The federal Department of Justice's request was made to the Supreme Court.
Melissa Correa Velázquez, EL VOCERO25/03/202
The U.S. Department of Justice asked the federal Supreme Court to extend to June 1 the filing of its written arguments regarding the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program.
"We respectfully request that petitioner's time to file its opening brief and joint appendix be extended to and including Tuesday, June 1, 2021. We further request that respondent's time to file his brief be extended to and including Monday, August 16, 2021. Under court rules, the petitioner's reply brief is due 30 days thereafter," states U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth B. Prelogar's motion.https://8ea36c34edffedf393a016a4135fa01f.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html.
On March 1, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it will evaluate the SSI eligibility of island residents.
The federal Department of Justice, under the administration of former President Donald Trump, asked the highest judicial forum in the United States to reverse the decisions of the Federal Court Judge on the island, Gustavo Gelpí, and the First Circuit Court of Appeals based in Boston, which determined that Luis Vaello Madero, a former New York resident who moved to Loíza, did not have to return $28,000 of that program because he had not reported that he had moved to the island where he did not receive the benefits of the program.
The federal Department of Justice states that "the importance of the question presented underscores the need for this Court's review. SSI is an important federal program and its extension to Puerto Rico would have significant consequences. According to one estimate cited by the Court of Appeals, extending SSI to Puerto Rico could apply to more than 300,000 Puerto Rican residents each month...The Social Security Administration estimates that extending SSI to Puerto Rico would cost approximately $23 billion over the next ten years."
The federal Department of Justice insists that Vaello Madero must return the money after moving from New York to Puerto Rico where U.S. citizens do not receive the benefits of that plan.
Vaello Madero's legal representatives argue that eligibility for SSI benefits does not depend on current or past contributions like some insurance programs.