insight gained through the NDF and use of IdeaScale, we:
    • Learned of new conditions to add to our List of Compassionate Allowances, making quicker determinations for claimants,
    • Identified the need to provide beneficiaries with additional guidance in directing management of their benefits, and
    • Gained valuable feedback on how to improve the acquisition of medical evidence and expand partnerships to increase our use of health IT at SSA.
    Detailed activities beginning in October 2016 are below.
  • August 2018 – The National Disability Forum (NDF) was held on August 22, 2018 in Washington DC. The title of the forum was "Acquiring and Using Electronic Medical Records". This forum focused on best practices associated with the acquisition and usage of medical records, common challenges with those records and the future of electronic health information. SSA was joined by representatives from Legal Services of New Jersey, Office of the National Coordinator (ONC), Sequoia Project, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, Kaiser Permanente, Guidehouse, and Cerner. Over 260 people participated in the event. See below for a discussion of the new technology that made remote participation possible.
  • May 2018 – We held the Financial Independence: Directing the Management of One’s Social Security Benefits on April 18, 2018. Over 50 people attended in person and over 70 participated via conference call.
  • March 2018 – We will hold a National Disability Forum on Wednesday, April 18, 2018. The subject will be Financial Independence: Directing the Management of One’s Social Security Benefits. For more information and to register for the event go to the National Disability Forum Homepage.
  • November2017 – We held a National Disability Forum on the topic of “Compassionate Allowances and Rare Diseases.” Approximately 43 people attended in person and more than 100 joined via conference call.
  • August 2017 – We hosted a National Disability Forum on the topic “Serving Individuals with Disabilities: Best Practices and the Modern Day Workforce”.
  • April 2017 – We hosted a National Disability Forum on the topic "Exploring Potential Changes to the Ticket to Work Regulations".
  • October 2016 – Hosted National Disability Forum on the topic "Exploring Opportunities to Advance the Disability Program through Telehealth and Telemedicine".
Continue to use public facing venues like IdeaScale, bulletins, and surveys, before any meeting to gain input on specific issues Complete
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See the end of plan report above.
  • August 2018 – The IdeaScale for the August, 22 2018 NDF was posted.
  • March 2018 – A new IdeaScale engagement for Financial Independence: Directing the Management of One’s Social Security Benefits is available at National Disability Forum IdeaScale.
  • November 2017 – We used IdeaScale to gather ideas for the “Compassionate Allowances and Rare Diseases” National Disability Forum.
  • August 2017 – For the National Disability Forum on Disability Best Practices, we used SSA’s Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and IdeaScale to increase visibility of the key disability policy topics, and encourage participation from attendees throughout the country.
  • March 2017 – For the National Disability Forum on Ticket to Work Regulations, we used SSA's Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and IdeaScale to increase visibility of the key disability policy topics, and encourage participation from attendees throughout the country.
  • October 2016 – For the National Disability Forum on Telehealth/Telemedicine, we used SSA's Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blog, and IdeaScale to increase visibility of the key disability policy topics, and encourage participation from attendees throughout the country.
Increase the number of organizations and individuals participating in discussions and meetings Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See the end of plan report above.
  • August 2018 – This was the first time live streaming was used for the NDF. We used sign language interpreters who were captured on camera so that live stream participants with hearing impairments could participate in real time. This allowed organizations and individuals across the country to see the proceedings and interact via email. For vision impaired individuals, we offered Braille and large print materials. To view the recording, click Acquiring and Using Electronic Medical Records.
  • August 2018 – The Office of Communication’s existing database of SSA’s Disability program stakeholders has grown to 3,240.
  • September 2017 – The National Disability Forum covers different topics related to disability and adds new stakeholders interested in disability topics. Each new stakeholder from the National Disability Forum is added to the Office of Communication’s existing database of SSA’s Disability program stakeholders. Currently, this database holds over 2,800 stakeholders.
  • April 2017 – The National Disability Forum covers different topics related to disability and adds new stakeholders interested in disability topics. Each new stakeholder from the National Disability Forum is added to the Office of Communication's existing database of SSA's Disability program stakeholders. Currently, this database holds over 2,200 stakeholders.
  • December 2016 – The National Disability Forum covers different topics related to disability and adds new stakeholders interested in disability topics. Each new stakeholder from the National Disability Forum is added to the Office of Communication's existing database of SSA's Disability program stakeholders. Currently, this database holds over 650 stakeholders.
  • December 2016 – In 2016, approximately 200 disability advocates, benefit-paying states, federal agencies, and private industry representatives participated in each forum.
Major Initiative: Customer Engagement Tools (CET)
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Implement Click-to-Chat feature to my Social Security Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Click-to-Chat was successfully launched, and is in use.
  • August 2018 – Click-to-Chat was successfully released to 10% of my Social Security customers on Monday, June 25, 2018. This new service is available to the public from 9:00am through 5:00pm E.S.T. To prepare for this release, the Office of Customer Support (OCS) trained agency technicians within various Teleservice Centers and Workload Support Units to answer these chats. Chat requests are routed to the appropriate area for assistance based on the topic selected (i.e. Retirement/ Medicare, Online Application, Account Assistance, Disability/ Supplemental Security Income, or Other Issue). Click-to-Chat features various formatting tools (e.g. spell check, bold, italics, etc.) and displays the customer’s position in queue until an agent is available to assist them. On Monday, August 6, 2018, we expanded the availability of Click-to-Chat to 30% of my Social Security customers. We plan to expand the availability of this application incrementally until all my Social Security customers have the ability to chat.
  • February 2018 – While Click-to-Chat is still scheduled for release in FY 2018, the training for this effort has been postponed. The Office of Customer Support (OCS) who is leading the training for this effort, prefers to conduct employee training 1-2 months before the implementation of this application. Additionally, when Click-to-Chat is initially released it will only be available to 10% of My Social Security users to allow for a controlled rollout of this application. After this is successfully implemented, we will evaluate various factors, including: public usage and agency staffing when making decisions regarding when and how to best roll this out to all My Social Security users.
  • Fiscal Year 2018 – Click-to-Chat is scheduled to launch in FY 2018. Recent progress includes beginning employee training to help SSA technicians anticipate and respond to the different types of chat inquiries we expect. New design features were approved to allow customers to type their chat message in the font, style, size, and color they prefer. This new communication channel for supporting SSA customers will be available through the Dynamic Help widget behind my Social Security.
  • April 2017 – Click-to-Chat is progressing toward a scheduled launch in July 2017. Recent progress includes drafting employee training materials to help SSA technicians anticipate and respond to the different types of chat inquiries we expect. New design features were approved to allow customers to type their chat message in the font, style, size, and color they prefer. This new communication channel for supporting SSA customers will be available through the Dynamic Help widget behind my Social Security.
Develop and implement Click-to-Video and Screen Sharing features for my Social Security as an extension of the dynamic help widget Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA decided not to implement Click-to-Video or Screen Sharing in FY 2018.
  • February 2018 - After meeting with the Information Technology Investment Review Board (ITIRB) to discuss the Customer Engagement Tools (CET) investment, the Click-to-Video and Screen features were not approved within the CET investment. Due to CET integration with another future Operations acquisition (i.e. Next-Gen Telephony Project), the agency decided to approve the CET investment through FY 2019 focusing on other CET efforts, such as Click-to-Chat. At this time, we plan to regroup and resubmit the Click-to-Video and Screen Sharing features for ITIP and ITIRB consideration for funding.
  • September 2017 – The Click-to-Video and Screen Sharing features have been submitted for investment board review within SSA's internal Information Technology Investment Process (ITIP). High level business process diagrams have been created incorporating Click-to-Video, and Screen Sharing ability will enhance service for online customer inquiries. These documents will help key stakeholders within SSA identify how these new technologies may best be leveraged to enhance the customer engagement tools on my Social Security.
Major Initiative: Data Exchanges
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Work with the regional prison coordinators on outreach efforts aimed at requesting prisoner information from institutions as per the legislation September 2019
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Implementation was delayed due to funding issues.
  • August 2018 – Outreach efforts are on hold pending resources to support needed systems changes. Work on outreach efforts aimed at requesting the additional prisoner information from prisoner institutions will resume when resources are available.
  • March 2018 – Outreach efforts are on hold pending resources to support needed systems changes. Work on outreach efforts aimed at requesting the additional prisoner information from prisoner institutions will resume when resources are available.
  • September 2017 – Continue to work on outreach efforts aimed at requesting additional prisoner information from prisoner institutions per the legislation.
  • December 2016 – Continue to work on outreach efforts aimed at requesting additional prisoner information from prisoner institutions per the legislation.
Continue to grow the Federal Data Exchange Community of Practice Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Meetings continue. See below.
  • August 2018 – The Data Exchange Community of Practice (DXCOP) continues to meet bi-monthly to identify, explore, and find ways to overcome common data exchange obstacles. We provide member agency presentations of their experiences, programs, and best practices while exploring data exchange challenges and potential solutions.
  • March 2018 – The Data Exchange Community of Practice (DXCOP) continues to meet bi-monthly to identify, explore, and find ways to overcome common data exchange obstacles. We provide member agency presentations of their experiences, programs, and best practices while exploring data exchange challenges and potential solutions.
  • September 2017 – The Data Exchange Community of Practice (DXCOP) continues to meet bi-monthly to identify, explore, and find ways to overcome common data exchange obstacles. We provide member agency presentations of their experiences, programs, and best practices while exploring data exchange challenges and potential solutions.
  • November 2016 – An SSA official provided a presentation to the White House Data Cabinet about the federal Data Exchange Community of Practice. SSA has been an organizer and facilitator in establishing this new group.
Continue to grow the State Community of Excellence (CoE) Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA provides information on this initiative at these public State Data Exchange CoE websites: Work with many States continues. See below.
  • August 2018 – Although the State Community of Excellence (DXCoE) has not met this year, the Office of Data Exchange will continue to host these meetings as needs arise.
  • March 2018 – SSA and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) signed a data exchange agreement that allows states to use SSA data transmitted via CMS’s HUB to make TANF and SNAP eligibility determinations in connection with an Insurance Affordability Program. Three states (Pennsylvania, Oregon and Montana) have signed an agreement with SSA to take advantage of this expanded data use. We are working with the states to expand this data sharing to improve the states’ business processes. About 21 states have expressed interest, but not all are ready to proceed at this time.
  • September 2017 – SSA and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) signed a data exchange agreement that allows states to use SSA data transmitted via CMS's HUB to make TANF and SNAP eligibility determinations in connection with an Insurance Affordability Program. This effort will continue in 2018.
Major Initiative: Analytics Center of Excellence (ACE)
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Complete at least three analytics projects each year; and deliver insights to achieve agency priorities and goals Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    In FY 2018, ACE completed 14 analytics projects within the disability portfolio, 3 about continuous improvement, 3 for processing center workloads, and 2 to support human resource activities.
  • May 2018 – ACE is using INSIGHT to pilot natural language processing.
  • April 2018 – ACE developed an analytical model that identifies anomalous patterns in our disability data.
  • June 2017 – ACE has delivered on 3 more analytics projects between Dec 2016 and June 2017.
  • December 2016 – Analytics projects completed for 2016.
Continue and expand advanced analytics training conducted by GRA Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Analytics training has expanded at SSA to include many components, different tools, and new platforms to advance self-service decision making.
  • April 2018 – ACE continues to expand and partner with internal components on management information that can be used for advanced analytics at SSA.
  • March 2017 – ACE Developed and piloted an Analytics course exclusively designed for executives titled “Executive GRA - Data-Driven Decisions: An Executive's View of Analytics”.
  • December 2016 – Completed 5 training Sessions in 2016.
Establish an internal and external advanced analytics community of interest and practice to enable knowledge sharing Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    See below for examples of events that have taken place.
  • August 2018 - ACE held the "Social Media and Web Mining for Public Services of Smart Cities" event and provided a video-on-demand recording so that new users can continue to learn from this event.
  • July 2018 - ACE provides video-on-demand of Data Science Technology Exchanges (DSTE) events.
  • June 2018 - ACE hosted a Data Science Technology Exchanges (DSTE) event about SSA's enterprise data warehouse and tools.
  • March 2018 - ACE continues to host the Data Science Technology Exchanges (DSTE).
  • ACE has hosted 9 Data Science Technology Exchanges (DSTE) since January 2016. The DSTE covers a wide range of advanced analytics topics including:
    • January 2016 - RFC Form Data Collection using Python by Julia Porcino (Office of Disability Adjudication Review/National Institute of Health),
    • March 2016 - Natural Language Processing and the INSIGHT Algorithm by Kurt Glaze (Office of Appellate Operations),
    • May 2016 - Analyzing Office of Disability Adjudication Review’s Hearing Offices’ Performance: Multi-stage Data Envelopment Analysis by Larry Tang (Office of Disability Adjudication Review/National Institute of Health),
    • August 2016 - Using Natural Language Processing to Extract Clinical Concepts from Medical Evidence by Jeff Visakowitz and John Petersam (Office of Disability Systems/Accenture),
    • October 2016 - Social Security Solvency and Knowing Your Data and its Limitations by Steve Goss (Office of the Chief Actuary),
    • December 2016 - Text Analytics at BLS by Alex Measure (Bureau of Labor Statistics,)
    • February 2017 - Data-Driven Discovery of Models (D3M) by Wade Shen (Department of Defense/Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency),
    • April 2017 - Fraud Analytics by Devin Fensterheim (Office of Anti-Fraud Programs), and
    • June 2017 - Smart Grid Balancing by Sudip Bhattacharjee (U.S. Census).
  • ACE will continue to engage and host these knowledge sharing activities of advanced analytics.
    • ACE will continue to publish periodic newsletters to engage advanced analytics community in SSA.
    • ACE is participating and contributing to the Federal Data Cabinet - a federal work group that serves as the principle Community of Practice for data professionals from across the federal government to share proven practices and critical insights, advance data-driven management, maximize the use of the data, and enhance problem-solving throughout government. The Data Cabinet had 3 working groups – Data Talent, Data Policy, and Data Governance, but has now established a fourth, the Data Analytics working group whose objective will be to foster development of data analytics as a discipline tied to agency mission, and follow guiding principles to foster collaboration, increase capabilities, drive decisions and facilitate product and service development.
  • ACE is participating in the activities of the Data Analytics working group in lieu of establishing another external advanced analytics community of Interest.
  • ACE will collaborate and partner with other advanced analytics community both internally and externally.
  • December 2016 – The Analytics Center of Excellence provided a presentation to the Federal Committee on Statistical Methodology, titled "Necessary Changes: Updating Workforce Skills and Management Styles for Work with Hybrid Data".
  • November 2016 – Established Internal Community of Interest.
Complete its staffing, internal training, and organizational startup activities Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    ACE was established as part of the Office of the Chief Strategic Officer. As part of a reorganization, ACE is working as of September 2018 within Analytics, Review, and Oversight.
Establish an Analytics Maturity Model and assess high-level agency analytics maturity Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    The Advanced Analytics Capability Maturity Model (A2CM2) was completed and presented to SSA in May 2016.
Major Initiative: Work Incentives Planning and Assistance Program (WIPA)
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Continue to inform beneficiaries about WIPA services and Social Security’s (SSA) efforts to support returning to work Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    SSA continues to inform beneficiaries about WIPA services. Additional information about WIPA is available at: Work Incentives Planning and Assistance
  • June 2018 – The 82 WIPAs continue to inform beneficiaries about work incentives and SSA’s return to work efforts. One grantee chose not to continue with the program.
  • February 2018 – The 83 WIPAs continue to inform beneficiaries about work incentives and SSA’s return to work efforts.
  • August 2017 – Data on beneficiaries served by 83 WIPAs has been reported to SSA annually; 2016 report submitted in December, 2016.
Continue to track the performance measures established for the WIPA projects and the beneficiaries they serve Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Data has been gathered and SSA will make its regular 2018 report before the end of the calendar year.
  • December 2018 – Tentative Action - Program analysis report with data through May 2018 is expected.
  • May 2018 – Program database for the WIPA program discontinued.
  • December 2017 – Program analysis report submitted. Approximately 65 percent of the approximately 45,000 beneficiaries served July 2016 to June 2017 reported that they were currently working or had a job offer pending. Another 24.62 percent were currently looking for employment. Nearly 90 percent of beneficiaries had an identified employment goal after receiving services from the WIPA project.
  • August 2017 – Program data is reported annually. Analysis and report submission of annual program performance and beneficiary findings is planned for December 2017.
  • December 2016 – Collection and analysis of yearly program data is underway. Analysis of program outcomes is planned for 2017.
Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security Program (PABSS)
Continue to inform beneficiaries about Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) services and other agency efforts to support returning to work Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Data has been gathered and SSA will make its regular 2018 report before the end of the calendar year. Additional information about PABSS is available at: Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security
  • August 2018 – Data on beneficiaries served by 57 PABSS grants/projects has been reported to SSA annually; 2018 report expected in December 2018.
  • November 2017 – Data on beneficiaries served by 57 PABSS grants/projects has been reported to SSA annually; 2017 report submitted in December 2017.
  • October 2017 – Data on beneficiaries served by 57 PABSS grants/projects has been reported to SSA annually; 2016 report submitted in November 2016.
Major Initiative: Health Information Technology (HealthIT)
Milestone Projected Completion Date Status
Continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2016, 2017, and 2018, to include additional medical providers and the Department of Veterans Affairs Completed
  • September 2018 – Outreach continued.
    End of plan report:
    • 139 partners,
    • 17,032 participating providers, and
    • HealthIT repo published to GitHub account.
  • March 2018 – We have a total of 100 partners with 13,789 participating providers in all 50 States plus 5 U.S. Territories. In addition, DoD and VA have international facilities. We plan to continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2018 and 2019, to include additional medical providers.
  • September 2017 – We have a total of 80 partners with 10,881 participating providers in all 50 States plus 5 U.S. Territories. In addition, DoD and VA have international facilities. We plan to continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2018 and 2019, to include additional medical providers.
  • June 2017 – We have a total of 76 partners with 10,595 participating providers in all 50 States plus 5 U.S. Territories. In addition, DoD and VA have international facilities. We plan to continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2017 and 2018, to include additional medical providers.
  • February 2017 – We have a total of 65 partners with 9,176 participating providers in all 50 States plus the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. We plan to continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2017 and 2018, to include additional medical providers.
  • November 2016 – We have a total of 57 partners with 7,288 participating providers in 49 States plus the District of Columbia, Guam, and Puerto Rico. We plan to continue our outreach efforts in FYs 2017 and 2018, to include additional medical providers.
  • November 2016 – Completed a national rollout with the Department of Veterans Affairs on the eHealth Exchange.
Expand connections on the eHealth Exchange Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Expectations achieved.
  • March 2018 – In FY 18, we expect that 20 percent of initial disability claims will contain health IT medical evidence. We are in various stages of actively onboarding additional healthcare organizations, expanding our current partner facilities, and conducting discussions with healthcare organizations and vendors to partner with SSA through the eHealth Exchange.
  • September 2017 – In FY 17, we expect that 12 percent of initial disability claims will contain health IT medical evidence. We are in various stages of actively onboarding additional healthcare organizations, expanding our current partner facilities, and conducting discussions with healthcare organizations and vendors to partner with SSA through the eHealth Exchange.
Participate on government-wide health IT policy and standards setting advisory panels, workgroups, and task forces Completed
  • September 2018 –
    End of plan report:
    Continued participating with the Blue Button 2.0 Developer Conference.
  • March 2018 – Participation on the Office of the National Coordinator’s Federal Health IT Advisory Council continues.
  • September 2017 – We continue to participate on the Office of the National Coordinator’s Federal Health IT Advisory Council that coordinates federal health IT policy decisions and serves to address high-priority issues that impact the evolution of the nation’s health IT infrastructure.