Fertility Breeds Instability for Social Security - AMAC & Fedsmith.com
Brenton Smith of Fedsmith.com explains how lower fertility is not a new problem. Politicians have known about it for decades. He ties the issue to Social Security’s long term solvency problems, which are now closer by several years due to the pandemic. Smith laments that many leaders appear prone to simply let benefit cuts occur in a decade rather than offer reform now, meaning recipients would draw only 76% of their benefit before the surpluses (reserves) become exhausted. Smith also reviews a recent piece by Paul Brandus, of MarketWatch entitled “Why the coronavirus could shrink your Social Security years from now” to describe how Covid-19 might put still further downward pressure on birth and thus Social Security as well. Full article here.
The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) takes a different approach, noting that Social Security must be preserved and modernized. This can be achieved by making modest changes in cost of living adjustments and the retirement age, with no additional taxes on workers. AMAC advocates for a bipartisan compromise, “The Social Security Guarantee Act,” taking portions of bills introduced by former Rep. Johnson (R-TX) and current Rep. Larson (D-CT) and merging them with the Association’s own research. One component is Social Security PLUS, a new, voluntary plan that would allow all earners to have more income available at retirement. This component is intended to appeal especially to younger workers. AMAC is resolute in its mission that Social Security be preserved and modernized and has gotten the attention of lawmakers in DC, meeting with a great many congressional offices and their staffs over the past several years. Read AMAC’s plan here.
Notice: The link provided above connects readers to the full content of the posted article. The URL (internet address) for this link is valid on the posted date; socialsecurityreport.org cannot guarantee the duration of the link’s validity. Also, the opinions expressed in these postings are the viewpoints of the original source and are not explicitly endorsed by AMAC, Inc.; the AMAC Foundation, Inc.; or socialsecurityreport.org.