Social Security’s $4.1 Trillion Hidden Government Deficit - AMAC & The Cato Institute
Romina Boccia of The Cato Institute explains the American public’s misconceptions about how our pay-as-you-go Social Security works and how and why it faces a huge financial shortfall. Boccia explains how the IOUs work, the current deficit spending the program is now running, why it is an unsustainable program without reform, and what some options are to fix the system. As the author states, “Waiting until 2033 to address these issues is a perilous gamble. Delaying reforms only magnifies the problem, requiring more drastic measures down the road. Early intervention allows for more measured, gradual adjustments that can be phased in to minimize disruption and spread the burden more equitably across generations.” Full piece here.
As an example of the leading thoughts on reforming Social Security, the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC, Inc.) believes Social Security must be preserved and modernized. This can be achieved without tax increases by slight modifications to cost of living adjustments and payments to high income beneficiaries plus gradually increasing the full (but not early) retirement age. AMAC Action, AMAC’s advocacy arm, supports an increase in the threshold where benefits are taxed and then indexing for inflation, and calls for eliminating the reduction in people’s benefits for those choosing to work before full retirement age. AMAC is resolute in its mission that Social Security be preserved for current and successive generations and has gotten the attention of lawmakers in D.C., meeting with many congressional offices and staff over the past decade.