Forbes' Janet Novack shares her observations of Monday's release of Trustees' reports on the future stability of Social Security, and while the talking points were grim – old age and disability coverage will no longer be fully funded by 2033, three years earlier than projected – the reality is that Congress will still probably be able to pay 75 percent of its stated benefits, even if taxes stay the same as they are right now.
A simple but relatively significant increase to the employer/employee tax rate (from 12.4 percent to 16.7 percent) in 2033 would allow that to be a 100 percent funding level; Novack says that if current tax rates were raised to 15.1 percent, the system could remain fully solvent for another 75 years.
Is there political will to do that? It's a good question. And with current, potentially vote-winning payroll tax cuts still on the books, Social Security funding isn't getting any better.
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