Social Security Admin problems affect HUD’s subsidized housing tenants

Social Security Admin problems affect HUD’s subsidized housing tenants

Government shutdown results in Social Security workers unable to send benefit letters

By Lynda Carson - October 12, 2025

On October 10, NPR reported that Social Security workers say that the government shutdown has them unable to help people out with benefit letters, also known as income verification documents.

Note: The income verification documents are needed by hundreds of thousands of people across the nation, including HUD’s low-income subsidized housing tenants so that they can recertify their contracts when needed. If many of HUD’s low-income housing tenants do not recertify their housing contracts in a short period of time with income verification documents from the Social Security Administration, they may end up losing their housing subsidies, resulting in becoming unhoused, or homeless.

Reportedly according to NPR, in part it says, “These official letters act as a sort of income verification and are therefore key to obtaining aid like housing assistance, fuel assistance and help from nonprofits.

"Not only do people need these letters when they apply for those benefits, but they also often need to recertify to prove that they continue to have an eligible income level, and it often happens on a deadline," says Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and disability policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Back in August 2025, I wrote about the Social Security Administration (SSA) being under assault, and how it may affect HUD’s low-income subsidized housing tenants, and in part wrote, “Not only is this a catastrophe for Social Security recipients, but this is an absolute disaster for the millions of HUD subsidized housing tenants in the Housing Choice Voucher Program a.k.a. Section 8 voucher program, project-based voucher housing program, and public housing programs who need their “income verification documents” from the SSA so they can recertify their contracts on an annual basis in HUD’s subsidized housing programs. There are time limits involved with the recertification process for millions of HUD’s subsidized housing tenants, and if they cannot obtain their “income verification documents” from the SSA in a timely fashion, they may end up losing their housing and housing assistance in the process”.

For many poor, and elderly people in HUD’s subsidized housing programs who may not have computers, or if they have computers so old that they need to be upgraded, it may become very difficult for them to access the SSA so they can obtain the income verification documents needed to recertify their housing contracts.

For more from the recent NPR report, in part it states, “Employees at Social Security field offices say the government shutdown has left them unable to carry out an important service for some recipients.

While the agency continues to disburse retirement and disability benefits, workers say they are unable to provide benefit verification letters to people calling in to request them.

These official letters act as a sort of income verification and are therefore key to obtaining aid like housing assistance, fuel assistance and help from nonprofits.

"Not only do people need these letters when they apply for those benefits, but they also often need to recertify to prove that they continue to have an eligible income level, and it often happens on a deadline," says Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and disability policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Beneficiaries can still access their verification letter online and through the Social Security Administration's automated phone system, the agency says. But during the shutdown, in-person support for the letters is suspended, and when recipients call in to speak with a field office representative, they can't get help with their letter.

And field office workers tell NPR that many people are calling in, seeking assistance. (The workers who spoke to NPR were speaking on behalf of their union because they can't speak on behalf of the Social Security Administration.)

"Anywhere between 60 to 70% of our calls are, 'I need my benefit verification letter right now at this time' during the shutdown," says Tierra Carter, a teleservice worker at an office in Tampa, Fla., who also represents a chapter of the American Federation of Government Employees. "A beneficiary cannot receive a benefit verification letter from the telephone receiver or by walking in through their local Social Security office. And that burdens a lot of our recipients."

AFGE Press Release - June 30, 2025

Due to DOGE Cuts, 1 SSA Employee Is Expected to Serve 1,480 Beneficiaries

June 30, 2025

A new analysis on Social Security, the country’s most popular, most supported program, reflects what AFGE has been saying all along: Staffing cuts will hurt the American people who rely on Social Security. 

Due to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)’s reckless cuts, the Social Security Administration (SSA) has lost 7,000 employees since January. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP), that’s the largest staffing cut in SSA’s history, which will translate into much delayed services to the beneficiaries. In fact, one staff member now serves 1,480 beneficiaries, which is over three times as many as in 1967.
 
In short, the number of beneficiaries has gone up while the number of workers serving them has gone down. And as we all know, benefits delayed are benefits denied. 

SSA management hasn’t come up with a solution to fix the problem yet.  

Their Band-Aid strategy is to fix staffing holes as they arise by transferring employees to different positions. But it’s not doing anyone any good and may actually harm beneficiaries.  

IT help desk employees, for example, will now be making disability decisions while HR specialists will be required to master SSA’s complex benefit rules. Reassignments of IT staff have resulted in frequent system outages as they’re not there to maintain the complex web systems. 
 
“Reassignment is creating even deeper holes in headquarters and regional offices that provide crucial support for their colleagues,” said the report. “For example, field office staff are struggling to resolve the most difficult cases, due to disproportionate losses and reassignments in SSA’s regional offices, which provide daily support to their colleagues in the field by answering complex policy questions and troubleshooting system problems. 

The report predicted bigger backlogs and longer delays due to SSA trying to do more with fewer, less experienced employees.
 
But newly minted SSA Commissioner Frank Bisignano insisted that hiring enough workers to do the work is not a priority for the agency. Bisignano told lawmakers last week that SSA would rather focus on “technology” – ignoring that new technologies can be especially difficult to use and access for the elderly and people with disabilities”.

Lynda Carson may be reached at newzland2 [at] gmail.com 

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