SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
martin o malley
Wyden Says Trillions in Taxes Dodged by Ultra-Rich Could Fund Social Security Until 2100
"The ultra-wealthy are avoiding nearly $2 trillion in taxes every 10 years," said Sen. Ron Wyden. "That's where we ought to go to start making progress."
Sep 11, 2024
The Democratic chair of the Senate Finance Committee said during a hearing Wednesday that instead of tossing Social Security's sacred guarantee "in the trash" by cutting benefits, lawmakers should crack down on mega-rich tax dodgers as a way to keep the New Deal program fully solvent for decades to come.
"The ultra-wealthy are avoiding nearly $2 trillion in taxes every 10 years," Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said during a Senate Budget Committee hearing. "That is enough to keep Social Security whole till the end of this century."
"That's where we ought to go to start making progress," Wyden added.
The senator's remarks came during a hearing titled "Social Security Forever: Delivering Benefits and Protecting Retirement Security," which featured testimony from Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O'Malley and several expert witnesses.
Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), who presided over the hearing, used his opening remarks to blast GOP proposals to raise the retirement age, a change he said would "especially hurt low-income retirees."
Whitehouse, the chair of the Senate Budget Committee, acknowledged that some Republicans have pushed back on the notion that the GOP wants to cut Social Security benefits. But if Social Security benefit cuts "really are off the table," the senator said, "that leaves only one other option to prevent insolvency: raise revenue."
"There is no third option. And that means it's time to get to work identifying smart, fair ways to raise revenue, fund the Social Security Trust Fund, and preserve and protect benefits," Whitehouse continued. "Fortunately, there are solutions that would both extend Social Security solvency indefinitely with zero benefit cuts and make our tax system fairer, like my Medicare and Social Security Fair Share Act."
At today's @SenateBudget hearing, @SenWhitehouse slams Republican plans to slash $1.5 trillion from Social Security.
Whitehouse plans to strengthen Social Security by requiring the wealthy to pay their fair share! pic.twitter.com/nWRJt3hUWp
— Social Security Works (@SSWorks) September 11, 2024
Wednesday's hearing came in the heat of a presidential race in which Social Security has featured prominently, with Democrats warning that GOP nominee Donald Trump would push for deep benefit cuts if he's elected to another White House term.
During Tuesday night's debate, Democratic nominee Kamala Harris made the only mention of Social Security, vowing to protect the program that lifted 28 million people out of poverty last year.
Max Richtman, president and CEO of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said in a statement following the debate that while Harris reinforced "her commitment to Social Security and Medicare," Trump "was mum on the topic."
"At least when Trump has nothing to say, he cannot compound his many conflicting and confusing statements about Social Security and Medicare—from calling Social Security a 'Ponzi scheme' to saying he's 'open' to 'cutting entitlements' and proposing to eliminate some of the taxes that fund Social Security," said Richtman. "Tonight's debate underlines the fundamental reality that one candidate in this race will truly protect Social Security and Medicare—and that is Kamala Harris."
According to the latest trustees report, Social Security is positioned to fully pay all benefits and administrative costs until 2035 and is 90% funded for the next quarter century.
Progressive lawmakers and advocacy groups have argued for years that the best way to ensure Social Security's long-term solvency is clear: make the wealthy pay their fair share into the program. Due to the payroll tax cap, millionaires stopped contributing to Social Security just 60 days into 2024.
"Warren Buffett stops paying into Social Security 30 seconds into the new year," O'Malley said during his testimony at Wednesday's Senate hearing, "and the people that clean these buildings pay in all through their paychecks."
Keep ReadingShow Less
What Should Congress Give Social Security for its 88th Birthday?
Lawmakers should approve Biden’s choice for SSA commissioner and his request for additional funding, then vote to expand the popular program.
Aug 14, 2023
On Aug. 14, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed Social Security into law. Eighty-eight years later, our Social Security system is among the most successful and popular government programs in history.
Nearly every worker pays premiums (Federal Insurance Contributions or FICA) for Social Security. In return, they receive insurance benefits when they retire, become disabled, or lose a family breadwinner.
Social Security is secure, efficient, and the most important source of retirement income for the vast majority of Americans. Social Security does have one major flaw, though: Its benefits are too low.
Too many Americans fear that they must work until they die, because they will not be able to retire without a drastic decline in their standard of living. The solution is to expand Social Security.
The average Social Security benefit is only $1,700 a month—considerably lower than in peer nations. That is not enough for working families to enjoy a secure retirement or make ends meet when tragedy strikes in the form of serious and permanent disabilities or death.
It’s not surprising that our nation is facing a retirement income crisis. Too many Americans fear that they must work until they die, because they will not be able to retire without a drastic decline in their standard of living. The solution is to expand Social Security.
Fortunately, President Joe Biden ran on a promise to expand Social Security, and congressional Democrats have introduced multiple bills to do so. One of these is the Social Security 2100 Act, which is sponsored by Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) and co-sponsored by more than 175 of his fellow House Democrats. Another is the Social Security Expansion Act, which is sponsored by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).
These bills, as well as numerous other expansion proposals, have much in common. They would keep Social Security strong for generations to come, averting the modest shortfall in its trust fund that some politicians have used as an excuse to demand benefit cuts. They would increase benefits for everyone, with additional targeted increases for low-income beneficiaries, family caregivers, the very old, and others. Additionally, they would update the annual cost-of-living adjustment to reflect the real expenses beneficiaries face and prevent benefits from eroding.
These are commonsense proposals that enjoy broad support from Americans across the political spectrum. Indeed, 83% of Democrats, 73% of independents, and 73% of Republicans want to expand Social Security and pay for it by making the wealthy contribute more. Yet not a single Republican member of Congress is signed on to a bill expanding Social Security benefits.
Instead, Republicans in Congress support cutting Social Security and ultimately ending the program as we know it. This is laid out in the budget proposal from the Republican Study Committee (RSC), a group that counts about 70% of House Republicans as members.
The RSC budget would raise the retirement age to 69, which is mathematically equivalent to a 13% benefit cut. It would also decimate middle-class benefits that workers have earned and paid for. The Republican goal is to turn Social Security into a flat, poverty-level benefit so that it loses political support and can be destroyed.
Nor is the RSC budget the only Republican plan to cut Social Security. Every major Republican presidential candidate, including former President Donald Trump (if you go back to 2000), is on the record supporting Social Security cuts. Republican politicians are ignoring the will of their voters in favor of protecting their wealthy donors.
Republicans have also been waging a quiet war on the Social Security Administration (SSA), the agency that administers the program. Since 2010, largely Republican-controlled Congresses have slashed its budget by 17%, even as the number of beneficiaries grew by 22%. This has forced the agency to lay off thousands of workers, close field offices, and reduce hours.
The SSA needs adequate funding and strong leadership. Biden has nominated former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley to serve as SSA commissioner. Biden has also requested a 10% increase in funding for the SSA. The best 88th birthday gifts Congress could give Social Security are to swiftly confirm O’Malley and to grant Biden’s funding request.
Congress should then take up legislation to expand Social Security. If Republicans refuse, Democrats should make Social Security a major issue in next year’s election and urge voters to support the party that is working to expand, instead of cut, their earned benefits.
Keep ReadingShow Less
Advocates Applaud Nomination of Martin O'Malley to Lead Social Security Administration
"At a time when Social Security is under attack from Republicans in Congress, O'Malley is the fighter that the American people need at SSA's helm."
Jul 26, 2023
President Joe Biden on Wednesday nominated former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley to head the Social Security Administration, a move that advocates applauded given his
record of supporting Social Security expansion and opposing calls to raise the retirement age.
"At a time when Social Security is under attack from Republicans in Congress, O'Malley is the fighter that the American people need at SSA's helm," said Nancy Altman, the president of Social Security Works. "SSA has not had a Senate-confirmed commissioner nominated by a Democratic president since 2001. During that time, congressional Republicans have starved SSA of resources, resulting in backlogs and long waits. With staffing the lowest it has been in a quarter of a century, SSA's hardworking and dedicated public servants are overworked and underpaid."
If confirmed by the narrowly Democratic Senate, O'Malley would replace Acting SSA Commissioner Kilolo Kijakazi, who took over the agency after Biden fired former President Donald Trump's commissioner, Andrew Saul, in 2021.
During his 2016 presidential campaign, O'Malley released a proposal that called for expanding Social Security benefits by requiring Americans who earn over $250,000 a year to contribute more to the program. Currently, the Social Security payroll tax only applies to the first $160,200 of earnings.
"We are confident that O'Malley, working closely with President Biden, will fight not only for expanded benefits and against cuts, but also for opening new field offices and against closing existing ones," Altman said. "Social Security Works looks forward to fighting for O’Malley's rapid confirmation and then working with him to protect and expand our Social Security system."
Richard Fiesta, executive director of the Alliance for Retired Americans, also celebrated O'Malley's nomination, saying in a statement that "SSA needs a strong commissioner now more than ever."
"With 10,000 Americans turning 65 each day, the workload increases every day and the budget has been woefully inadequate to meet the needs of seniors, people with disabilities, and all American families," said Fiesta. "There is no time to waste. We urge the Senate to confirm Gov. O'Malley without delay."
O'Malley's nomination comes as SSA is facing a staffing crisis that has left employees feeling demoralized and exhausted, resulting in high turnover and longer wait times for people applying to receive benefits—problems that would likely get worse if the House GOP's proposed cuts to SSA's budget become law.
Julie Tippens, legislative director of the American Federation of Government Employees, warned last week that House Republicans' proposed $183 million in cuts to SSA's budget for the coming fiscal year would "devastate" the agency.
"More than 10,000 Americans die, and another 5,000 Americans are forced to declare bankruptcy, every year while waiting for their disability hearing," Tippens said. "More cuts to SSA will result in a rapid increase of wait times, force SSA offices to close in many communities, and reduce service hours to the public."
Keep ReadingShow Less
Most Popular