Max Baucus: “very sadly, Robert M. Ball, Bob Ball, passed away on January 29, 2008, at the age of 93. Bob Ball had a truly…”

“very sadly, Robert M. Ball, Bob Ball, passed away on January 29, 2008, at the age of 93. Bob Ball had a truly exceptional record of public service and his passing is a loss to this nation. Bob Ball served as the longest serving Commissioner of the Social Security Administration from 1962 to 1973 and played a critical role in all changes to the Social Security programs for the last half century. He was a champion of social insurance programs, and through his leadership, the Social Security Administration tackled many challenges and served millions of Americans in need. Few individuals have had as direct and profound an effect on the lives of our fellow citizens. And I would like to express my personal gratitude for Bob Ball's dedicated service. Bob Ball began his career with Social Security in a New Jersey field office in 1939. At SSA's headquarters, he served in various positions with the Bureau of Old Age and Survivors Insurance. He left the agency briefly in 1945 to serve as staff director for the Advisory Council on Social Security to the Senate Committee on Finance, and returned 4 years later serving as assistant director of the Bureau of Old Age and Survivors Insurance, and eventually, deputy director and acting director. In 1962, President John F. Kennedy appointed Bob Ball Commissioner of Social Security, a position he held under both Democratic and Republican Presidents--retiring in 1973.”