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Social Security's Treatment Under the Federal Budget: A Summary
The treatment of Social Security in the federal budget is often confusing. In legislation enacted in 1983, 1985, and 1990, Social Security was excluded from official budget calculations and largely exempted it from congressional procedures for controlling budget revenues and expenditures. However, because Social Security represents more than a fifth of federal revenues and expenditures, it often is included in summaries of the government's financial flows, or what is referred to as the "unified" budget.
Social Security Benefits Are Not Paid for the Month of Death: A Fact Sheet
Social security benefits are not paid for the month in which a recipient dies. Legislation is routinely introduced that would either pay the full amount of the benefits for the month of death or pro-rate the benefits based on the proportion of the month that the recipient was alive.
Social Security Reform: The Issue of Individual Versus Collective Investment for Retirement
This report discusses a myriad of issues have been raised in the current Social Security debate, in particular the question of whether and how the nation’s financial markets might be used to reform the system.
The Entitlements Debate
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Social Security: Brief Facts and Statistics
This document provides facts and statistics about Social Security that are frequently requested by Members of Congress and their staffs. Its purpose is to provide quick answers to basic questions about the program. It should not be treated as a guide to Social Security. The reader is advised to consult other publications for explanations of how eligibility and benefits are determined and how the program is financed. Among them are two pamphlets published by the Social Security Administration (SSA) entitled Basic Facts About Social Security and Understanding Social Security which are contained in the Congressional Research Service (CRS) Info Pack IP 153S, Social Security: An Introduction. SSA also issues numerous other pamphlets on various aspects of the program as well as a lengthy Handbook on Social Security. For other possible sources that provide data and basic descriptive material, see the references listed at the end of this document.
Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?
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 perplexed by the use of aggregate budget figures that count all federal receipts and expenditures, including Social Security's.
Social Security Reform: How Much of a Role Could Private Retirement Accounts Play?
Numerous proposals have been made calling for creation of individual retirement accounts to replace or supplement future Social Security benefits. Some believe that having workers accumulate assets based on their own contributions would be a better way to secure future retirement incomes. Others see the creation of private accounts as a way to offset cuts in Social Security that may be needed to restore the system to a sound financial footing. Much of the debate is fueled by the perception that per dollar of contributions, individual accounts invested in the private sector would exceed the value of future Social Security benefits, particularly since those benefits will likely need to be curtailed as the post World War II baby boomers retire.
Social Security's Treatment Under the Federal Budget: A Summary
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Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?
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.
Social Security Taxes: Where Do Surplus Taxes Go and How Are They Used?
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Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?
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Social Security Taxes: Where Do Surplus Taxes Go and How Are They Used?
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Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?
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Social Security Financing Reform: Lessons from the 1983 Amendments
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Social Security Taxes: Where Do Surplus Taxes Go and How Are They Used?
The costs of the Social Security program, both its benefits and administrative expenses, are financed by a tax on wages and self-employment income. Commonly referred to as FICA and SECA taxes (because they are levied under the Federal Insurance and Self-Employment Contributions Acts), these taxes flow each day into thousands of depository accounts maintained by the government with financial institutions across the country. Along with many other forms of revenues, these Social Security taxes become part of the government’s operating cash pool, or what is more commonly referred to as the U.S. treasury. In effect, once these taxes are received, they become indistinguishable from other monies the government takes in.
The Entitlements Debate
Federal entitlement programs make payments directly to recipients who meet eligibility criteria set by law. There are about 400 of them with Social Security being the largest. Generally, entitlement spending is not subject to control through annual appropriations, and once an entitlement program is established, its scope can be altered only by amending the law that created it.
Social Security Student Benefits
As part of his program for economic recovery, President Reagan included a proposal to discontinue social security benefits for 18 to 22-year-old students attending college or vocational school. Critics of the student benefit believe that other federally funded educational assistance programs which tailor the amount of aid provided to actual educational costs and family income should be relied upon to help finance the college educations of students who are children of retired, disabled, and deceased workers.
Social Security Benefits for Prisoners
On Mar. 24, 1983, the Congress adopted, as part of the Social Security Amendments of 1983 (P.L. 98-21), a measure to preclude virtually all incarcerated felons from receiving social security benefits of any kind, including retirement and survivor benefits. This action expanded previous legislation. In October 1980, legislation had been enacted (P.L. 96-473) that denied only social security disability benefits and student benefits to prisoners convicted of a felony.
Social Security: Alien Beneficiaries
Mounting concern about the payment of social security Benefits to aliens living abroad resulted in the enactment of legislation this year adding new restrictions on the payment of benefits to certain aliens, P.L. 98-21.
Social Security and the Federal Budget: What Does Social Security's Being "Off Budget" Mean?
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 perplexed by the continued use of aggregate budget figures that include Social Security’s receipts and expenditures.
Ideas for Privatizing Social Security
There has been considerable interest recently in privatizing Social Security. The ideas are wide-ranging: from adoption of a totally-revamped system of personal retirement accounts, similar to an approach taken by Chile in 1983, to permitting optional earmarking of a portion of existing payroll taxes for personal savings. This report summarizes the proposals that have emerged and the issues surrounding them.
Budget Reconciliation in the 105th Congress: Achieving a Balanced Budget by 2002
This report consists of the budget reconciliation in the 105th congress with achieving a balance budget by 2002.
The Financial Outlook for Social Security and Medicare
The 2001 annual reports of the board of trustees of the Social Security and Medicare trust funds were released on March 19, 2001. Both programs have benefitted from an improved economic outlook in the near term, but both continue to have projected long-range problems. Insolvency for the Disability Insurance (DI) part of Social Security is projected to occur in 2026, and for the retirement and survivors part, in 2040.
Social Security Reform
Although the Social Security system is now running surpluses of income over outgo, its board of trustees projects that its trust funds would be depleted in 2038 and only 73% of its benefits would be payable then with incoming receipts. The trustees project that on average the system's cost would be 14% higher than its income over the next 75 years; by 2075 it would be 45% higher. The primary reason is demographic: the post-World War II baby boomers will begin retiring in less than a decade and life expectancy is rising. By 2025 the number of people age 65 and older is predicted to grow by 73%. In contrast, the number of workers supporting the system would grow by 13%.
Social Security Reform
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Social Security Reform: Bills in the 106th Congress
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Social Security Reform
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Budget Reconciliation in the 105th Congress: Achieving a Balanced Budget by 2002
Achievement of a balanced federal budget by 2002 was a high priority for the 105th Congress and the President. After months of negotiations and debate, starting in February 1997 and ending in July 1997, congressional leaders and the White House forged a consensus on legislation to accomplish this goal. The legislation, signed into law by President Clinton on August 5, 1997, sets “caps” on discretionary spending, constrains entitlement programs, and on balance reduces federal taxes.
Social Security: Raising or Eliminating the Taxable Earnings Base
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The Financial Outlook for Social Security and Medicare
This report provides an overview of the financial outlook for Social Security and Medicare programs.
Current Social Security Issues
Social Security is the focus of intense public interest. Projected long-range funding problems, public skepticism about its future, and a growing perception that Social Security will not be as good a value for future retirees as it is today are fueling calls for reform. This report, updated regularly, discusses a number of the major Social Security issues currently drawing congressional attention.
Social Security and Medicare "Lock Boxes"
With the onset of burgeoning federal budget surpluses, Social Security and Medicare's treatment in the budget has become a major policy issue. Congressional views about what to do with the surpluses are diverse -- ranging from "buying down" the federal government's outstanding debt to cutting taxes to increasing spending.
Social Security: The Cost-of-Living Adjustment in January 2002
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Social Security and Medicare "Lock Boxes"
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Social Security: The Cost-of-Living Adjustment in January 2003
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Social Security Financing
The Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) program, the largest of the social security programs, will not have sufficient resources to meet its benefit payments on time in July 1983. Even if the program were permitted to continue to borrow from the other social security programs, the financial the shortfall would re-emerge in 1984.
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