Social Security faces a $32 trillion shortfall

[Lakhota]

SS was fine till the Dems threw it in the General Fund. They have been robbing blind ever since.

How is Social Security being robbed if the government is required to pay interest on the funds - like it pays to China and many others who own U.S. debt securities? BTW, Social Security is the largest holder of U.S. debt.

They have been taking money out of social security since the 60's you dumb ass.

Any time they need money SS is where they go to get it because SS always has money paid into it.

Jesus are you stupid.

Yes, dumbass, I'm fully aware of that - but the government didn't STEAL the money. The government pays interest on it just like they pay other holders of U.S. debt.

Intragovernmental Holdings

Which agencies own the most Treasuries? Social Security, by a long shot.

Here's the detailed breakdown (as of December 31, 2015):

• Social Security (Social Security Trust Fund and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund) - $2.786 trillion
• Office of Personnel Management Retirement - $873 billion
• Military Retirement Fund - $601 billion
• Medicare (Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund) - $267 billion
• All Other Retirement Funds - $187 billion
• Cash on Hand to Fund Federal Government Operations - $508 billion. (Source: Treasury Bulletin, Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 6. Schedule D-Investments of Federal Government Accounts in Federal Securities, December 2015)

Debt Held by the Public

• Foreign - $6.175 trillion
• Federal Reserve - $2.461 trillion
• Mutual Funds - $1.056 trillion
• State and Local Government, including their pension funds - $803 billion
• Private Pension Funds - $403 billion
• Banks - $515 billion
• Insurance Companies - $293 billion
• U.S. Savings Bonds - $174 billion
• Other (individuals, government-sponsored enterprises, brokers and dealers, bank personal trusts and estates, corporate and non-corporate businesses, and other investors) - $1.198 trillion. (Sources: Federal Reserve, Factors Affecting Reserve Balance, May 12, 2016. Treasury Bulletin, Ownership of Federal Securities, Table OFS-2, as of June 2015)

The Real Owner of the U.S. Debt Will Surprise You

 

[Claudette]

SS was fine till the Dems threw it in the General Fund. They have been robbing blind ever since.

How is Social Security being robbed if the government is required to pay interest on the funds - like it pays to China and many others who own U.S. debt securities? BTW, Social Security is the largest holder of U.S. debt.

They have been taking money out of social security since the 60's you dumb ass.

Any time they need money SS is where they go to get it because SS always has money paid into it.

Jesus are you stupid.

Yes, dumbass, I'm fully aware of that - but the government didn't STEAL the money. The government pays interest on it just like they pay other holders of U.S. debt.

Intragovernmental Holdings

Which agencies own the most Treasuries? Social Security, by a long shot.

Here's the detailed breakdown (as of December 31, 2015):

• Social Security (Social Security Trust Fund and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund) - $2.786 trillion
• Office of Personnel Management Retirement - $873 billion
• Military Retirement Fund - $601 billion
• Medicare (Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund) - $267 billion
• All Other Retirement Funds - $187 billion
• Cash on Hand to Fund Federal Government Operations - $508 billion. (Source: Treasury Bulletin, Monthly Treasury Statement, Table 6. Schedule D-Investments of Federal Government Accounts in Federal Securities, December 2015)

Debt Held by the Public

• Foreign - $6.175 trillion
• Federal Reserve - $2.461 trillion
• Mutual Funds - $1.056 trillion
• State and Local Government, including their pension funds - $803 billion
• Private Pension Funds - $403 billion
• Banks - $515 billion
• Insurance Companies - $293 billion
• U.S. Savings Bonds - $174 billion
• Other (individuals, government-sponsored enterprises, brokers and dealers, bank personal trusts and estates, corporate and non-corporate businesses, and other investors) - $1.198 trillion. (Sources: Federal Reserve, Factors Affecting Reserve Balance, May 12, 2016. Treasury Bulletin, Ownership of Federal Securities, Table OFS-2, as of June 2015)

The Real Owner of the U.S. Debt Will Surprise You

Of course they stole it out of SS to spend it on some idiotic Govt. project they needed money for. If it weren't in the General Fund they couldn't touch it at all.

 

[Siete]

revise the program to meet the current shortfall

MANAGE THE FUND CORRECTLY

THEN

LOCKBOX THE MF'R !!!

 

[Al Azar]

Returning to looking forward, rather than backward:

How Should Younger Investors Think About Social Security?

How Should Younger Investors Think About Social Security?

 

[rightwinger]

Republicans have been predicting the demise of Social Security for 80 years

All it needs is a few tweaks to raise the earnings cap and retirement to age 70

 

[NYcarbineer]

Every single time. Literally....every.....single....time. Throughout history, conservatives have done their homework, used sound data for projections, and accurately predicted exactly what would happen. And every time, Dumbocrats were too hungry for power to care.

Conservatives vehemently opposed Medicare and Medicaid in the late 1960's. They said it was unsustainable. Not only do we now currently sit with $19 trillion in national debt, but even Barack Obama himself and the Dumbocrats went around the nation in 2008 insisting that we needed "Obamacare" because healthcare costs were "unaffordable" and Medicare & Medicaid were devastating to the federal budget. They loudly proclaimed that something had to be done because the current situation was unsustainable. Well, conservatives told them that over 50 years ago!

And of course - conservatives warned about Obamacare as well. All of their warnings have come to fruition (it did cause people to lose their doctor, it did cause people to lose their health insurance, it did cost way more than projected by the lying Dumbocrats, and 17 of the 23 insurance exchanges have already collapsed and closed up shop after just a couple of short years).

But the real gem is Social Security. Like the other unconstitutional programs already mentioned, conservatives vehemently opposed Social Security in the late 1930's. As always, they said it was unsustainable. As always, they were right. A mind-boggling $32 trillion shortfall. You could tax the wealthy at 100% and it wouldn't even cover 1/32 of that....

Under the infinite horizon, Social Security will have $32.1 trillion in unfunded liabilities by 2090, $6.3 trillion more than last year's projection. (See the chart below.)

The infinite horizon calculation is the most important part of the trustees' annual report, said Laurence Kotlikoff, a Boston University economics professor and co-author of "Get What's Yours," a best-seller about how to maximize claiming Social Security retirement benefits.

"We're not broke in 20 years to 30 years, we're broke now," Kotlikoff said. "All the bills have been kept off the books by Congress and presidential administrations for six decades."

Social Security faces a $32 trillion shortfall that will cut your benefit

lol, where do people come up with this nonsense.

 

[NYcarbineer]

The Social Security Trust Fund is a creditor, not a debtor.

 

[Al Azar]

Republicans have been predicting the demise of Social Security for 80 years

All it needs is a few tweaks to raise the earnings cap and retirement to age 70

Exactly.

Forty years ago, when I was younger and impressionable, I allowed myself to be convinced that SS was a Ponzi scheme and that there would never be any benefits for me when I got old enough, so I dropped out. I suspended my contributions. I didn't leave altogether, as I wanted to be able to resume participating later if I wanted to.

I never did get around to getting back into it, so today my benefits are quite modest. They reflect only about 14 years of earnings at pretty low wages, mostly while I was in the military and a student. But sure enough, when I turned 62, there they were as promised.

And still, after all this time, people with an agenda are selling that same snake oil to the gullible, with absolutely no evidence to back it up. They're exploiting ignorance and fear to promote a political agenda and it's disgusting what they get away with.

 

[Mr Natural]

The OP really thinks we're going to be around in the year 2090?

What an optimistic fool!

 

[rightwinger]

Republicans have been predicting the demise of Social Security for 80 years

All it needs is a few tweaks to raise the earnings cap and retirement to age 70

Exactly.

Forty years ago, when I was younger and impressionable, I allowed myself to be convinced that SS was a Ponzi scheme and that there would never be any benefits for me when I got old enough, so I dropped out. I suspended my contributions. I didn't leave altogether, as I wanted to be able to resume participating later if I wanted to.

I never did get around to getting back into it, so today my benefits are quite modest. They reflect only about 14 years of earnings at pretty low wages, mostly while I was in the military and a student. But sure enough, when I turned 62, there they were as promised.

And still, after all this time, people with an agenda are selling that same snake oil to the gullible, with absolutely no evidence to back it up. They're exploiting ignorance and fear to promote a political agenda and it's disgusting what they get away with.

I was told the same thing when I entered the workforce 40 years ago

Social Security is insolvent, it won't be there by the time you reach 62, it is a waste

Social Security is still paying. Statistical calculations declare if no changes are made that Social Security will collapse by 2080. The changes needed are relatively minor. Raise the earnings cap, gradually increase the retirement age to 70, slightly increase contributions

 

[AntonToo]

Every single time. Literally....every.....single....time. Throughout history, conservatives have done their homework, used sound data for projections, and accurately predicted exactly what would happen.

Just because you can make it up in your head doesn't mean it's true.

Here, DO THE FUCKING HOMEWORK YOU CLAIM TO BE DOING, BUT CLEARLY ARE NOT:

21 Truths That Prove Republicans Have Been Wrong About Everything

 

[Mr Natural]

Republicans have been after this highly successful program from the beginning.

Which is why I as a recipient will never vote republican at the federal level.

 

[AntonToo]

I was told the same thing when I entered the workforce 40 years ago

Social Security is insolvent, it won't be there by the time you reach 62, it is a waste

Social Security is still paying. Statistical calculations declare if no changes are made that Social Security will collapse by 2080. The changes needed are relatively minor. Raise the earnings cap, gradually increase the retirement age to 70, slightly increase contributions

Lack of any awareness about how many times conservatives have been wrong on Social Security from it's very inception is amazing to watch.

It is as if Conservatism started yesterday. without a long long long history of fail.

 

[Mr Natural]

I was told the same thing when I entered the workforce 40 years ago

Social Security is insolvent, it won't be there by the time you reach 62, it is a waste

Social Security is still paying. Statistical calculations declare if no changes are made that Social Security will collapse by 2080. The changes needed are relatively minor. Raise the earnings cap, gradually increase the retirement age to 70, slightly increase contributions

Lack of any awareness about how many times conservatives have been wrong on Social Security from it's very inception is amazing to watch.

It is as if Conservatism started yesterday. without a long long long history of fail.

True and very ironic given that they tend to live in the past.

 

[Al Azar]

Republicans have been predicting the demise of Social Security for 80 years

All it needs is a few tweaks to raise the earnings cap and retirement to age 70

Exactly.

Forty years ago, when I was younger and impressionable, I allowed myself to be convinced that SS was a Ponzi scheme and that there would never be any benefits for me when I got old enough, so I dropped out. I suspended my contributions. I didn't leave altogether, as I wanted to be able to resume participating later if I wanted to.

I never did get around to getting back into it, so today my benefits are quite modest. They reflect only about 14 years of earnings at pretty low wages, mostly while I was in the military and a student. But sure enough, when I turned 62, there they were as promised.

And still, after all this time, people with an agenda are selling that same snake oil to the gullible, with absolutely no evidence to back it up. They're exploiting ignorance and fear to promote a political agenda and it's disgusting what they get away with.

I was told the same thing when I entered the workforce 40 years ago

Social Security is insolvent, it won't be there by the time you reach 62, it is a waste

Social Security is still paying. Statistical calculations declare if no changes are made that Social Security will collapse by 2080. The changes needed are relatively minor. Raise the earnings cap, gradually increase the retirement age to 70, slightly increase contributions

Here's an analogy to the predictions of SS failure. Suppose you never got a raise for the rest of your life. You'd get poorer and poorer and never be able to quick working, right?

Of course. That's what happens when nothing changes. But what's the probability that you'll never, ever get a raise? Near zero?

Now think about what's the probability that we're not doing to tweak SS ever again, although we've done exactly that in the past several times?

Near zero, isn't it?

Why in the world are we even discussing this? Wouldn't fretting about a massive asteroid hitting earth be just as rewarding and more interesting?

 

[AntonToo]

True and very ironic given that they tend to live in the past.

...a fake, everything-wonderful past.

 

[JoeTheEconomist]

Every single time. Literally....every.....single....time. Throughout history, conservatives have done their homework, used sound data for projections, and accurately predicted exactly what would happen. And every time, Dumbocrats were too hungry for power to care.

Conservatives vehemently opposed Medicare and Medicaid in the late 1960's. They said it was unsustainable. Not only do we now currently sit with $19 trillion in national debt, but even Barack Obama himself and the Dumbocrats went around the nation in 2008 insisting that we needed "Obamacare" because healthcare costs were "unaffordable" and Medicare & Medicaid were devastating to the federal budget. They loudly proclaimed that something had to be done because the current situation was unsustainable. Well, conservatives told them that over 50 years ago!

And of course - conservatives warned about Obamacare as well. All of their warnings have come to fruition (it did cause people to lose their doctor, it did cause people to lose their health insurance, it did cost way more than projected by the lying Dumbocrats, and 17 of the 23 insurance exchanges have already collapsed and closed up shop after just a couple of short years).

But the real gem is Social Security. Like the other unconstitutional programs already mentioned, conservatives vehemently opposed Social Security in the late 1930's. As always, they said it was unsustainable. As always, they were right. A mind-boggling $32 trillion shortfall. You could tax the wealthy at 100% and it wouldn't even cover 1/32 of that....

Under the infinite horizon, Social Security will have $32.1 trillion in unfunded liabilities by 2090, $6.3 trillion more than last year's projection. (See the chart below.)

The infinite horizon calculation is the most important part of the trustees' annual report, said Laurence Kotlikoff, a Boston University economics professor and co-author of "Get What's Yours," a best-seller about how to maximize claiming Social Security retirement benefits.

"We're not broke in 20 years to 30 years, we're broke now," Kotlikoff said. "All the bills have been kept off the books by Congress and presidential administrations for six decades."

Social Security faces a $32 trillion shortfall that will cut your benefit

About 21 trillion of that comes after 75 years. In part that stems from current law, which hard-codes retirement at 67. Given that we are living about 20 days longer per co-hort, that means that 21 trillion comes from having people retire at 67 that fully expect according to the assumptions to 150.

 

[JoeTheEconomist]

SS was fine till the Dems threw it in the General Fund. They have been robbing blind ever since.

I don't know who made the first raid into SS, transferring it from a lock-box fund to the General fund. Depends on party, I guess. Some say Johnson to cover VietNam and some say Reagan in a 1983 piece of legislation, but it's pretty clear the fund has been raided by every president since then. I remember back in the 90s a big fight (lost) to eliminate the caps on the SS deduction. Seemed sensible to me. The people most able to pay the deduction were exempted because they made over 100K, or whatever the cap was. They got a break, and those under the limit would pay it the rest of their working lives. That fight is still going on, isn't it? The fight to keep the caps and find another way to spare the well-off from the burden of taxes, that is?

I couldn't be LBJ. The system was a pay as you go system at the time with almost nothing to transfer. Reagan is just as silly. The first 3 years of his administration the system lost money. It wasn't until 1988 that the system actually generated excess cash to raid. It is mostly urban legend.

 

[JoeTheEconomist]

Time to raise (or even eliminate) the earnings cap.

Throw money that always works.

 

[JoeTheEconomist]

How much in US Debt does the SSA hold ?

Answer; around four trillion or so.

It is about 2.8 trillion, but the unfunded liability is net of the surplus. Hence the name "unfunded"