U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer joined the fight to keep Auburn's Social Security office open with a letter to the agency's commissioner Wednesday.
The Social Security Administration has proposed closing the Auburn office at 1110 Corporate Drive and consolidating services with branches in Syracuse and Geneva.
While the SSA has maintained that many Auburn cases are handled in the other two offices, Schumer estimated some 19,000 people would be forced to travel.
“The complete loss of service in the area would be devastating to the community, forcing even those who are physically unable or without transportation to travel an extra 30 miles,” the Democratic New York senator wrote to SSA Commissioner Michael J. Astrue.
Schumer tied the consolidation proposal to a steady decrease in Social Security funding that has helped cut the Auburn staff from 14 to three and whittled away business hours.
Last week, he called for full funding of $10.44 billion for the SSA, about $1 billion more than what is budgeted for 2008.
“The residents of Cayuga County who have worked their entire lives contributing to the Social Security system deserve to have a local office providing them with benefits,” Schumer said in a press release.
He follows the lead of U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, who has been corresponding with Astrue since May and last week requested to meet with him to find ways to keep the office open.
While the SSA has maintained that many Auburn cases are handled in the other two offices, Schumer estimated some 19,000 people would be forced to travel.
“The complete loss of service in the area would be devastating to the community, forcing even those who are physically unable or without transportation to travel an extra 30 miles,” the Democratic New York senator wrote to SSA Commissioner Michael J. Astrue.
Schumer tied the consolidation proposal to a steady decrease in Social Security funding that has helped cut the Auburn staff from 14 to three and whittled away business hours.
Last week, he called for full funding of $10.44 billion for the SSA, about $1 billion more than what is budgeted for 2008.
“The residents of Cayuga County who have worked their entire lives contributing to the Social Security system deserve to have a local office providing them with benefits,” Schumer said in a press release.
He follows the lead of U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri, D-Utica, who has been corresponding with Astrue since May and last week requested to meet with him to find ways to keep the office open.
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