Supplemental Security Income for the Aged, Blind, and Disabled; Reliable Information Which Is Currently Available for Determining Benefit Amounts in the Supplemental Security Income Program

The Social Security Act (the Act) provides that if the Commissioner of Social Security determines that reliable information is currently available concerning the income of an individual, the Commissioner may use that information to determine an individual's current month's supplemental security income (SSI) benefit amount. This method of determining SSI benefit amounts is an exception to the use of income from a prior month, known as retrospective monthly accounting (RMA). These rules provide that the Commissioner, in exercising his or her discretionary authority, has determined that no reliable information exists which is currently available for determining SSI benefit amounts for a current month using any method other than RMA.