[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 100 (Friday, June 29, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1185-E1187]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        THE WIPA AND PABSS CONTINUATION OF SERVICES ACT OF 2012

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. XAVIER BECERRA

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, June 29, 2012

  Mr. BECERRA. Mr. Speaker, today I am introducing, along with my 
colleagues, the ``WIPA and PABSS Continuation of Services Act of 
2012,'' which would support Americans with severe disabilities who want 
to attempt to

[[Page E1186]]

work and potentially reduce their need for Social Security Disability 
Insurance (DI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability 
benefits. It does so by ensuring the continuation of two important 
community-based programs that assist individuals who wish to transition 
off of benefits by seeking and maintaining paid employment.
  These programs have in the past been extended with overwhelming 
bipartisan support. Unfortunately, due to lack of action by the 
majority, the programs are today on the verge of expiring, and 
disability beneficiaries who want to try to work will be without the 
assistance they need to move ahead. We have worked extensively to find 
another solution, but we have reached an impasse.
  I have received many letters, calls and emails of support for 
extending WIPA and PABSS. I'd like to submit three of these for 
inclusion in the Congressional Record--the endorsements of the bill by 
the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Task Force on Social 
Security, the National Disability Rights Network, and Easter Seals.
  Helping individuals with disabilities who want to return to work 
should not be a partisan issue. I encourage all Members to join me in 
support of this legislation, and I hope we can move forward promptly, 
so Americans who are disabled are not denied the support they need to 
return to work.
  More detailed information about WIPA and PABBS, and a description of 
the bill, follows.


           ``Work Incentives Planning and Assistance'' (WIPA)

  When Congress passed the Ticket to Work Act in 1999, we recognized 
that beneficiaries needed help in navigating the work rules for DI and 
SSI recipients, which can seem like a complex maze. The Social Security 
Administration (SSA) lacked and still lacks the resources to be able to 
provide the kind of individualized assistance beneficiaries often need 
in order to use the work incentives. Moreover, Congress recognized that 
beneficiaries may be reluctant to discuss with SSA their interest in 
trying to work despite the obstacles, out of fear that they may lose 
their benefits even if their attempt to work fails. WIPA was created to 
fill this vacuum.
  WIPA funds community-based programs through which trained benefit 
counselors help beneficiaries understand how to use the SSA work 
incentives. These counselors help people with disabilities in a number 
of ways:
  They provide basic information on how disability beneficiaries can 
test out their ability to obtain and sustain employment, using work 
incentive provisions in DI, SSI and other programs to transition off of 
benefits.
  They provide intensive, individualized guidance on the operation of 
these complex benefit rules and help beneficiaries report their 
earnings to SSA.
  Their guidance helps reduce the likelihood of overpayments and 
increase beneficiaries' confidence that their attempt to work will not 
risk a catastrophic loss of basic economic security.
  Recognizing the reality that SSA cannot always adjust benefit 
payments quickly in light of an individual's earnings, WIPA staff also 
counsel clients to set aside any overpaid benefits so that they are 
prepared to repay the overpayment once SSA processes their case.
  Since their inception in 2000, WIPA programs have served nearly half 
a million SSA beneficiaries. SSA currently funds 140 WIPA grantees, 
using $23 million included in its overall annual operating budget. 
However, funding for more than half of the WIPA programs will expire on 
June 30, 2012, unless Congress or SSA is able to extend them.


   ``Protection and Advocacy for Beneficiaries of Social Security'' 
                                (PABSS)

  During consideration of the Ticket to Work Act, Congress also 
recognized that Americans with disabilities who can work may need legal 
advocacy in order to be able to obtain a job or maintain employment, so 
that they eventually won't need disability benefits. The PABSS program 
was established to assist such Americans.
  PABSS organizations provide a wide range of services in support of 
work by persons with disabilities:
  An individual with an intellectual disability was told that the job-
coach assistance that enabled her to work would be terminated. Her 
local PABSS program intervened and the client was able to maintain her 
employment.
  A blind individual had accommodations in place at work, but a 
software change at his company made it impossible to use them to 
perform his job. The PABSS office helped the employer upgrade the 
accommodations and worked with the Commission for the Blind to split 
the cost.
  An individual with muscular dystrophy who lived in a rural area 
needed car repairs so he could get to his job. PABSS helped him resolve 
the issue with his warranty company so that his car could be repaired 
and he could keep his job.
  A disabled individual was able to drive a taxi, but needed prompt 
payment of his past-due DI benefits in order to purchase a vehicle. 
PABSS helped the client obtain his past-due benefits, and he was able 
to purchase the cab.
  PABSS operates through the protection and advocacy agencies in each 
state and territory. Since its inception, PABSS has assisted more than 
80,000 individuals. The $7 million annual cost is included in SSA's 
annual operating budget. Funding for PABSS expires September 30, 2012.


                        Status of WIPA and PABSS

  Both programs are permanently authorized, and SSA uses its annual 
appropriation for the agency's overall operating expenses to fund the 
grantees. To reinforce and clarify the underlying law, Congress has 
several times adopted legislation, with overwhelming bipartisan 
support, to extend SSA's specific authorization to use already-
appropriated operating budget funds. However, in the 112th Congress, 
the majority has not been able to pass an extension and has not 
introduced any legislation on this topic.
  We have been working to find an administrative solution, since the 
programs are permanently authorized in statute, but the issues are 
complicated. The simplest way to address the problem is to pass 
legislation.


        The WIPA and PABSS Continuation of Services Act of 2012

  The legislation would clarify the existing law by removing any 
ambiguity about SSA's authority to continue WIPA and PABSS grants. The 
bill removes a conflicting provision from the statute that authorized a 
particular amount and time frame for funding of the WIPA and PABSS 
programs. It leaves in place the underlying provisions that permanently 
establish the two programs, including the standing authorization for 
SSA to use its annual operating budget to fund them.
  I urge all Members to support this legislation. I hope that Congress 
will act promptly so that we can keep these programs in operation and 
continue to serve Americans with disabilities.

                                        National Disability Rights


                                                      Network,

                                                    June 27, 2012.
     Hon. Xavier Becerra,
     Ranking Member, House Ways and Means Social Security 
         Subcommittee, Washington, DC.
       Dear Ranking Member Becerra: On behalf of the National 
     Disability Rights Network (NDRN), and the 57 Protection and 
     Advocacy (P&A) agencies we represent in every state and 
     territory, I write to express our strong support for the 
     ``WIPA and PABSS Continuation of Services Act of 2012'' that 
     you are introducing.
       NDRN is the national membership association for the fifty-
     seven P&A agencies that run the Protection and Advocacy for 
     Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) program in every 
     state, the District of Columbia, and all U.S. territories. 
     Collectively, the P&A Network is the largest provider of 
     legally-based advocacy services for persons with disabilities 
     in the United States. NDRN strives to promote a society where 
     people with disabilities have equality of opportunity and are 
     able to participate fully in community life (including 
     employment) by exercising informed choice and self-
     determination.
       Every year, the PABSS program and the Work Incentives 
     Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program help thousands of 
     people with disabilities enter or stay in the workforce, and 
     to progress towards independence and economic self-
     sufficiency. Ensuring that these programs continue is 
     critical to addressing the high unemployment and low labor 
     participation rates for people with disabilities in this 
     country, while simultaneously helping beneficiaries of Social 
     Security disability benefits attain economic self-
     sufficiency.
       The PABSS program was created in 1999 as part of the Ticket 
     to Work and Work Incentives Act to protect the rights of 
     beneficiaries as they attempt to go to work. PABSS provides a 
     wide range of services to Social Security beneficiaries. This 
     includes information and advice about obtaining vocational 
     rehabilitation and employment services, information and 
     referral services on work incentives, and advocacy or other 
     legal services that a beneficiary needs to secure, maintain, 
     or regain gainful employment. Advocates funded by PABSS can 
     investigate and advocate to remedy complaints of employment 
     discrimination and other civil and legal rights violations. 
     These advocates also address deficiencies in entities 
     providing employment supports and services to beneficiaries.
       Authorization for both the PABSS and WIPA programs expired 
     on September 30, 2011. Fortunately, the Social Security 
     Administration (SSA) was able to set aside funding to sustain 
     the WIPA program until June 30, 2012, and the PABSS program 
     until September 30, 2012. However, without the passage of a 
     new authorization bill, like your legislation, the Social 
     Security Administration says that the funding for these 
     programs will end, which will cause many Social Security 
     recipients to go without services to help them return to 
     work. Additionally, layoffs and long-term disruptions to the 
     ability of grantees to provide these services will occur with 
     the loss of experienced personnel.
       Failure to reauthorize these programs will mean that the 
     following success story, which

[[Page E1187]]

     repeats around the country every day, will no longer be able 
     to occur:
       PABSS staff represented a 57-year-old female and SSDI 
     beneficiary, diagnosed with bilateral blindness and 
     orthopedic disabilities. She had not been employed since 
     losing her eyesight several years ago. She sought to return 
     to work, and applied for services from the Division of 
     Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR). DVR took her application, 
     disregarded her statutory presumptive eligibility, and sent 
     her a letter stating that she was ineligible for DVR services 
     because of ``transferable job skills.'' As a direct result of 
     PABSS advocacy, DVR reopened this woman's case, found her 
     presumptively eligible, conducted an appropriate 
     Comprehensive Assessment of Rehabilitation Needs, and 
     negotiated with her former employer to allow her to return to 
     her previous job. As a result, this woman has returned to the 
     workforce.
       Examples, such as the above story, demonstrate that losing 
     the PABSS program will hurt efforts to encourage people with 
     disabilities to return to work, which in turn leads to 
     further depletion of the Social Security Disability trust 
     fund.
       Again, thank you for introducing the ``WIPA and PABSS 
     Continuation of Services Act of 2012.'' We look forward to 
     working with you and your colleagues to enact this important 
     legislation into law.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Curt Decker,
     Executive Director.
                                  ____

                                           Consortium for Citizens


                                            With Disabilities,

                                                    June 28, 2012.
     Hon. Xavier Becerra,
     Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Social Security of the 
         Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC.
       Dear Ranking Member Becerra: The undersigned Co-Chairs of 
     the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) 
     Employment and Training and Social Security Task Forces are 
     writing to thank you and express our strong support for the 
     bill you are introducing to ensure the continuation of 
     services under the Work Incentives Planning and Assistance 
     (WIPA) program and the Protection and Advocacy for 
     Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) program. These two 
     critically important programs help beneficiaries of the 
     Social Security disability programs navigate the complex 
     program rules and work incentives and attain economic self-
     sufficiency. The PABSS program was created in 1999 to protect 
     the rights of beneficiaries as they attempt to go to work. 
     The WIPA program funds Community Work Incentive Coordinators 
     who help beneficiaries understand their options if they 
     choose to return to work. Without congressional action, these 
     programs will run out of funding soon causing many Social 
     Security disability beneficiaries to go without services to 
     help them return to work.
       As you know, both WIPA and PABSS are vital to help Social 
     Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security 
     Income beneficiaries who wish to return to the workforce. 
     WIPA grants go to local non-profits and other agencies to 
     support outreach, education and benefits planning. WIPA 
     grantees inform beneficiaries on the impact that employment 
     will have on their disability income and medical coverage, 
     and address many of the real fears that individuals have 
     about going to work at the risk of losing health coverage.
       PABSS provides a wide range of services to Social Security 
     beneficiaries. This includes information and advice about 
     obtaining vocational rehabilitation and employment services, 
     information and referral services on work incentives, and 
     advocacy or other legal services that a beneficiary needs to 
     secure, maintain, or regain gainful employment. Advocates 
     funded by PABSS can investigate and advocate to remedy 
     complaints of employment discrimination and other civil and 
     legal rights violations, and to address deficiencies in 
     entities providing employment supports and services to 
     beneficiaries.
       Thank you for your leadership in continuing the WIPA and 
     PABSS programs. We thoroughly support the continuation of 
     these vital programs for people with disabilities.
       Sincerely,
       Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Employment & 
     Training Task Force Co-Chairs:
     Alicia Epstein,
       NISH.
     Susan Goodman,
       National Down Syndrome Congress.
     Charles Harles,
       Inter-National Association of Business Industry and 
     Rehabilitation (I-NABIR).
     Susan Prokop,
       Paralyzed Veterans of America.
       Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities Social Security 
     Task Force Co-Chairs:
     Jeanne Morin,
       National Association of Disability Representatives.
     TJ Sutcliffe,
       The Arc of United States
     Ethel Zelenske,
       National Association of Social Security Claimants' 
     Representatives.
                                  ____



                                                 Easter Seals,

                                    Washington, DC, June 27, 2012.
     Hon. Xavier Becerra,
     Ranking Member, Social Security Subcommittee, Committee on 
         Ways and Means, Washington, DC.
       Dear Ranking Member Becerra: I am writing in support of 
     your legislative efforts to continue the Work Incentives 
     Planning and Assistance (WIPA) and Protection and Advocacy 
     for Beneficiaries of Social Security (PABSS) programs at the 
     Social Security Administration (SSA).
       WIPA and PABSS provide Social Security beneficiaries with 
     disabilities with access to reliable work incentive and 
     benefits information that can help lead to increased 
     employment and decreased reliability on public benefits. Four 
     Easter Seals affiliates provide work and benefits counseling 
     through WIPA to veterans, transition-to-work aged youth, and 
     other Social Security beneficiaries who are interested in 
     entering or returning to the workforce. Through the WIPA 
     program, Easter Seals affiliates have helped thousands of 
     individuals across the country, including many who are now 
     working, paying taxes and improving their futures.
       SSA has taken steps to wind down these programs by 
     informing current WIPA and PABSS grantees to stop taking new 
     clients and to finish their work with existing clients. 
     Service disruption will further discourage beneficiaries from 
     working--the very problem these programs were designed by 
     Congress to address. In addition, gaps in service will result 
     in the loss of experienced work incentive staff members that 
     are specially trained on the complexities of the current work 
     incentive system and rules. Shutting down and reopening WIPA 
     services will cost far more in terms of dollars and lost 
     expertise than a simple continuation. While Easter Seals 
     believes SSA has the authority and funding to continue WIPA 
     and PABSS through the end of fiscal year 2012, we strongly 
     support your legislative fix to make it absolutely clear and 
     to avoid future shutdowns of these programs.
       Easter Seals applauds your efforts to continue these 
     important programs for people with disabilities. We look 
     forward to working with you to move the bill through the 
     legislative process.
           Sincerely,
                                                    Katy Beh Neas,
     Senior Vice President, Government Relations.

                          ____________________