국제무역
What Happens When the Social Security Trust Fund Is Exhausted: An Alternative Contingency Policy
When the Social Security retirement Trust Fund is exhausted in 2032, old-age and survivor benefits in total must be cut by 24 percent, according to current projections. This is generally thought to be an across-the-board cut by the Social Security Administration, which would hit the poor particularly hard. But some are beginning to consider other, fairer ways of allocating the cuts, including limiting benefits to a certain dollar amount. But as the empirical analysis here shows, that policy too would harm those with relatively high benefits but low or modest net worths, some young survivors, and the advanced aged; it would not touch those with high net worths but relatively low benefits, for example, non-working spouses and early retirees. Instead, I propose an alternative policy on the unfortunate but now likely contingency that Congress does not enact a comprehensive reform package before exhaustion. This alternative is based on one prong of the asset means test used in the age pension program in Australia. Restricted to those ages 62 to 74, and excluding the disabled and those with net worths measured on an individual basis below $470,400, in 2025 dollars, with partial cuts for those with individual net worths below $785,400 at the median benefit, the necessary balance of revenues and outgo would be achieved with some margin allowance for projection corrections and minimum benefit provisions. This alternative contingency policy would highlight the real policy question of whether payroll or other taxes should be raised in any eventual reform package to preserve high levels of scheduled Social Security retirement benefits being paid to rich people, and whether asset means-testing should be part of a more permanent resolution of the financial and policy problems of the current program.
많이 본 자료
![[2025.07] 대출규제](/userdata/main/incContent/sideLink/23/aaaqQGcnBTcOc8zW9uLNz20251015165742zqfnw.png)
![[사람이 되고 싶어요2] 환율의 변화](/userdata/main/incContent/sideLink/22/aaaqQGcnBTcOc8zW9uLNz20251015165408vtzoa.jpg)
