Introduction According to public opinion polls, the most popular way to “fix” Social Security is by taxing the rich, specifically by increasing or eliminating the limit on wages subject to the Social Security payroll tax.[1] Despite the populist appeal of…
Download the pdf: History and Future of the Social Security Trust Fund_ Part III Read Part I Read Part II Introduction Part III of this issue brief series examines how the Social…
Downloadable pdf: Social Security's Debt Limit Escape Clause Introduction Last month, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen notified Congress that the federal government had reached the current debt limit ($31.4 trillion).[1] As a result, the Treasury Department has undertaken traditional “extraordinary measures”…
Download the pdf: Social Security: A New Solution to an Old Problem Introduction More than one-quarter of state and local government employees are exempt from Social Security because they participate in a pension plan that allegedly provides comparable retirement benefits.[1]…
Download the pdf: Social-Security-Replacement-Rates_Nudging-in-the-Wrong-Direction.pdf Introduction Social Security reform is both necessary and urgent, yet Congress remains reluctant to act.[1] This political inertia is primarily the result of two factors. First, the combined Social Security trust funds (OASDI) are projected to remain…