Q: My widowed mother recently died. My sisters and I applied for the Social Security death benefit, but our claim was denied. We were simply told we were not eligible for it. But several years ago, my friend's father died and she got the death benefit. Can you explain why she got it but we didn't?

A: The Social Security death benefit is a pittance of $255 that the government throws at the family of a deceased taxpayer. I've always been an advocate of either eliminating the almost worthless benefit, or increasing it to something substantial — perhaps $2,500?

Anyway, Social Security planners and lawmakers have never listened to me about this issue. So, I'll explain to you and the rest of my readers how the current law works.

First, you must understand that the death benefit is only doled out on the account of someone who has worked and paid Social Security taxes. So if your mother was getting widow's benefits on your father's Social Security record because she had never worked outside the home herself, then you would not qualify for the death benefit. In other words, your mother was not what the government calls "insured," meaning she did not meet the work requirements.

Second, even if she were "insured," you would not have been paid the Social Security death benefit because of a recent change in the law. A while back, lawmakers were looking for ways to save a few pennies in Social Security outlays. One way they did that is by limiting the death benefit payment only to the surviving spouse, or to a surviving minor child.

So, because your father was already deceased, and because your mother had no surviving minor children, there is no one who qualifies for the death benefit.

You mentioned a friend qualifying for the death benefit when her father died. My hunch is they slipped in under the wire. Before the law was changed, any family member, or in some cases even non-family members, could qualify for the $255 payment.

But as I said, the amount is so small I hope you're not losing too much sleep over this!

Q: I am 64 years old and getting Social Security. But I work part time, and as you know, I have to pay back $1 in Social Security benefits for each $2 I earn over $13,560. I work with high-risk students in a low-income neighborhood school and I was wondering if there are any exceptions to the payback rule for people in jobs like mine?

A: I'm sorry, but no there are not any exceptions to Social Security's so-called "retirement test" rules.

So, if you're between 62 and 66 and getting Social Security retirement benefits while continuing to work, you're stuck with the same penalties on outside income whether you're doing noble work, such as a teacher helping low-income students achieve greater things, or ignoble work, oh let's say such as a pundit spinning the facts on a cable news program helping confuse the electorate.

To find out more about Tom Margenau and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.