Thus, the old-age and survivors insurance program is taking its intended place as the basic source of income for retired persons and their families and for orphaned children and their widowed mothers. It is of interest also that by June 1953 the number of persons drawing old-age and survivors insurance benefits (5.6 million) was larger than the number (5.3 million) receiving public assistance under the four federally aided public assistance programs-old-age assistance, aid to dependent children, aid to the blind, and aid to the permanently and totally disabled-and the State and local programs of general assistance. In addition, something over 1 million aged persons and close to 1 million widows under age 65 and orphans receive benefits under the special programs for railroad workers, for Federal, State, and local government employees, and for veterans. About 250,000 persons who are permanently and totally disabled receive insurance benefits from the railroad or Federal, State, and local government employee retirement systems-compared with 179,000 persons who now receive assistance under the aid to the permanently and totally disabled program. A few groups, notably farmers and certain self-employed persons, are still without social insurance protection. The Social Security Administration has for a number of years recommended that old-age and survivors insurance coverage be made universal. A group of consultants appointed by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the spring of 1953 reviewed the question and recommended immediate extension of coverage to practically all employment except that of railroad workers, now covered by a coordinated system, and employees of the Federal Government under existing retirement systems. The consultants deferred consideration of coverage for these two groups because special studies of their retirement protection were initiated in the preceding year by Congress. The recommendations of the consultants are described in the chapter on old-age and survivors insurance.

There are various circumstances in which the community must come to the aid of families who are in difficulties that are beyond their control-circumstances not sufficiently widespread or predictable to be appropriately met through the insurance method. Need resulting from broken homes and deserting parents now brings more children to the aid to dependent children rolls than does the death of the breadwinner. During the past year the Social Security Administration has continued, through its Bureau of Public Assistance and the Children's Bureau and with the State agencies which administer the programs, to work toward the more adequate relief of children and families that are in need of income or other help, and toward the more effective provision of health and welfare services that lay a sound foundation for wholesome development of children.

Juvenile delinquency, commonly one of the consequences of war and of persistent adult fears and tensions, has received special attention from many groups during the past year. The efforts which have been made by the Social Security Administration to study the problem and to bring together the many social, educational, legal, civic, and parental groups with a special concern and interest in it are described in the chapter on the special children's programs.

Federal credit unions again took several strides forward. During the year under review, the number of Federal credit unions in existence, their membership, and their total assets reached new high levels. The Bureau of Federal Credit Unions is now on a completely selfsustaining basis, deriving its operating income from the services of supervision and examination which it provides to individual credit unions.

Program Administration in 1953

On April 11 the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare came into being, with all the functions formerly carried by the Federal Security Agency. The legislation establishing the Department made no change in the responsibilities and functions of the Social Security Administration, but it abolished the position of Commissioner for Social Security, providing that henceforth a Commissioner of Social Security should be appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate.

With the termination on April 10 of his appointment as Commissioner for Social Security, Arthur J. Altmeyer completed nearly 18 years of service with the Social Security Administration. Appointed one of the three members of the Social Security Board in August 1935, he was Chairman of the Board from February 1937 to July 1946, when he was appointed Commissioner for Social Security in the Social Security Administration, which superseded the Board. On Mr. Altmeyer's retirement, William L. Mitchell, Deputy Commissioner since 1946, became Acting Commissioner.

Other administrative changes during the fiscal year included the resignation, on May 8, of Oscar C. Pogge as Director of the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and the retirement on June 14 of Claude R. Orchard, Director of the Bureau of Federal Credit Unions. On June 15, J. Deane Gannon was appointed Director of the Bureau of Federal Credit Unions.

During the fiscal year, all bureaus and offices of the Social Security Administration continued their efforts to improve procedures and organizational structure in order to maintain a high level of efficiency in carrying increasing workloads. At the end of June the staff totaled 14,623, of whom 5,602 were departmental and 9,021 were in field, area,

and regional offices. The departmental staff had 473 fewer persons than at the end of the 1952 fiscal year. This drop occurred almost entirely in the Bureau of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance and had to be absorbed at a time when the volume of claims to be processed for benefits was about twice the normal level. To maintain effective operations in the 512 field and 6 area offices, where claims for benefits are received and much of the work of determining claimant eligibility and benefit amount is carried on, the staff was increased by 282 during

the year.

Progress was especially gratifying during the year in extending the "team" approach developed so successfully by the Bureau of Public Assistance and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation when the program of aid to the totally and permanently disabled went into operation in 1950. Several conferences were held in different parts of the country during the year to coordinate the services of related State agencies in the rehabilitative aspects of aid to the disabled.

In its international activities the Social Security Administration shares with other countries its experience and knowledge in the fields of social insurance and social welfare and in return gains valuable knowledge and insight from the two-way interchange. Experts and visitors who come to this country under United Nations or United States auspices are referred to the Administration for guidance in planning and carrying out their technical training in the social security field. The Administration also recruits technicians from its own staff and from other agencies for special overseas assignments in social welfare projects, at the request of foreign governments and in cooperation with the United States technical assistance program concerned.

During the fiscal year, training programs were planned for almost 1,000 experts and visitors from other countries. Some 60 were longterm trainees (here for periods ranging from 6 months to 2 years) sponsored by the United Nations and the World Health Organization. The long-term trainees under United States auspices included 43 who were sponsored by the Point Four program and by the Mutual Security Agency. In addition, many short-term visitors are referred or come to the Social Security Administration for periods ranging from a week to several months. Their major interests include various aspects of social insurance, public assistance, or child health and welfare services, social work education, and in-service training.

Through the Point Four program, 24 technical experts from the Administration and four recruited from other agencies were working overseas on projects administered or contracted for by the Technical Cooperation Administration. Thirteen specialists were assigned to projects in Latin America, nine were in Egypt, Iraq, or Lebanon, three were in India, and one in Pakistan.

Old-Age and Survivors Insurance

In the President's message of April 1, 1953, transmitting to the Congress his recommendations for extension of old-age and survivors insurance coverage to additional workers, he said: "Retirement systems, by which individuals contribute to their own security according to their own respective abilities, have become an essential part of our economic and social life. These systems are but a reflection of the American heritage of sturdy self-reliance which has made our country strong and kept it free. . . The Social Security program furnishes, on a national scale, the opportunity for our citizens, through that same self-reliance, to build the foundation for their security... The systematic practice of setting aside funds during the productive years to build the assurance of basic retirement benefits when the productive years are over-or to one's survivors in the event of death-is important to the strength of our traditions and our economy. We must not only preserve this systematic practice, but extend it at every desirable opportunity."

Under old-age and survivors insurance the covered worker earns security as he works, just as he earns his wages. Through the payment of old-age and survivors insurance taxes, the worker shares directly in meeting the cost of the protection furnished to himself and his family. Because benefit payments vary according to the individual's record of earnings and of contributions, they are-in a country where earnings and standards of living vary widely as between individuals—a more meaningful and effective foundation of security than they could be if they were a flat amount and supported by a flat contribution.

The individual who has earned the right to protection under the insurance program through covered work receives his benefits, on retirement, without regard to other resources he may have. In this way the program provides a foundation of security on which the person may build through the addition of income from private savings and insurance. In building upon his old-age and survivors insurance benefits, he earns for himself and his family a higher standard of living. Thus, his thrift, his planning, and his work bear fruit after as well as before his earnings cease.

The Social Security Administration believes that the contributory system of old-age and survivors insurance, with benefits related to earnings and paid as a matter of right, should continue to be the basic method of protecting American workers and their families against dependency in old age or on account of death.

The Significance of the Program

BENEFICIARIES AND BENEFIT AMOUNTS

In June 1953 about 5.6 million people were receiving benefits under the program. Some 4.3 million of these beneficiaries were aged 65 and over-3.0 million of them retired workers and 1.3 million the wives and dependent husbands of retired workers and the widows, dependent widowers, and dependent parents of workers who had died. Of the remaining 1.3 million, some 300,000 were young widows and a million were children.

Chart 2.-WHO RECEIVED OLD-AGE AND SURVIVORS INSURANCE BENEFITS, JUNE 1953

Includes less than 0.5 percent dependent husbands and dependent widowers; wives also include some wives under age 65 with child beneficiaries in their care.

Chart 3.-AVERAGE MONTHLY FAMILY BENEFITS, JUNE 1953