Three top members of the House Ways and Means Committee want the Social Security Administration (SSA) to explain exactly why, “At a time when millions of Americans are out of work and having to do more with less,” it decided to put on a taxpayer-funded $700,000 motivational conference at the prestigious Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa.
On July 13, ABC News reported that along with some very nice rooms, the Arizona Biltmore conference included “airfare, hotel entertainment, dancers, motivational speakers, and food,” for 675 of the agency’s top managers.
The SSA’s good times sat badly with Ways and Means members Reps. John Tanner (D-TN), Sam Johnson (R-TX) and John Linder (R-GA), who fired off a strong letter to SSA Commissioner Michael Astrue.
In their letter, the lawmakers gave SSA until July 17 to provide Congress with an accounting of, among other things:
- All conference costs paid by the taxpayers, including travel, rooms, meals, speakers, entertainment, conference room rental and equipment charges; and
- The process SSA used to select the conference location, including whether government contracting rules were followed and whether the hotel housing the conference was the lowest bidder.
- An accounting of all similar SSA conferences for the last five years.
In addition, the lawmakers asked the SSA for a similar accounting of its recent purchase of new video-conferencing units costing $24,000 each for its hearing offices.
Wrote the lawmakers, “At a time when millions of Americans are out of work and having to do more with less, and when the SSA has received significant new funding to address near record backlogs after longstanding funding requests made before our Subcommittees, it is essential that great care be taken to use administrative funding wisely, in a way that brings the most value to the American people SSA serves.”
Also See:
Government Web Site Getting $18 Million Upgrade
Government Funds Studies to Study Government Funding
Applying for Social Security Retirement Benefits
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