AUCD Statement on Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015

October 27, 2015

Kim E. Musheno
Director of Public Policy
301-588-8252
[email protected]

AUCD applauds the two-year budget agreement that averts sequestration cuts to critical programs for people with disabilities and rebalances the Social Security Trust Fund, averting potential cuts to Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) recipients that were anticipated at the end of this year. The deal also averts an expensive and unnecessary government shutdown and extends the debt limit so that our country does not default on our loans.

AUCD is pleased that members of Congress came together to craft a bipartisan budget compromise that will pave the way for the annual appropriations bills for fiscal year 2016 to be enacted in a way that will promote important investments in our nation's research, education, training and other programs that will positively impact our economy and avoid harmful cuts to people who need them the most.

AUCD is also pleased that the budget agreement provides the Social Security Administration temporary authority, through 2022, to demonstrate ways to promote work incentives for people with disabilities. Specifically, the plan proposes replacing the existing "cash cliff" with a benefit offset, under which the disability insurance (DI) benefit would be reduced by $1 for every $2 of earnings in excess of a threshold. This demonstration is one of the proposals put forth by several bipartisan panels examining ways to reform SSDI to keep the program solvent and to incentivize work. AUCD looks forward to working with Congress on the details of this proposal to ensure smooth implementation.

While AUCD is still examining the details, we urge the Congress to act soon to pass this compromise and move forward to finalize the FY 2016 appropriations bills.

The Association of University Centers on Disabilities, located in Silver Spring, MD, is a national, non-profit organization that promotes and supports the national network of interdisciplinary centers advancing policy and practice through research, education and services for and with individuals with developmental and other disabilities, their families and communities. For more information and a directory of member centers, please see the AUCD website at www.aucd.org.

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Read the Budget deal section-by-section summary (PDF).