Latest News
“Cautious Optimism” about Social Security’s Future? - ElderLawAnswers.com
If you read these pages regularly, you know that Social Security will soon have financial difficulties which, if left unresolved by Congress, will result in a cut to everyone’s monthly Social Security payment starting in about the fall of 2032. That would obviously be a catastrophic event, especially since the current forecast is about a 23% cut in everyone’s monthly SS payment. And that, in turn, would clearly result in dire consequences for about 70 million Americans who rely heavily on Social Security. But, as explained by Lee Pruitt in this ElderLawAnswers article, there is reason for “cautious optimism” that Congress will act to reform Social Security and prevent future cuts to the program. Click here to read more.
While some other organizations only verbally lament this looming crisis, The Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC) is actively engaged in providing Congress with ideas for a long-term solution. As an example of leading thinking on reforming Social Security, AMAC believes Social Security must be preserved and modernized to serve future generations. AMAC’s position is that this can be achieved without payroll tax increases through relatively minor program modifications, including changes to the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) process and modifications to the formulas for calculating initial benefits for higher-income beneficiaries. Changes to the age for maximizing benefits are included in AMAC’s position, along with (1) an increase in the thresholds where benefits are subject to income tax; (2) indexing of these thresholds annually to account for inflation; (3) changing the taxable maximum formula to address the unintended loss of revenue; (4) improving survivor benefits, (5) eliminating the reduction in benefits for those choosing to work before full retirement age; and (6) improving savings tools for future retirees, including a savings account that builds estate value. 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. See AMAC’s proposal for Social Security reform here.