Removing Barriers to Work for Disabled Americans Act

Core Policy Mechanism Top 1

DI Demonstration Project Authority Extension to 2031

Extends the Social Security disability insurance (DI) program's authority to run work-incentive pilot projects through 2031. Adds required evaluation metrics, lengthens the congressional notice period, and guarantees participants' total income won't drop due to participation.

• Population Scope Low Only Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) beneficiaries who voluntarily enroll in demonstration projects are directly affected — a small subset of the roughly 8 million SSDI recipients, well under 10% of the U.S. population.
• Budgetary Magnitude Low No new appropriation or dollar amount is authorized; benefits continue to draw from existing trust funds and administrative costs from existing title II appropriations.
• Legal / Regulatory Depth Medium The bill adds procedural constraints on the Social Security Administration (SSA) — mandatory evaluation metrics, an extended congressional notice period, and a new income-protection guarantee for participants — binding agency conduct without restructuring the underlying substantive disability insurance program.
• Degree of Discretion Granted Medium SSA Commissioner retains broad discretion to design and select demonstration projects but faces new mandatory requirements (evaluation metrics, income-protection guarantee) that constrain how that discretion is exercised.
• Implementation & Enforcement Burden Low No new enforcement infrastructure, penalties, or compliance obligations are imposed on outside parties; the added burden falls internally on SSA to satisfy new reporting and participant income-protection requirements.
• Temporal Commitment Low Authority to initiate new projects expires December 31, 2030, with all projects terminating by December 31, 2031 — a hard expiry within 10 years that self-terminates unless Congress acts to extend it.