A recent study conducted by the Government Accountability Office found that roughly half of households age 55 and over have no retirement savings. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) says that the study results are evidence that Social Security needs to be expanded. Some might disagree with the Senator, however.
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) reportedly said, “You could [design a plan to fix Social Security] on the back of a napkin.” The author says that this statement is absurd and says the problems with Social Security are far more complex than what Graham’s statement would lead one to believe.
The author claims that the media is the most destructive force in Social Security today. He asks how we can expect to have an informed debate about Social Security when the media is putting headlines over content and cites a recent study as one example of the media’s flawed coverage of the debate.
Lawmakers in both the House and Senate have introduced legislation that would simplify the process for identifying people who have died and cutting off the flow of federal benefits to them.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) has proposed a new amendment to address the financial imbalance within Social Security. The author says that the proposal is not a serious one because of what it is proposing and explains why he believes this to be so.
The author says that it is imperative that federal employees be fully aware of and ready to access the multitude of available compensation options at their disposal when the need arises (such as a medical disability) so they can secure their financial futures. He provides an overview of some of these important available options.
I retired under CSRS and then went to work for the state government under a state pension system. How will the two government pensions affect my Social Security benefits?
Retirees are trying to improve their return on their past Social Security contributions. The author describes why any success that they have at doing this will come at the expense of Social Security’s long term solvency.
My husband’s personnel office just found out that he should have been in CSRS Offset after 21 years of coming from the DC Government. After his maximum SS tax was reached, his personnel office stopped the SS deduction. In the past, after the maximum was reached he has received the SS contribution in his paycheck. Was this done correctly?
Recent figures from the CBO suggest that Social Security contributed $877 billion to total revenue, but the author says that the CBO’s budget projections are misleading, especially as they relate to Social Security.
