U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri said Friday that despite his opposition, the Social Security Administration intends to close its Auburn office.

Social Security commissioner Michael Astrue said in a letter to Arcuri that “changing demographics” and “current budget constraints” have made it difficult to maintain Social Security offices in all their current locations.

“In the case of the Auburn office,” Astrue wrote, “as with other small offices, it has been difficult to retain employees, even after they have been transferred to that location at their own request. At the same time, smaller offices cannot provide the same breadth of services as larger offices.”

Astrue pointed out that much of the Auburn office's workload is now being handled by the offices in Syracuse and Geneva and that the Auburn office has already adjusted its hours, closing at 2 rather than 4 p.m. He said that people in need of assistance can call a toll-free number access information of the Internet.

In a letter to Astrue stating his opposition to closing the local office, Arcuri noted that more than 19,000 people in Cayuga County are Social Security beneficiaries.

“People who have worked their whole lives and paid into Social Security deserve a local office where they can go with questions or complications and receive face-to-face service,” Arcuri wrote. “Asking older residents, many of them without their own means of transportation and with limited mobility, to drive to Geneva or Syracuse to get personal help regarding their very livelihood is not a reasonable solution. The Auburn Social Security Office is a critical community resource that serves some of our most vulnerable citizens and should remain open.”

Options for Independence Executive Director Guy Cosentino said the office closure will have a big impact on people with disabilities.

“It makes it all the more difficult for people to get service,” Cosentino said. “It's a real negative for the community.”

Astrue indicated that service may still be provided in Auburn on a periodic basis for people not comfortable with the telephone or Internet and might find it a hardship to travel to Social Security offices in Syracuse or Geneva.

To learn more

Social Security representatives are available from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday, and automated services are available 24 hours a day at (800) 772-1213.

Information is available online at socialsecurity.gov