Guide for Organizational Representative Payees

What are your duties as a representative payee?

Required Duties:

• Determine the beneficiary's current needs for day-to-day living (food, clothing and housing ) and use his or her payments to meet those needs;

• Save any money left after meeting the beneficiary's current needs in a checking or savings account (preferably interest bearing), U.S. savings bonds, or other appropriate investment(s);

• Keep written records of all payments received from SSA, bank statements and cancelled checks, receipts for rent, utilities, and major purchases made for the beneficiary to support how the funds were spent and/or saved on behalf of the beneficiary. For example, if you withdraw $100 from the beneficiary’s account and buy an $80 item, then there must be a receipt for the $80 and an accounting of the $20 left over. Keep these records for at least two years;

• Provide annual accountings for the use of funds (see Exhibits A and B for examples of accounting reports):
  (Exhibit A)  SSA-6233-BK,
  (Exhibit B)  SSA-6234-F6;

• Notify SSA of any changes or circumstances that would affect your performance as a payee or your decision to continue to serve as a payee;

• For an SSI beneficiary, be aware of all income, funds and things a beneficiary may own that can be converted to cash because income and/or resources may impact the beneficiary's payments and/or eligibility ;

• Report any changes or events that could affect the beneficiary's payments or eligibility such as a change in the amount of a pension payment, wage changes (number of hours worked or hourly wage change), imprisonment, changes in worker’s compensation, changes in living arrangements, such as marriage, divorce, separation or reuniting after separation, etc.). Although an income change in one month usually changes the SSI payment two months later, it could also result in ineligibility in the month of receipt. You must consider the possibility of an increase or decrease in future monthly SSI payments when paying current expenses or giving money to the beneficiary;

NOTE: You must not rely on the beneficiary to report changes to SSA.

• Return any conserved funds to SSA if you stop serving as the beneficiary’s payee;

• Return any conserved funds to the legal representative of the beneficiary’s estate for disposition under state law if the beneficiary dies. If there is no legal representative, then you must contact the state probate court;

NOTE: Conserved funds should not be returned to SSA after a beneficiary’s death.

• For a child receiving SSI payments, you must assist in obtaining treatment that was prescribed by a physician, psychologist or other acceptable medical source and that is expected to improve or restore the child's functioning. Failure to provide help in obtaining necessary medical treatment for the child may result in SSA removing you as the child’s payee; and

• Notify SSA when a beneficiary’s condition improves to a point where you believe a payee is no longer needed.

Suggestions for other ways representative payees can help

SSA encourages you to go beyond managing finances and to be actively involved in the beneficiary's life.

Other ways to help the beneficiary include:

• Establish a budget, discuss it with the beneficiary, and involve him or her as much as possible in financial decisions;

• Explain Social Security and SSI payments and the beneficiary's expenses to him or her;

• Advise the beneficiary of current and retroactive payments;

• Assist the beneficiary in the completion of re determinations of eligibility and continuing medical reviews;

• Help the beneficiary find other benefits and services he or she needs (for example, food stamps, housing subsidies, etc.) and cooperate with caseworkers;

• Learn about the various impairment related and blind work expenses as well as earned income exclusions and report to SSA when required so that the beneficiary can take advantage of work incentives in the disability program and perhaps receive higher benefit payments;

• Negotiate with landlords and others to get "the best possible deal" for the beneficiary;

• Help the beneficiary obtain medical treatment when necessary;

• Help the beneficiary with Medicare to get assistance with prescription drug expenses; and

• Recommend an alternate person or agency if you can no longer serve as a payee.