Social Security solvency
Donald Trump & Social Security: A Most Curious Stance
Susan Ferrechio reports that Donald Trump has abandoned his previous stances pre-2015 on shoring up Social Security with a higher retirement age and private accounts in favor of essentially leaving the program as is. “You don’t have to touch Social…
Social Security Board Nominee in Senate Hot Seat
Esther D’Amico, writing for Kiplinger.com, covers the Senate hearing for Andrew Biggs, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and a well known Social Security expert. Biggs was chosen by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to be nominated to…
Proposal: Cut 401(k) Tax Exemption to Fund Social Security Shortfall
Vince Cariaga summarizes here a paper by authors Andrew Biggs and Alicia Munnell from the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College that covers new ground. The two propose to fix Social Security’s looming insolvency problem by eliminating tax preferences included…
Another Look at the Pervasive Pessimism About Social Security’s Future
Media accounts of the problems facing Social Security frequently serve as fodder for pessimism, with terms like “bankruptcy” and “broke” serving to fuel opinions that the program will be dead in less than a decade. It’s true that Social Security…
Misunderstanding of Social Security’s Funding Underscored in Op-Ed
An article posted on the Bossier Press-Tribune suggests that a comment made by a member of Congress illustrates a fundamental misunderstanding of how Social Security is funded, and goes on to stress the importance of prioritizing an approach to dealing…
Social Security’s Future–A Reality Check on the Unfolding Dilemma
If you’ve been following the steadily unfolding solvency crisis facing our Social Security system, you’ve no doubt seen an equally steady stream of opinions on how best to address the situation. The Social Security trustees have been sounding the alarm…
Enemy of Social Security Reform? Public Apathy
Despite all the media warnings about Social Security solvency and possible across-the-board benefit cuts in about a decade, a recent Gallup poll suggests that 53% of Americans still think they’ll get everything they’re entitled to when it comes time for…
Allow “Phasing In” Social Security Benefits?
In this interesting opinion piece, one erudite expert suggests that Social Security should offer an option to allow phasing into retirement. This would be done by permitting one to first collect only a portion of their Social Security benefit early,…
Will Your Social Security be Taxable?
In response to threatened revenue shortfall for Social Security in 1983, Congress enacted a law which required those with incomes over particular thresholds to pay income tax on half of their Social Security benefits. The thresholds set in 1983 were…
Is Even Discussing Fiscal Sanity a “no no?”
Is the partisan divide in Congress so great that even entertaining ideas to deal with the ever burgeoning national debt is an unacceptable concept? Or is discussing reform of programs which will soon become insolvent (Social Security and Medicare) completely…