Talk:Kilolo Kijakazi

I don't want to be a downer, but here's an editorial from the Washington Post that gives reasons why Biden should replace Kijakazi with a new commissioner. This summarizes other Washington Post stories, and some other major complaints are summarized in a letter by Sherrod Brown. I realize she's in a difficult position, but she's getting a lot of criticism and not answering it. Arguably, her worst gaffe was refusing to answer questions from the Washington Post. Public officials should be accountable for their programs, and she should have been able to come up with some kind of answer.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2022/12/31/social-security-failure-modernize-disability/

Social Security’s failure to modernize hurts taxpayers and the disabled

By the Editorial Board

Washington Post

December 31, 2022

... The good news is that, after various delays, this system has been built. It is based on a national sample of 60,000 employers and 440 occupations that cover about 95 percent of the economy. The bad news: Social Security hasn’t instructed staff on how to use it. Acting Social Security commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi declined to be interviewed about why her agency hasn’t yet implemented the superior alternative, and a spokeswoman for the agency wouldn’t answer Ms. Rein’s questions about a timeline for putting to use the modern data.

Ms. Kijakazi is among six acting commissioners, in addition to three Senate-confirmed leaders, over two decades. To the Trump administration’s credit, the last commissioner who was actually confirmed tried to fix this problem, but he was fired by President Biden after alienating advocates for the elderly and disabled with his efforts to tighten eligibility for benefits. Specifically, this commissioner, Andrew Saul, wanted to employ modern jobs data to make the case that disabled people could learn new skills and go to work in an economy that offers more sedentary jobs.

Social Security still plans to pay for the Bureau of Labor Statistics to refresh the new jobs database every five years, even though it is not currently being used. Auditors have found that the next phase, scheduled to start in 2023, will cost $167 million. But Ms. Rein reported that congressional staff have not been briefed on the project in at least three years. It is time for Mr. Biden to nominate a commissioner who is capable of taking the Social Security Administration into the 21st century.

--Nbauman (talk) 20:26, 31 December 2022 (UTC)