Center on Budget and Policy Priorities – “As the baby boom generation ages into its peak years for retirement and disability, the demands on the Social Security Administration (SSA) are reaching all-time highs.  Yet Congress has cut SSA’s core operating budget by 10 percent since 2010, after adjusting for inflation. These cuts hurt SSA’s service to the public in every state.  The agency has been forced to shutter field offices and shrink its staff, leading to longer waits for service and a record-high disability appeals backlog.The agency has been forced to shutter field offices and shrink its staff, leading to longer waits for service and a record-high disability appeals backlog.  While the overall effect is a decline in service nationwide, the effects of the cuts vary considerably by state…”