Annual Statistical Supplement, 2017

Program Provisions and SSA Administrative Data

SSA Administrative Data

Hearings and Appeals

Table 2.F8 Workload of SSA's Administrative Law Judges (ALJs), fiscal years 2013–2016
Item 2013 2014 2015 2016 a
Number of ALJs 1,356 1,311 1,265 1,340
Average monthly hearing dispositions per ALJ b 48 43 44 40
Average hearings pending per ALJ 577 688 708 723
SOURCES: Social Security Administration, Office of Disability Adjudication and Review. Actual data from the Key Workload Indicator Report.
NOTE: Number of ALJs and average monthly hearing dispositions per ALJ based on fiscal year average ALJ availability; average hearings pending per ALJ based on ALJs on duty. Data exclude Regional Chief ALJs.
a. Because of calendar variations and agency budgeting and accounting rules, one week occasionally falls between the end of one fiscal year and the beginning of the next. Although September 2016 included such a week, data for that week are not available. Values shown are as of the end of the 52nd week of fiscal year 2016.
b. Calculation excludes Attorney Adjudicator decisions.
CONTACT: Chuck Gramens (703) 605-8413 or statistics@ssa.gov.
Table 2.F9 Number of hearing level receipts, dispositions, and end-of-year pending cases, fiscal years 2014–2016
Program Hearing level receipts Hearing level dispositions End-of-year pending cases
2014 2015 2016 2014 2015 2016 2014 2015 2016
Total 810,715 746,300 712,853 680,963 663,129 652,241 977,736 1,060,907 1,121,519
OASI 2,018 1,632 1,342 1,818 1,575 1,392 1,471 1,530 1,481
Disability  
DI 275,384 265,638 255,434 211,270 216,541 223,434 323,749 371,793 402,498
SSI 229,830 210,565 209,312 200,983 190,020 185,281 283,589 303,889 327,670
DI and SSI 303,483 268,465 246,765 266,892 254,993 242,134 368,927 383,695 389,870
SOURCES: Social Security Administration, Office of Disability Adjudication and Review. Actual data from the Case Processing and Management System and Key Workload Indicator Report.
NOTES: Some claims are resclassifed from one program to another during their processing cycle. End-of-year adjustments account for those reclassifications.
Because of calendar variations and agency budgeting and accounting rules, one week occasionally falls between the end of one fiscal year and the beginning of the next. September 2016 included such a week, and the values shown for fiscal year 2016 include the activity for that week, as follows: for OASI, 31 receipts, 30 dispositions, and 1 additional pending case; for DI, 5,285 receipts, 5,118 dispositions and a reduction of 58 pending cases; for SSI, 4,314 receipts, 4,211 dispositions, and 53 additional pending cases; and for both DI and SSI, 4,644 receipts, 5,410 dispositions, and a reduction of 491 pending cases. In total, that week saw 14,274 receipts, 14,769 dispositions, and a reduction of 495 pending cases. Reclassifications (noted above) account for apparent discrepancies.
OASI = Old-Age and Survivors Insurance; DI = Disability Insurance; SSI = Supplemental Security Income.
CONTACT: Chuck Gramens (703) 605-8413 or statistics@ssa.gov.
Table 2.F11 Number of SSA Appeals Council cases, fiscal years 2013–2016
Cases 2013 2014 2015 2016 a
Beginning-of-year pending 161,070 157,311 150,383 149,147
Receipts 172,492 155,352 149,437 136,987
Dispositions 176,251 162,280 150,673 159,000
End-of-year pending 157,311 150,383 149,147 127,134
SOURCES: Social Security Administration, Office of Disability Adjudication and Review. Actual data from the Appeals Review Processing System and Key Workload Indicator Report.
a. Because of calendar variations and agency budgeting and accounting rules, one week occasionally falls between the end of one fiscal year and the beginning of the next. September 2016 included such a week, and the values shown for fiscal year 2016 include the 3,147 receipts and 4,598 dispositions (and the resulting reduction in pending cases by 1,451) that occurred in that week.
CONTACT: Chuck Gramens (703) 605-8413 or statistics@ssa.gov.