Recent news articles have been released that question a purchase of over 170,000 bullets by the Social Security Administration. 

On Thursday, August 16, 2012, The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released a statement addressing the recent purchases on their website. (www.oig.ssa.gov). 

In their response, the OIG office stated,

"our office has criminal investigators, or special agents, who are responsible for investigating violations of the laws that govern SSA’s programs. Currently, about 295 special agents and supervisory special agents work in 66 offices across the United States.  These investigators have full law enforcement authority, including executing search warrants and making arrests."

They also added:

"Our investigators are similar to your State or local police officers. They use traditional investigative techniques, and they are armed when on official duty."

OIG's response also gave reasoning for why the type of bullets they ordered were appropriate - something that was questioned by many new outlets.  OIG explained that, "In fact, this type of ammunition is standard issue for many law enforcement agencies. OIG’s special agents use this ammunition during their mandatory quarterly firearms qualifications and other training sessions, to ensure agent and public safety."

To see the full response visit:  http://oig.ssa.gov/newsroom/blog/2012/08/social-securitys-oig-responds-concerns-over-ammunition-procurement