Advocacy groups are calling on Congress to fix, not cut, Social Security

As the political season kicks into high gear, advocates and defenders of the Social Security System rallied outside an SSA office in Downtown L.A. Monday, calling for Congress to reverse plans to cut its staffing.

KNX News' Pete Demetriou reports that among the groups demonstrating on 8th Street was the California Alliance for Retired Americans .

Representative Jim Gallagher pointed out that a half-billion-dollar cut in administrative funding would have a devastating effect on delivering Social Security benefits, not just for seniors but also for children who receive survivor's benefits.

"We're here today to send the message to Congress that you need to fix it. You need to continue to fund it. We reject the proposed hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts that they are trying to work. Social Security lifts more Americans above poverty than any other organization."

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Also at the rally was Jeff Cruz with the American Federation of Government Employees , who pointed to the 8th Street office as an example of what past cuts have done to Social Security.

"So this office right behind me in L.A. five years ago had 44 workers in the office representing this area. Today, they're down to 33 workers."

He says that the decrease in staffing has translated to unacceptable delays in service, with calls averaging a 45-minute wait.

"If something happens to my wife and me," Cruz said, "I want to make sure the guardian taking care of my kids gets the help they need—they shouldn't have to wait 45 minutes to get a phone call."

The groups also called for the House GOP leadership to end obstruction on consideration of the Social Security 2100 Act , a bill aimed not only at reforms but elevating contribution levels from people earning $400K a year or more. This move would keep Social Security funded through the rest of the century.

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