I received this from another mailing list and it was the first I had
heard of it. Fee jumps from $7 to $27. It does seem excessive.
Subject: [CP-L] SS F.O.I.A. Application Fee Increase
May I suggest that people interested in this matter write to Larry G.
Massanari, Acting Commissioner of Social Security, and tell him that
they are opposed to the increase in the cost of obtaining copies of SS
applications.
Here's his address:
Larry G. Massanari
Acting Commissioner of Social Security
Social Security Administration Headquarters 6401 Security Boulevard
Baltimore, MD 21235-0001
800-772-1213
May I also suggest that they write to their U.S. Congressional
Representatives.
Here's how to find their contact info:
U.S. Senate: <<
http://www.loc.gov/global/legislative/senators.html>>
U.S. House: <<
http://www.loc.gov/global/legislative/house.html>>
Because many politicians seem to be out of touch with the average
taxpayer, I intend to do this by mail, sending them a print-out of this
page <<
http://www.ssa.gov/foia/foia_guide.htm>> and using a highlighting
pen to draw attention to the new fees. In particular, I will emphasize
the jump in cost from $7 to $27 --- 400%!!!
Who knows if it will do any good? But I just can't let this pass without
telling my elected representatives how I feel about our government
finding yet another way to gouge American taxpayers. Here are four (of
many) reasons why:
1. People were/are required by law to make these applications. They
had/have no choice in the matter.
2. People paid/pay vast sums of money into SS for their entire working
lives. The government now has a *nerve* to charge exorbitant fees for
what amounts to public records that have already been paid for many
millions of times over.
3. Many, if not most, of the people doing genealogical research happen
to be SS recipients themselves. They can't afford to pay $27 for each
search. This could seriously curtail their ability to use their time in
this productive endeavor, which is so beneficial to our society as a
whole.
4. These records are supposed to be readily available to the public.
Aside from lack of imagination and will, there's no reason why the SS
Administration couldn't make these documents available over the Internet
for free, as has been done with the Ellis Island passenger manifests.
One of the reasons the current cost of providing these records is so
high is because the SS Administration insists on using outdated
technology --- hard copies by mail.
I plan to post this message to all the genealogy sites I can find. And I
give permission to anyone who reads this message to forward it to their
friends, family, and favorite genealogy sites as well. Perhaps if people
can demonstrate a ground swell of opposition to this increase, by
flooding these people with letters, the SSA will reconsider the amount
of the increase. It's probably true that $7 is too low to cover the
costs. That being the case, most people probably would not object to a
$12 or $14 charge. But 400%??? Really!!! This is outrageous!!!