Posted: Fri Mar 12, 2010 02:49 am Post subject: What is SSI Benefit Supposed to be Based Upon
I am trying to find out what the SSI benefit is supposed to represent or how they determine the base dollar amount. We know that the poverty level is higher than the SSI base amount. Are there different definitions of poverty or need? Interestingly, I have not been able to locate it.
Thank you. I already looked at that. What I am trying to find out is what the SSI base amount is supposed to represent. How do they determine the amount? Was it set many years ago and the every year increased due to costs of living. Or, just every once in a while they increase it like the minimum wage. Is a person who receives SSI considered a "poor person" entitled to support as an adult pursuant to state "poor person" statutes? Difficult questions.
In the upper right hand corner of the connect page is an SSA learch plugin. If you click on it, you will install the plugin in the search box in the upper right hand corner of your browser. That should speed along your searching of the history pages at the SSA website for the historical answer you seek.
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I am not sure if this is part of what you are looking for - as far as the "what do they base the calculations on?" question goes...
http://www.law.cornell.edu/socsec/martin/2socsecb.htm
Martin on Social Security
Part 2 – Topics
Benefit Calculation and Payment
Quote:
§ B 350. SSI – Benefit Level – In General
While Title II Social Security benefits can be viewed as an insurance plan aimed at maintaining income levels bearing some relation to a worker’s past earnings (in the event of retirement, death or disability), SSI was created to insure a minimum income “floor” for aged, blind or disabled persons. Thus, while Title II benefits vary based upon each recipient’s prior earnings record, Title XVI benefits vary depending upon how far under the program’s income floor individuals are located. After analyzing countable income, SSI pays what is necessary to bring an individual to the statutory income floor. Countable income is calculated using a practice called Retrospective Monthly Accounting (RMA). Under RMA it is not a projection of current income but amounts of income received in the second month prior to the current month that determine benefits.
The base level of the SSI income floor is referred to as the Federal Benefit Rate (FBR) and is constant across the country. Many states choose to supplement the FBR. In those that do the resulting income floor is equal to the FBR plus the state supplementation. The FBR is indexed to the consumer price index in the same manner as Title II benefits. For 2008, it is $637 per month, $7,644 per year for an eligible individual.
Thank you. I already looked at that. What I am trying to find out is what the SSI base amount is supposed to represent. How do they determine the amount? Was it set many years ago and the every year increased due to costs of living. Or, just every once in a while they increase it like the minimum wage. Is a person who receives SSI considered a "poor person" entitled to support as an adult pursuant to state "poor person" statutes? Difficult questions.
Are you talking about entitlement to support from a parent or support from the government?
A poor person statute requires a relative to support a "poor person." The relative could be a spouse, parent or child. The duty to support a poor person comes after the duty to support a child or the duty to support a spouse. There are also statutes in some states that require a parent or child to support a person in a state facility and under common law, there was always a duty for a spouse to be liable to third parties for "necessities of life." That forms the basis of the old newspaper ads you would once see to the effect that, "I will no longer be responsible for any debts of ________."
There is no "logic" or standard to it. There may have been in 1974 when it started.
Every year the congress grants a small cost of living increase. It's not based on anything really. They give the cost of living because it's expected. They give a balance between what they think we can afford to spend and what would be too stingy.
There is no "logic" or standard to it. There may have been in 1974 when it started.
Every year the congress grants a small cost of living increase. It's not based on anything really. They give the cost of living because it's expected. They give a balance between what they think we can afford to spend and what would be too stingy.
This year it was zero.
I think I might be missing something. I get that you are wanting to know what SSI payments are based on. And I get that you want to know if a person on SSI would qualify as a poor person, so they would be entitled (or maybe eligible) to get support from their family under poor person statutes of the State.
I am just not understanding how these two are connected. I am not understanding how the way SSA calculates SSI payments, and what those calculations are based on, would have much bearing on whether the individual is considered to be a poor person under the laws of their State for any "poor person statutes" the state might have.
I would think the laws concerning who is entitled to support from whom, and under what conditions, would be different for each state. I would think some states might say if you are on SSI you are considered to be a poor person. This would be similar to some (in fact many) states making anyone who qualifies for SSI eligible for Medicaid. However, other states might take SSI into consideration, but not automatically assume the individual would be a "poor person" under the standards for ordering support from the family. This would be similar to the states that don't automatically enroll all SSI beneficiaries for Medicaid, but make a separate determination. But if the state does have a statute - they should have some kind of working definition of what a "poor person" is.
It seems like looking at the state statutes and programs would give you the answer to who the state considers to be a poor person much better than looking up what federal SSI payments are based on.
Of course, I might be WAY off base. I am just having trouble understanding how what you are looking for connects to what you hope to find out.
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