Why is this issue important?• In recent years,

SSA’s representative payment program has received attention from: – Congress– the Federal Courts– the media– advocacy groups

Reference MaterialsSocial Security

Program:• Understanding the

Benefits Pub No. 05-10024

• Retirement Benefits Pub No. 05-10035

• Disability Benefits Pub No. 05-10029

• Survivors Benefits Pub No. 05-10084

• Working While Disabled…How We Can HelpPub No. 05-10095

• Basic Facts Pub No. 5-10080

Reference MaterialsRepresentative Payment Program:. A Guide for

Representative Payees Pub No. 05-10076

. What You Should Know When A Payee Manages Your Money Pub No. 05-10097

. Guide for Organizational Payees Pub No. 17-013

Supplemental Security Income Program:•A Guide to SSI for Groups and Organizations Pub No. 05-11015•What You Need to Know When You Get SSI Pub No. 05-11011 •Understanding Supplemental Security Income Pub No. 17-008

Unit 1Unit 1

Unit 1Unit 1

Two major benefit programs

1.Retirement, Survivors & Disability Insurance (RSDI)

• Social insurance program

• Protects workers & their families from loss of earnings due to: retirement, death, or disability

Unit 1Unit 1

Two major benefit programs:

2.Supplemental Security Income

• Federal income maintenance

program

• Provides cash assistance for:

aged, blind, or disabled

people with little or no income

or resources

Unit 2Unit 2

Unit 2Unit 2

The representative payment program

Assists most vulnerable members of society who are:– young, or

– elderly, or

– disabled, and/or

– not capable of managing or directing someone else to

manage their finances.

Unit 2Unit 2

What is a representative payee?

• Person,

• Agency,

• Organization, or

• Institution selected to receive and manage

benefits on behalf of an incapable or legally

incompetent beneficiary.

Unit 2Unit 2

Who needs a representative payee?

• Children under age 18

• Beneficiaries determined legally incompetent

• Beneficiaries determined by SSA to be incapable of handling their money

Unit 2Unit 2

• For Social Security, having power-of-attorney or a joint bank accounting with the beneficiary is NOT the same thing as being a representative payee.

• Being a Social Security representative payee does not entitle an individual to manage any funds that aren’t Social Security or SSI payments.

Power-of-Attorney

Unit 3Unit 3

Unit 3Unit 3

Applying to be a representative payee

• Contact your local Social

Security office

• Face-to-face interview

– Documented proof of identity

– Current mailing & location

address

– Bank account information (for

direct deposit)

Unit 3Unit 3

How SSA selects a payee

Conduct a face-to-face interview to:

• Determine relationship to the beneficiary,

• Discuss qualifications,

• Discuss ability to carry out responsibilities of a rep payee,

• Explain rep payee duties,

• Explain reporting responsibilities, and

• Explain liability for not reporting changes.

Unit 3Unit 3

Requests for a change of payee

Social Security will:

• Contact the current payee

for his or her views

• Investigate allegations

raised about the current

payee’s suitability to serve

• Send a notice to the

current payee explaining

the change

Unit 4Unit 4

Unit 4Unit 4

Duties of an organizational representative payee

• Use the payments for the beneficiary’s

current needs & save the remainder.

• File accounting report.

• Notify Social Security when the

beneficiary is no longer your responsibility

Unit 4Unit 4

Duties of an organizational representative payee

• Report all required events

• File an annual report of earnings

• Notify SSA when you can no longer serve as payee

• Return any conserved funds if you stop being payee

Unit 4Unit 4

Other ways to help the beneficiary

• Meet regularly with him/her

• Establish a budget & discuss it with him/her

• Involve him/her in financial decisions

• Explain Social Security and SSI payments

• Explain expenses

• Make him/her aware of large retroactive payments

Unit 4Unit 4

Other ways to help the beneficiary

• Help him/her find needed services

• Help him/her fill out applications for needed services

• Help him/her get medical treatment, as needed

• Negotiate with landlords & others for best deals

• Help him/her file income tax returns

• Recommend new payee if you cannot continue to serve

Unit 5Unit 5

Unit 5Unit 5

Any changes in the life of a beneficiary that could change his or her benefit. For example:

•Death

•Marriage, divorce or annulment

•Change in school attendance

•Change of address/moves

•No longer has a child in care

•Convicted of a crime

•Medical condition improves

•Starts working

Unit 5Unit 5

•Receives worker’s

compensation

•Discharged from the hospital

•Household changes

•Leaves the United States

•Admitted to a hospital

•Income changes

•Resources change

Unit 5Unit 5

For children receiving SSI...

• You may be required to

obtain treatment for the

child’s disabling

condition when medically

necessary.

Unit 5Unit 5

The death of a beneficiary Social Security Benefits:• No check is payable for the month of death, even if

death occurs on the last day of the month

• Checks received for month of death or later must be returned

Supplemental Security Income:• Check is payable for month of death

• Checks that arrive after month of death must be returned

Unit 5Unit 5

An overpayment is any amount of money

received for any period that exceeds the total

amount of money that should have been paid.

Unit 6Unit 6

Unit 6Unit 6

How to spend a beneficiary’s money

• As a representative payee, you have the responsibility to use benefits received only for

the use & benefit of the beneficiary.• Current maintenance needs include:

– Food– Clothing– Medical Care– Housing– Personal comfort items– Reasonably foreseeable needs

Unit 6Unit 6

Beneficiaries in nursing homes or institutions

• Nursing HomesSet aside at least $30 a month

for the beneficiary’s personal

needs or for savings on

his or her behalf.

• InstitutionsFor Social Security (not SSI), part of the funds can be used for the support of the beneficiary’s dependent spouse, child, and/or parent.

Unit 6Unit 6

Outstanding debts

• If current & foreseeable needs are met, you may use the beneficiary’s funds to satisfy past debts.

• You are not required to pay past debts unless it involves:– Repayment of Social Security or SSI overpayment

– An IRS levy for income tax purposes

– Garnishment (child support & alimony)

Unit 6Unit 6

Spending large sums of money

• Your first priority is to meet the beneficiary’s current needs for:– Food

– Housing

– Medical Care

– Other items for personal comfort

•Large sums of money must be used in the best interest of the beneficiary.

Unit 6Unit 6

Handling large sums of money

If there’s money left over after basic needs are met, money may be spent on:

– Things that improve the beneficiary’s living conditions

– Providing better medical care

– Training to help beneficiary become

more self-sufficient

– Major health-related expenses

– Recreational activities

Unit 6Unit 6

Large purchases

• A representative payee can make some of these special purchases for comfort of the beneficiary:– Home

– Home improvements

– Furniture

– Car

Uncertain about an expenditure? Contact your local Social Security Office.

Unit 6Unit 6

$2,000 resource limit for SSI

• Example of “resources”are:– property, – stocks, – bonds, or – bank accounts

• For an individual receiving SSI, savings and other resources are limited to $2,000

• For a couple receiving SSI, the limit is $3,000Note: Not all resources count toward these limits; check with your local Social

Security Office for additional information.

Unit 7Unit 7

Unit 7Unit 7

Improper use of benefits

An unwise expenditure of benefits in a

manner that isn’t in the best interest of

the beneficiary.

• Example: A payee takes the beneficiary to the circus instead of buying him/her needed clothes.

Unit 7Unit 7

Misuse of benefits

Occurs when money is not spent on the

beneficiary or saved for future needs

• SSA decides if misuse has occurred, and makes a misuse determination.

Unit 7Unit 7

Misuse of benefits

If misuse is found, SSA may:

• Appoint a new payee, or

• Make direct payment to the beneficiary, and

• Obtain restitution from the misuser, and

• Refer the case to the OIG for possible criminal prosecution

SSA will then initiate action to recover misused funds.

Unit 8Unit 8

Unit 8Unit 8

Titling for checking and savings accounts

• Checking and savings account titles must show the beneficiary as the owner and that the payee has only a fiduciary (and not personal) interest in the funds.

•Two examples of bank account titles:“(Beneficiary’s name) by (your name), representative payee,”

or“(Your name), representative payee for (beneficiary’s name).”

•The beneficiary retains ownership but not direct access to the funds.

Unit 9Unit 9

Unit 9Unit 9

Special rules for collective accounts

• Account separate from organization’s operating account.

• If a fee-for-service payee, deduct your fees & move to your

operating account

• Keep clear records showing amount

of each beneficiary’s share

• If beneficiary has more than $500,

funds should be placed in interest

bearing account.

Unit 9Unit 9

Special rules for collective accounts (cont’d)

• Credit each beneficiary with his/her share of interest

• Set aside $30 per person for personal needs

• Funds belonging to a beneficiary can only be used

for his or her needs

• Have account records available if requested by SSA

Unit 9Unit 9

Titles for collective accounts

Examples of recommended titles for a collective account:

“Sunnydale Nursing Home, representative payee for Social Security beneficiaries”

or“Sunnydale Patient’s Fund for Social Security beneficiaries”

Unit 10Unit 10

Unit 10Unit 10

Dedicated accounts

• The law requires representative payees to maintain a dedicated account at a financial institution for deposit of past due SSI benefits.

• Dedicated accounts affect children under 18 who:

– Receive SSI due to disability or blindness

– Have a representative payee

– Are due past monthly SSI payments

Unit 11Unit 11

Unit 11Unit 11

These documents should be kept for a minimum of 2 years.

•What records should an organization keep?

– Bank statements,

– Invoices,

– Receipts,

– Leases

Unit 11Unit 11

Developing an accounting system

• Must show for each beneficiary:

– how much money was received, and

– how much money was spent, and

– the balance saved for each beneficiary.

Unit 12Unit 12

Unit 12Unit 12

Monitoring organizational payees

• Meet to discuss your practices

• Review financial records

• Speak with beneficiaries

Unit 13Unit 13

Unit 13Unit 13

Fee-for-Service

• Organizations authorized to collect a fee from a beneficiary’s Social Security or SSI payment.

• Fee is intended to cover expenses for providing payee services.

Unit 13Unit 13

Current fee amounts

• Effective December 2013, the authorized fee is the lesser of:– 10% of the monthly benefit amount or $40

• For disabled individuals who have been determined by SSA as having a drug addiction or alcoholism problem, the fee is the lesser of:– 10% of the monthly benefit amount or $77

Unit 13Unit 13

Monitoring fee-for-service payees

• Site visits

• Accounting reports

• Annual certification

• Verification of beneficiaries

Unit 13Unit 13

Monitoring fee-for-service payees

• Review triennially via:

– Face-to-face meeting

– Examination of a sample of beneficiary records

• Review organization’s record keeping

Unit 13Unit 13

Monitoring fee-for-service payees

• Verify expenses with the beneficiary’s service providers

• Speak with the beneficiaries

Unit 14Unit 14

Unit 14Unit 14

Direct deposit

• Safe

• Reliable

• Economical

• Convenient

Need more information?

• 1-800-772-1213

• http://www.ssa.gov

• http://www.ssa/gov/payee

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