Senator Schatz Introduces Legislation to Expand Social Security

And don’t underestimate the value of Social Security’s life insurance and disability insurance protections.

It’s a record that America must not interrupt. Plus, this would require people to pay into a system from which they get no benefits. The Social Security Administration provides a chart listing the full retirement ages for anyone born before 1960. Although its initial goals were tied closely to combating unemployment, Social Security evolved primarily as a safety net for retirees – at a time, according to its actuarial tables, that Americans’ life expectancy was quite a bit shorter than it is today.

Retirement expert Bill Demaree has been doling out advice on Social Security for more than 30 years now.

Some legislators want to postpone dealing with this crisis by reallocating resources from the larger retirement trust fund. The trustees warn, however, that Congress should not regard this transfer as “a substitute for action to sustain the finances of DI [Disability Insurance] and Social Security as a whole”.

These payments are vital to millions of people. AARP has measured the attitudes of Americans ages 18 and older about Social Security periodically since 1995, most recently in June.

Social Security turned 80 last week and from the celebration in Washington, you’d have thought we just won World War II. That gap will continue to grow as more baby boomers retire. Roughly 9 of 10 people ages 50 and older say they will rely more on Social Security in retirement than on other sources of income. Today, there are only three.

Obviously, there is time to deal with these issues. The combined trust fund reserves are still growing and will continue to do so through 2019. If that happens, it would trigger an automatic 19 percent cut in benefits. If all else fails, general tax revenues can always be used to help fund retirement benefits.

President Obama and other Democrats want to do this again, but there is some question about campaign politics. “With the number of retirees growing, we need to do everything we can to strengthen it. Our legislation would expand Social Security and put more money in the hands of seniors who rely on it, strengthen the program for the next generation of retirees, and make sure everyone pays into the system equally”. This is the best solution at this point. As mentioned above, lawmakers may tinker with the wage base or potentially increase the amount of payroll tax.

The Social Security tax applies to earnings of up to $118,500 in 2015.

Social Security also makes a cost of living adjustment each year if consumer prices increase. This year, benefits went up by 1.7 percent.

The full-benefit retirement age is scheduled to increase to 67 by 2027.

“Americans have a slight preference for raising taxes over reducing benefits, but previous research shows than neither of these alternatives receives high levels of support from the U.S. public”, he added. But the 80-year-old program has since been amended to include payments for the spouses and dependent children of workers who prematurely pass away and disability benefits for those who become unable to work.