Lawmakers urge Long Beach Social Security office to reopen

Two weeks after the Social Security Administration announced that it was closing its doors in Long Beach, U.S. Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand called on the head of the agency to open a satellite office in the city, saying that would help thousands of residents — many of them seniors — who are now forced to schlep to Freeport and other local offices to receive benefits.

The Feb. 10 closure of the office — which operated at 25-27 E. Park Ave. since 1996 — comes as the agency consolidates operations, scales back hours and transfers services to other locations. It was one of many closures throughout the country, after Congress provided the agency with nearly $1 billion less than what President Obama requested in federal funding for the 2012 fiscal year.



John Shallman, agency’s regional communications director, told the Herald earlier this month that the consolidation of the Long Beach and Freeport district offices would reduce costs and save approximately $3.8 million over the next 10 years. The closure, however, means that thousands of Long Beach residents, many of them senior citizens, must now visit the agency’s nearest local offices in Freeport, Mineola or Far Rockaway.

Members of the City Council objected to the closure, saying that it will negatively impact residents. On Feb. 22, Schumer and Gillibrand echoed those sentiments and urged Social Security Administration Commissioner Michael Astrue to work with city officials in the hopes of opening a local part-time satellite office.

“Closing this social security office will unduly burden Long Beach seniors,” Schumer said in a statement. “But there’s still hope: by opening a satellite office on Long Beach, the Social Security Administration can demonstrate its commitment to providing convenient, accessible services to tens of thousands of local seniors, and I urge them to do so immediately.”