Social Security faces a severe funding shortfall. Time is running out for lawmakers to shore up the critical program millions of retirees rely on. According to the latest Social Security Trustees Report, the retirement trust fund is projected to run out of reserves in the fourth quarter of 2032.
Two ideas that have been suggested are to raise the full retirement age or eliminate the payroll tax cap for high-income earners, but a Yahoo! Finance article says there is a new proposal that could be raising interest.
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB), a bipartisan nonprofit, suggests limiting cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for the highest-income earners. A white paper it published says the proposed change “could be a rapid, thoughtful and progressive way to help restore solvency and put Social Security on a sustainable path.”
The Yahoo! Finance article explains that under the CRFB’s new proposal, “all beneficiaries will continue to receive an annual COLA. However, retirees with the largest benefits — and typically the highest lifetime earnings — will face a fixed-dollar cap on their annual COLA.”
It’s a hard concept to consider when America’s retirees have been suffering from years of insufficient COLAs.
Council of Seniors Is Here To Help Older Americans
All of us here at the Council of Seniors want to improve retirees’ financial futures and ensure they receive their full Social Security benefits. We are working with members of Congress to introduce the “Social Security Restitution Act.” It would provide an estimated $970 one-time payment to every retired worker receiving Social Security benefits, to help offset years of inadequate cost-of-living adjustments.
According to the Council of Seniors’ Executive Director Barbara Godwin, “For years, seniors have watched their Social Security checks fail to stretch as far as they should, while the cost of everyday essentials keeps climbing. This legislation is a straightforward, targeted way to help make up for COLAs that didn’t reflect what retired Americans were actually paying to get by.”
Please take a moment and sign our petition today to show your support.