Congressional Research Service Reports - 71 Matching Results

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Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?

Description: This report discusses social security and its place in the federal budget. As a result of a series of laws enacted in 1983, 1985 and 1990, Social Security is considered to be "off budget" for federal budget purposes. While the meaning of this might seem obvious--that Social Security is not to be considered as part of the federal budget--many people are confused by the continued use of aggregate budget figures that include Social Security's receipts and expenditures.
Date: July 20, 2000
Creator: Koitz, David S.
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security's Treatment Under the Federal Budget: A Summary

Description: This report discusses the treatment of Social Security in the federal budget, which has become a major fiscal policy issue. Congressional views about what to do with budget surpluses are diverse—ranging from buying down the outstanding federal debt to cutting taxes to increasing spending. However, support for the proposition of “protecting” Social Security surpluses is substantial.
Date: September 21, 2000
Creator: Koitz, David S. & Nuschler, Dawn
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: Report of the President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security

Description: This report describes the Commission’s three reform plans. The first plan would make no other changes to the program. The second plan would slow the growth of Social Security through one major provision that would index initial benefits to prices rather than wages. The third plan would slow future program growth through a variety of measures.
Date: December 21, 2001
Creator: Nuschler, Dawn
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security Reform: President Bush's Individual Account Proposal

Description: The Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI) program, commonly referred to as Social Security, is facing a long-term fiscal deficit. In response to this challenge, President Bush has made Social Security reform the key focus of his domestic social policy agenda during his second term. On February 2, the President issued a document, “Strengthening Social Security for the 21st Century,” which lays out the specifications for a system of voluntary individual accounts to be phased-in as … more
Date: April 25, 2005
Creator: Haltzel, Laura
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Impact of Medicare Premiums on Social Security Beneficiaries

Description: This report shows how the deduction of Medicare Part B and Part D premiums affects Social Security beneficiaries. It describes how increases in Social Security benefits and Medicare premiums are calculated under current law and explains the circumstances under which Social Security beneficiaries are held harmless for increases in the standard Part B premium, as well as the premium assistance available to low-income beneficiaries.
Date: January 7, 2008
Creator: Romig, Kathleen
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Mexican Workers in the United States: A Comparison with Workers from Social Security Totalization Countries

Description: On June 29, 2004, the United States and Mexico signed a Social Security totalization agreement, the effects of which depend on the yet to be disclosed language of the agreement. A totalization agreement coordinates the payment of Social Security taxes and benefits for workers who divide their careers between two countries. The agreement has not been transmitted to Congress for review, which is required under law before the agreement can go into effect. This report does not attempt to estimate t… more
Date: July 29, 2005
Creator: Siskin, Alison & Mayer, Gerald
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Child Welfare: Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits for Children in Foster Care

Description: This report begins with a discussion of the foster care system and the Social Security benefits available to eligible children, including those in foster care. It then describes the role of representative payees and their responsibilities. The report provides data on the use of Social Security benefits to reimburse states for child welfare, and includes a discussion of the Keffeler decision. Finally, the report concludes with proposals supported by some advocates to change the current practice … more
Date: February 1, 2007
Creator: Fernandes, Adrienne L.; Szymendera, Scott & Stoltzfus, Emilie
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Age Dependency Ratios and Social Security Solvency

Description: As highlighted by the Social Security Administration (SSA), the aging of the (United States) population, hastened by the impending retirement of the huge baby-boom generation, has caused policy-makers to question whether the U.S. Social Security system can meet the demands for retirement benefits in the future. Because the current system largely pays benefits through taxes paid by current workers, the financial health of the system is sensitive to the ratio of dependents to workers—sometimes ca… more
Date: October 27, 2006
Creator: Shrestha, Laura B.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Child Welfare: Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits for Children in Foster Care

Description: This report begins with a discussion of the foster care system and the Social Security benefits available to eligible children, including those in foster care. It then describes the role of representative payees and their responsibilities. The report provides data on the use of Social Security benefits to reimburse states for child welfare, and includes a discussion of the Keffeler decision. Finally, the report concludes with proposals supported by some advocates to change the current practice … more
Date: January 22, 2008
Creator: Fernandes, Adrienne L.; Szymendera, Scott & Stoltzfus, Emilie
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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How Would Medicare Part B Premiums Be Affected If There Is No Social Security COLA?

Description: This report outlines how Medicare Part B premiums and Social Security cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) are calculated, and how the COLA affects Part B premiums. The report also examines a scenario in which Medicare Part B premiums rise but Social Security benefits do not.
Date: May 4, 2009
Creator: Romig, Kathleen & Hahn, Jim
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: A Discussion of Some Issues Affecting the Early Retirement Age

Description: This report examines certain technical aspects of the issues surrounding the earliest age of retirement, not only in terms of its treatment under reform proposals, but also in terms of its effect under today's law. It includes background and history of the topic as well as issues related to financing, equity, and incentive effects.
Date: May 15, 2000
Creator: Kollmann, Geoffrey
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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The Consumer Price Index: A Brief Overview

Description: The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is perhaps the most widely reported measure of inflation. A number of federal government programs are regularly adjusted to account for changes in the CPI, such as Social Security benefits and the personal income tax rate schedule. Thus, the behavior of the CPI has important consequences for a large number of people. This report contains information on how the CPI is estimated, improving the CPI measure, and more information related to this calculation.
Date: February 28, 2008
Creator: Cashell, Brian W.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Income and Poverty Among Older Americans in 2007

Description: This report describes the income and poverty status of the 36.8 million Americans age 65 and older who were living in households in 2007. The report also describes how the proportion of total income received from each source differs between high-income individuals and households and low-income individuals and households.
Date: October 3, 2008
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
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Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Income and Poverty Among Older Americans in 2008

Description: This report describes the sources and amounts of income received by the 37.8 million Americans aged 65 and older who lived in non-institutional settings in 2008. The report also describes how the proportion of total income received from each source differs between high-income individuals and households and low-income individuals and households.
Date: October 2, 2009
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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State Unemployment Taxes and SUTA Dumping

Description: This report provides a summary of the State Unemployment Tax Acts (SUTA) Dumping Prevention Act of 2004, P.L. 108-295. The term "SUTA dumping" refers to a variety of tax planning strategies used by employers to minimize the tax burden of federally mandated state unemployment taxes.
Date: May 27, 2005
Creator: Maguire, Steven & Whittaker, Julie M.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: The Cost-of-Living Adjustment in January 2005

Description: This report discusses how the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for Social Security benefits are determined. The 2.7% COLA payable in January 2005 was triggered by the rise in the CPI-W (Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers) from the third quarter of 2003 to the third quarter of 2004. This COLA triggers identical percentage increases in Supplemental Security Income (SSI), veterans' pensions, and railroad retirement benefits, and causes other changes in the Social Secu… more
Date: October 19, 2004
Creator: Sidor, Gary
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Retirement Savings and Household Wealth in 2000: Analysis of Census Bureau Data

Description: This report examines recent trends in retirement saving and the policy implications. The aging of the American population and the impending retirement of the "baby boom" will place significant strains over the next several decades on both Social Security and on retirees' own financial resources. With continued increases in average life expectancies, retirees in the 21st century will have to stretch their savings and other assets over longer periods of retirement than were experienced by their p… more
Date: December 12, 2002
Creator: Purcell, Patrick J.
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Retirement Savings and Household Wealth in 2007

Description: This report discusses various issues that impact the retirement income of Americans. About half of all workers in the United States participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan of some kind, a proportion that has remained relatively stable over the past thirty years. Because the majority of assets held in retirement accounts are invested in stocks, trends in stock prices have a significant impact on households' retirement account balances.
Date: April 8, 2009
Creator: Purcell, Patrick
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: Substantial Gainful Activity for the Blind

Description: This report examines the Social Security disability program, the level of earnings that constitute "substantial gainful activity" (SGA), and therefore disqualifies a person from receiving benefits, is set by regulation at $940 a month for 2008. However, for the blind, the law provides a different SGA level, $1570 a month for 2008, which is adjusted annually to reflect growth in average wages. This report discusses the reasons for these differing amounts and proposals to change them.
Date: January 8, 2008
Creator: Szymendera, Scott
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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Social Security: The Cost-of-Living Adjustment in January 2003

Description: This report discusses the Cost-of-living Adjustments to Social Security in 2003. To compensate for the effects of inflation, Social Security recipients receive a cos-of-living adjustment (COLA) in January of each year. The Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W), updates monthly by the Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), is the measure used to compute the change.
Date: October 18, 2002
Creator: Koitz, David & Kollmann, Geoffrey
Item Type: Refine your search to only Report
Partner: UNT Libraries Government Documents Department
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