Sponsors (53)
Establishes a 20-year SSA demonstration letting blind SSDI beneficiaries keep entitlement while working and reduce benefits $1 for each $2 earned above the exempt amount.
Official title: To amend title II of the Social Security Act to require the Commissioner of Social Security to carry out a demonstration project relating to disability benefits of blind individuals.
Introduced February 10, 2025 by Pete Sessions · Last progress February 10, 2025
The bill helps blind SSDI beneficiaries work by allowing continued eligibility and phasing down benefits instead of cutting them off, but it lowers benefits for some, waives certain safeguards, and may increase administrative complexity and income risk for beneficiaries.
People with blindness (SSD I beneficiaries) can keep their SSDI entitlement while earning income because participation in the demonstration prevents earnings from terminating eligibility.
Participants retain part of their SSDI benefits as they earn because benefits are reduced incrementally ($1 off per $2 earned) instead of ending suddenly, improving income continuity during work transitions.
Participants may deduct work-related expenses, effectively raising the earnings threshold before benefits are reduced and improving the net incentive to work.
Some participants who earn above the exempt amount will receive lower monthly SSDI checks because benefits are reduced by the demonstration's offset formula.
Waiving provisions of title II and section 1148 for the demonstration could reduce program safeguards or oversight, risking inconsistent treatment or unintended eligibility outcomes.
Replacing existing rules like the trial work period and SGA for participants could create confusion about benefit calculation and add administrative complexity for beneficiaries and SSA staff.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Tests a new 20-year Social Security demonstration that lets people who are blind and newly entitled to SSDI earn substantial income without losing entitlement. Under the demo, monthly SSDI payments would be reduced by $1 for every $2 earned above the exempt amount (after work-related expense deductions) rather than terminating benefits for engaging in substantial gainful activity; the project begins within 180 days of enactment and applies to those who become entitled during the first 10 years of the project, with an option to opt out after that eligibility window.