Q: "I visited the Chattanooga office yesterday and noticed a sign saying the office hours are changing. Would you please tell us what is going on?"
A: Effective Aug. 15, the Chattanooga Social Security office will be open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. - a reduction of 30 minutes each weekday.
While agency employees will continue to work their regular hours, this shorter public window will allow them to complete face-to-face service with the visiting public without incurring the cost of overtime.
Congress provided Social Security with nearly $1 billion less than the president had requested for the budget this fiscal year, which makes it impossible for the agency to provide the amount of overtime needed to handle service to the public as we have in the past.
Most Social Security services do not require a visit to an office. Anyone wishing to apply for
benefits, sign up for direct deposit, replace a Medicare card, obtain a proof of income letter or inform us of a change of address or telephone number may do so at www.socialsecurity.gov or by dialing our toll-free number, 1-800-772-1213.
People who are deaf or hard of hearing may call our TTY number, 1-800-325-0778.
Martin Coffey answers your Social Security questions every Thursday. If you have Social Security questions, you may email them to Business Editor Dave Flessner at dflessner@timesfree press.com