D--Q&A for Access to Financial Institution (AFI) Services

This Special notice is to provide Agency Answers in response to Vendor Questions received. The Social Security Administration (SSA) intends to establish a contract for Access to Financial Institutions (AFI) Services. SSA administers the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program that was created by Congress to provide income assistance for the aged, blind, or disabled whose income and resources are below specified levels. Countable resources, including those from financial accounts, must be under $2,000 for an individual and $3,000 for a couple. Currently, there are over 8.2 million SSI beneficiaries on the rolls, and approximately 2.6 million individuals apply for SSI each year. In addition, each year SSA conducts approximately 2.6 million periodic redeterminations of SSI eligibility. During both initial SSI claims determinations and SSI redeterminations, SSA must obtain verification of financial institution (FI) account balances to determine that resources remain under the specified level(s). SSA uses titling, balance, and related information on all types of accounts and certificates held by an SSI applicant, recipient, or deemor, to identify countable resources. The purpose of the contract is to support the SSI program by using the AFI Program to verify accounts, account balances, and interest income for applicants, recipients, and/or deemors.