Trump’s pick to lead Social Security promises quick customer service fixes amid agency meltdown

By Tami Luhby, CNN

(CNN) — President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the troubled Social Security Administration told senators Tuesday that he would swiftly improve the agency’s customer service and slash its payment error rate, all while protecting Americans’ personal information.

The bold promises, including a pledge to dramatically cut telephone answer wait times, come as Social Security faces steep personnel cuts as part of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency’s review while the agency confronts ongoing customer service lapses.

Frank Bisignano, who is CEO of Fiserv, the world’s largest payments and financial technology company, was repeatedly pressed by both Republicans and Democrats during his Senate Finance Committee confirmation hearing about the longstanding problems their constituents have in dealing with Social Security, which provides monthly payments to more than 73 million senior citizens, people with disabilities and others.

“I don’t believe that this is going to take us years,” he said of the improvements he plans to institute. “ There’s many things we will solve in year one, and that would be my expectation.”

If confirmed, Bisignano would take over an agency that’s in the midst of a massive and chaotic reorganization spurred by the Trump administration and DOGE. Already understaffed, Social Security is contending with the departure of thousands of employees, many of them with deep institutional knowledge, as it seeks to shrink its workforce by 7,000 people, or 12%. It is also making significant changes to its services, which are expected to drive more customers into its field offices at a time when the agency is seeking to shutter locations.

These moves have former officials and advocates raising red flags that Americans who rely on the agency will have an even harder time getting their questions answered, filing claims and being approved for benefits. Eventually, some warn, the agency’s complex computer systems could break down, causing an interruption in benefits.

Democratic senators peppered the nominee with assertions that Trump and Musk are seeking to undermine the agency with false claims of fraud and service meltdowns so the administration can cut benefits and privatize Social Security, a goal of some Republicans. Bisignano dodged the questions, responding that he has never heard the president talk of privatization and that Trump is committed to protecting the program.

Also, Bisignano repeatedly told Democratic lawmakers that he would protect Americans’ private data after the senators voiced concerns about DOGE having access to sensitive files. Last week, a federal judge blocked the agency from giving DOGE representatives access to agency data containing individuals’ personally identifiable information, and Social Security’s acting commissioner confirmed Monday that DOGE team members’ access to these systems has been revoked.

Vowing to improve customer service

Bisignano said he would draw on his extensive financial industry background to turn things around at Social Security. He promised to improve the telephone service, reduce the time it takes to process disability claims and slash the agency’s improper payment rate, which now stands at less than 1%.

“Taking 20-plus minutes to answer the phone is not really acceptable, and that’s the reason why only 46% of the phone calls get answered, because people get discouraged and hang up,” he told the senators. “I think we could get that to under a minute.”

Bisignano pointed to technology as a way to enhance services – using artificial intelligence to help telephone customer service representatives answer questions by providing them the information they need. But he also noted that improvements may not require more staff.

Senators from both sides of the aisle also expressed concern about DOGE’s plans to close local offices, but Bisignano said those decisions would be up to him.

“I have no intent to close field offices, but I’ve studied nothing on the topic. So, it’s a little hard to commit to something,” he said.

Asked by Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden, the committee’s ranking Democrat, to give DOGE a grade for its recent performance at the agency, Bisignano appeared to lay the blame for the chaos on acting commissioner Leland Dudek, who had been a mid-level staffer at Social Security. Trump elevated Dudek last month after he acknowledged working with Musk’s team, and Dudek has since rolled out many of the controversial changes at the agency.

“I don’t know if this is a DOGE issue. I think we have a leadership issue,” Bisignano said.

Some Social Security advocates, however, were not impressed with Bisignano’s promises at the hearing, noting that he did not disavow the DOGE-led changes at the agency.

“Significantly and alarmingly, Bisignano would not commit to ending Musk and DOGE’s interference at SSA, nor to reversing any of their dangerous policies,” Max Richtman, CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said in a statement.

This story has been updated with additional details.

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