Why Does My Public Pension Reduce My Benefit Amount — Social Security Q&A

Cutting through the arcane details about Social Security trust funds, there is no real disability funding crisis. But once the fund is depleted, the shortfalls are projected to be enormous.

Today 59 million Americans receive Social Security benefits, including 1,907,394 North Carolinians. As Democratic presidential candidate and Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders tweeted in response to the debate: “Social Security can pay every penny owed for the next 18 years”.

“This is a program that’s been immensely popular since it began”, said Nancy LeaMond, executive vice president of AARP. So the money will be “found”, probably by “borrowing” it from the larger part of the Social Security system.

When we entered the Great Depression, the stock market crash and bank failures wiped out retirement savings and more than half of America’s seniors fell into poverty.

Nowhere did the letter say how proponents would fund more generous benefits. But despite decades of success, Social Security remains a target among Republicans. Yet they depend on Social Security to make their retirement years work. Today there are fewer than three.

Americans are living longer, so raising the retirement age makes sense. What happens then? There will still be enough income coming into the program to pay 79 percent of all benefits owed. In 2012 Social Security supported more than $1 trillion in economic output. That comes to $12,228 a year.

But there are other options being discussed as well, such as allowing Americans to invest some of their Social Security contributions in private investment accounts.

The budgetary implications of Social Security are huge of what is essentially a pay-as-you go program.

Social Security payments are calculated using the 35 years in which people earn the most.

There is an easy fix available, but Republicans in Congress are resisting.

A third of adults said that it’s the source of income on which they most rely, or plan to most rely, during retirement.

Democrats are much more eager to defend the disability program, noting that its modest benefits keep millions of disabled workers and their families out of poverty.

And considering the relentless drumbeat in Washington to cut benefits, it’s actually surprising that more people aren’t anxious that Social Security won’t be enough to get by on (65 percent) or won’t be there for them when they finally do retire (64 percent). Today, Social Security continues to protect millions of people.

The numbers are beyond comprehension.

It would give the next president and the new Congress time to explore long-term solutions for Social Security. But the tax applies only to the first $118,500 of a worker’s wage.

Last year, the wage tax generated $756 billion.

Continuing to do nothing about the national debt is irresponsible. Bringing all Americans into Social Security would reduce 75-year deficits by around 10 percent. They corrected the error and sent her a check for $184.

“Where are they going to get the money?” asked Hatch, whose committee has jurisdiction over Social Security.

Overall, the survey finds 51 percent of non-retired people doubt they will receive Social Security and 43 percent of current retirees now receiving benefits believe their payments will be cut.