Why does the government insist on keeping disabled people in poverty?

As an adult living with cerebral palsy, my life’s mission has been to ensure that people with disabilities have the support and services they need to flourish and be part of the fabric of their community. 

People with disabilities are twice as likely as their peers to live in poverty. That’s why one of my main goals during my time with the Jewish Federations of North America has been advancing legislation to improve the financial security of individuals living with disabilities. 

Sometimes, when I go to Capitol Hill, I’m greeted by wide eyes. There is a societal perception that people with disabilities can only achieve the four F’s — food, flowers, filing and filth — so they’re shocked to see someone in a walker advocating for policies at the highest level of government. 

These stigmas and stereotypes need to be broken. People need tools and support so their lives can flourish. Unfortunately, Congress is causing harm to some 7.4 million recipients of the Supplemental Security Income program (SSI) by not acting on legislation that would make it possible for SSI recipients to increase the amount of money they can save without losing benefits.

SSI is a federal program that provides monthly payments to individuals with disabilities and older adults who have little or no income or resources. For most recipients, SSI is their only income source. In other words, it’s the only way they have the money to pay for rent, food, medicine or other daily expenses. 

But SSI has a strict cap limiting how much savings or assets recipients can accumulate before pulling the rug out from under them.  

One friend of mine is a young woman with Down syndrome. She works as a hostess at an Applebee's restaurant and wants to take on more shifts. But she can’t, because if she goes over carefully calculated schedule, she might go over the SSI asset limit and lose her critical income support.

She is also an artist and hopes that she might someday sell her paintings. But for the exact same reason — the fear of losing SSI benefits — that dream is out of reach. 

Karen Williams knows about being punished for exceeding the SSI asset limit. She is disabled, cannot work, and relies upon SSI to cover her basic needs. After seeing family members scramble for funds when faced with funeral expenses, Williams bought a life insurance policy that would pay for her funeral so she wouldn’t worry about similarly burdening her children. 

Williams thought the life insurance policy wouldn’t be used until after she died, but she didn’t realize that it had a cash value of $1,900. This potential cash value, along with $260 she had saved in her checking account, pushed her over the SSI’s limits on how much recipients are allowed in savings and other assets. 

The penalty was harsh: The Social Security Administration ended Williams’ SSI benefits, her primary source of income, and told her that she had 30 days to pay back two years of benefits, a total of $20,385. 

Unfortunately, Williams’ experience is not isolated. This happens every day in heartbreaking ways, whether it’s people forced to avoid taking extra shifts at work or individuals trying to save enough money to move from dilapidated apartments to safer apartments. Between the security deposit and first and last month's rent, a move to a better apartment might cost several thousand dollars.

These stories are trying and stressful — all because Congress has failed to treat SSI recipients as if they deserve to save money for a better life. It’s outrageous. They are being punished, living under antiquated financial guidelines passed by Congress in 1989 — a year before Congress even passed the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

Under these antiquated standards, individuals who receive SSI aren’t allowed to have more than $2,000 in assets; the limit is $3,000 for couples. The basic monthly SSI benefit is $943 for an individual and $1,415 for a couple. Although this amount lessens economic hardship, it’s not enough money to lift anyone above the poverty line.  

Think about it. The asset limits for this program haven’t been increased in 35 years. The cost of basic needs has soared, yet SSI recipients live with a check amount set decades ago, when the average rent for a studio apartment in New York City was $685 a month, compared to $3,780 today. At that time, a dozen eggs cost $1 to today’s cost of about $3. And the price of a gallon of milk has doubled. 

Proposed legislation would raise the asset limit to $10,000 for individuals and $20,000 for couples. It would index future limits to inflation by modernizing out-of-date caps on assets. And it would improve the lives of the millions of people who receive SSI benefits. 

July 26 marked the 34th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. One of the most responsible things Congress could do to recognize this milestone is pass the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act, introduced by bipartisan sponsors Sens. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio); and Reps. Danny Davis (D-Ill.) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.). 

There is consensus across the ideological spectrum that the asset limit needs to be raised. Some of the major organizations that have endorsed this bill include J.P. Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Bank of America. 

Bringing the asset limits into the 21st century would let recipients have money in their bank accounts for medical emergencies, clothes and travel. It means they could sleep at night, knowing they can move to a safer neighborhood. 

Disability rights go beyond the physical accessibility issues that many people associate with the Americans with Disabilities Act. In the last 35 years, while we have made great strides in eliminating barriers for people with disabilities, the low asset limit is an illustration of how far we must go to achieve the full promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We must make sure that everyone and anyone who lives with a disability can earn and save enough money to live a fulfilling, flourishing life.

Tell Congress to pass the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act — because it’s past time for SSI recipients to be in the same century as everyone else. Give them the fair shot at life that they deserve.

Aaron Kaufman is senior legislative manager at Jewish Federations of North America where he's worked since 2016. He also serves as lead on disability and poverty for JFNA.