Publicity plan by Social Security agency upsets its workers
By Robert Pear The New York Times
Monday, January 17, 2005
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
.."The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social
Security cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is
expected to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
.."Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will
grow as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits
than it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the
trust fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay
only 73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
.."There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they
retire, a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by
private accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National
Treasury Employees Union.
..In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration,
said he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because
they were "internal documents."
..The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
See more of the world that matters - click here for home delivery of
the International Herald Tribune.
< < Back to Start of Article
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..
The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..
Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
..
"The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social Security
cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is expected
to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..
But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
..
"Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..
Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..
Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will grow
as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits than
it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the trust
fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay only
73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..
Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
..
"There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they retire,
a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by private
accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury
Employees Union.
..
In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..
Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..
Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said
he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because they
were "internal documents."
..
The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..
The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..
Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
..
"The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social Security
cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is expected
to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..
But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
..
"Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..
Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..
Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will grow
as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits than
it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the trust
fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay only
73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..
Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
..
"There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they retire,
a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by private
accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury
Employees Union.
..
In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..
Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..
Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said
he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because they
were "internal documents."
..
The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..
The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..
Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
..
"The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social Security
cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is expected
to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..
But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
..
"Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..
Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..
Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will grow
as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits than
it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the trust
fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay only
73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..
Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
..
"There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they retire,
a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by private
accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury
Employees Union.
..
In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..
Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..
Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said
he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because they
were "internal documents."
..
The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
See more of the world that matters - click here for home delivery of
the International Herald Tribune.
< < Back to Start of Article
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..
The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..
Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
..
"The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social Security
cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is expected
to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..
But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
..
"Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..
Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..
Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will grow
as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits than
it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the trust
fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay only
73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..
Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
..
"There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they retire,
a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by private
accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury
Employees Union.
..
In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..
Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..
Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said
he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because they
were "internal documents."
..
The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
WASHINGTON Over the objections of many of its own employees, the Social
Security Administration is gearing up for a major effort to publicize
the financial problems of Social Security and to convince the public
that private accounts are needed as part of any solution.
..
The agency's plans are set forth in internal documents, including a
"tactical plan" for communications and marketing of the idea that
Social Security faces dire financial problems requiring immediate
action.
..
Social Security officials say their agency is carrying out its mission
to educate the public, including more than 47 million beneficiaries,
and to support President George W. Bush's agenda.
..
"The system is broken, and promises are being made that Social Security
cannot keep," Bush said in his Saturday radio address. He is expected
to address the issue in his Inaugural Address.
..
But agency employees have complained to Social Security officials that
they are being conscripted into a political battle over the future of
the program. They question the accuracy of recent statements by the
agency, and they say that money from the Social Security trust fund
should not be used for such advocacy.
..
"Trust fund dollars should not be used to promote a political agenda,"
said Dana Duggins, a vice president of the Social Security Council of
the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents more
than 50,000 of the agency's 64,000 workers and has opposed private
accounts.
..
Deborah Fredericksen of Minneapolis, who has worked for the Social
Security Administration for 31 years, said, "Many employees believe
that the president and this agency are using scare tactics to promote
private accounts."
..
Social Security trustees say the program's financial problems will grow
as baby boomers retire. The program will pay out more in benefits than
it collects in revenue in 2018, they say. By 2042, they say, the trust
fund will be exhausted, and tax income will be sufficient to pay only
73 percent of scheduled benefits.
..
Social Security employees denied that their concerns were motivated by
a bureaucratic mentality, a fear of change or a desire to protect their
jobs.
..
"There's a genuine concern about how people will live when they retire,
a real fear that Social Security benefits could be eroded by private
accounts," said Colleen Kelley, president of the National Treasury
Employees Union.
..
In campaign-style speeches, Bush and other officials have said that
Social Security is headed for bankruptcy and that workers should be
allowed to divert some of their payroll taxes into private accounts as
a way to build wealth for themselves and their heirs.
..
..
Agency managers said they expected a torrent of calls after Bush
highlights the issue in his Inaugural Address on Thursday and his State
of the Union speech two weeks later.
..
Mark Lassiter, a spokesman for the Social Security Administration, said
he could not discuss the agency's communications plans because they
were "internal documents."
..
The Bush administration ran afoul of a ban on "covert propaganda" when
it used tax money to promote the new Medicare drug benefit and the
administration acknowledged paying a conservative commentator,
Armstrong Williams, to promote its No Child Left Behind education
policy. But on Social Security, unlike those issues, the government has
not concealed its role.
..
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/01/16/news/ssa.html
.
|
