Spouse’s Benefit And Government Pension Offsets
The spouse or divorced spouse of a retirement beneficiary is eligible for a Social Security spouse benefit if the spouse or divorced spouse is 62 or older. The benefit amount is equal to 50 percent of the retirement beneficiary’s if the spouse claims the benefit at the full retirement age or later. If a person is eligible for both a retirement benefit based the person’s own work in Social Security covered employment and a spouse benefit based on a spouse’s work in covered employment, SSA will pay a total amount approximately equal to the higher of the two benefits. For example, if at the full retirement age, a spouse claims a retirement benefit of $300 and a spouse benefit of $450, SSA will pay the person a $300 retirement benefit and a $150 dollar partial spouse benefit for a total benefit of $450.
A spouse is eligible after a one-year duration of marriage requirement is met and a spouse is eligible for spousal benefits if the marriage lasted for at least ten years and the person applying is not currently married. Payment of benefits to a divorced spouse does not reduce the Social Security benefits of the retired worker or family members of the retired worker, such as the worker’s current spouse. A divorced person can claim spousal benefits once the former spouse is eligible for retirement benefits, regardless of whether the former spouse has claimed those retirement benefits.
Demographic And Revenue Projections
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In 2005, this exhaustion of the OASDI Trust Fund was projected to occur in 2041 by the Social Security Administration or by 2052 by the Congressional Budget Office, CBO. Thereafter, however, the projection for the exhaustion date of this event was moved up slightly after the recession worsened the U.S. economy’s financial picture. The 2011 OASDI Trustees Report stated:
Annual cost exceeded non-interest income in 2010 and is projected to continue to be larger throughout the remainder of the 75-year valuation period. Nevertheless, from 2010 through 2022, total trust fund income, including interest income, is more than is necessary to cover costs, so trust fund assets will continue to grow during that time. Beginning in 2023, trust fund assets will diminish until they become exhausted in 2036. Non-interest income is projected to be sufficient to support expenditures at a level of 77 percent of scheduled benefits after trust fund exhaustion in 2036, and then to decline to 74 percent of scheduled benefits in 2085.
Ways to eliminate the projected shortfall
Literature And Visual Arts
In the visual arts, the was a mid-19th-century movement in the tradition of European . The 1913 in New York City, an exhibition of European , shocked the public and transformed the U.S. art scene., , and others experimented with new, individualistic styles. Major artistic movements such as the of and and the of and developed largely in the United States. The tide of modernism and then has brought fame to American architects such as , , and . Americans have long been important in the modern artistic medium of , with major photographers including , , , and .
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Office Of Hearings Operations
On August 8, 2017, Acting Commissioner Nancy A. Berryhill informed employees that the Office of Disability Adjudication and Review would be renamed to Office of Hearings Operations . The hearing offices had been known as “ODAR” since 2006, and the Office of Hearings and Appeals before that. OHO administers the ALJ hearings for the Social Security Administration. Administrative Law Judges conduct hearings and issue decisions. After an ALJ decision, the Appeals Council considers requests for review of ALJ decisions, and acts as the final level of administrative review for the Social Security Administration .
Comparison To A Ponzi Scheme
Critics have drawn parallels between Social Security and , arguing that the sustenance of Social Security is due to continuous contributions over time. One difference between a traditional Ponzi scheme and Social Security, is that while both may have similar structuresin particular, a sustainability problem when the number of new people paying in is decliningthey have differing degrees of transparency. In the case of a traditional Ponzi scheme, the fact that there is no return-generating mechanism other than contributions from new entrants is obscured whereas the Social Security scheme is designed to have payouts openly underwritten by incoming and the interest on the Treasury bonds held by or for the Social Security scheme. Private sector Ponzi schemes are also vulnerable to collapse because they cannot force new entrants to contribute, whereas participation in the Social Security program is mandatory upon beginning one’s first in the United States. In connection with these and other issues, calls Social Security a rather than a true Ponzi schemein his book, Fubarnomics.
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Claim That It Is A Ponzi Scheme
Critics have drawn parallels between Social Security and , arguing that the sustenance of Social Security is due to continuous contributions over time. One criticism of the analogy is that while and Social Security have similar structures , they have different transparencies. In the case of a Ponzi scheme, the fact that there is no return-generating mechanism other than contributions from new entrants is obscured whereas Social Security payouts have always been openly underwritten by incoming and the interest on the Treasury bonds held by or for the Social Security system. The sudden loss of confidence resulting in a collapse of a conventional Ponzi scheme when the schemes true nature is revealed is unlikely to occur in the case of the Social Security system. Private sector Ponzi schemes are also vulnerable to collapse because they cannot compel new entrants, whereas participation in the Social Security program is a condition for joining the U.S. labor force. In connection with these and other issues, calls Social Security a quasi in his book, Fubarnomics.
How Workers Can Get Estimates Of Benefits
The Social Security Administration provides benefit estimates to workers through the Social Security Statement. The Statement can be accessed online by opening an online account with SSA called my Social Security. With that account, workers can also construct “what if” scenarios, helping them to understand the effect on monthly benefits if they work additional years or delay the start of retirement benefits. The my Social Security account also offers other services, allowing individuals to request a replacement Social Security card or check the status of an application.
A printed copy of the Social Security Statement is mailed to workers age 60 or older.
In 2021, SSA began producing Retirement Ready fact sheets, available online and as part of the online Statement, that tailor retirement planning information to different age groups .
SSA also has a Benefits Calculators web page with several stand-alone online calculators that help individuals estimate their benefits and prepare for retirement. These include benefit calculators for spouses, calculators for persons affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision or the Government Pension Offset and calculators to determine a person’s full retirement age or the effect of the earnings test on benefits.
SSA also provides a life expectancy calculator to help with retirement planning.
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Reducing Cost Of Living Adjustment
At present, a retiree’s benefit is annually adjusted for inflation to reflect changes in the . Some economists argue that the consumer price index overestimates price increases in the economy and therefore is not a suitable metric for adjusting benefits, while others argue that the CPI underestimates the effect of inflation on what retired people actually need to buy to live.
The current cost of living adjustment is based on the . The routinely checks the prices of 211 different categories of consumption items in 38 geographical areas to compute 8,018 item-area indices. Many other indices are computed as weighted averages of these base indices. CPI-W is based on a of goods and services consumed by urban wage earners and clerical workers. The weights for that index are updated in January of every even-numbered year. People who say the CPI-W overestimates inflation recommend updating the weights each month this produces the . People who say the C-CPI-U disadvantages the elderly point out that seniors consume more medical care than younger people, and that the costs of medical care have been rising faster than inflation in other parts of the economy. According to this view, the costs of the things the elderly buy have been rising faster than the averaged to obtain CPI-W, CPI-U or C-CPI-U. Some have recommended fixing this by using a .
Business Master File Data
Below are some key data points from the Exempt Organization IRS Business Master File for this organization. Learn more about the BMF on the IRS website
Activities:
Medical care service
Described in section 1701) of the Code
Services for the aged
Foundation Status:
All organizations except 501
Affiliation:
Independent – the organization is an independent organization or an independent auxiliary .
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Draft Medicare Handbook Biased Toward Private Plans
A draft handbook on Medicare enrollment has drawn criticism from seniors advocates and rightly so. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released the draft for review in advance of mailing a final version to 43 million households this September. What bothers advocates is the handbooks apparent bias toward private Medicare Advantage plans over traditional Medicare using inaccurate and misleading information.
The Center for Medicare Advocacy, Justice in Aging, and the Medicare Rights Center have sent a letter to CMS Administrator Seema Verma, calling out serious inaccuracies in the draft handbook, entitled Medicare & You.
Claim Of Discrimination Against The Poor And The Middle Class
Workers must pay 12.4 percent, including a 6.2 percent employer contribution, on their wages below the , but no tax on income in excess of this amount. Therefore, high earners pay a lower percentage of their total income because of the income caps because of this, and the fact there is no tax on unearned income, social security taxes are often viewed as being . However, benefits are adjusted to be significantly more progressive, even when accounting for differences in life expectancy. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, for people in the bottom fifth of the earnings distribution, the ratio of benefits to taxes is almost three times as high as it is for those in the top fifth.
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Estimated Net Benefits Under Differing Circumstances
In 2004, Urban Institute economists and Adam Carasso created a Web-based Social Security benefits calculator. Using this calculator it is possible to estimate net Social Security benefits for different types of recipients. In the book Democrats and Republicans Rhetoric and Reality Joseph Fried used the calculator to create graphical depictions of the estimated net benefits of men and women who were at different wage levels, single and married , and retiring in different years. These graphs vividly show that generalizations about Social Security benefits may be of little predictive value for any given worker, due to the wide disparity of net benefits for people at different income levels and in different demographic groups. For example, the graph below shows the impact of wage level and retirement date on a male worker. As income goes up, net benefits get smaller even negative.
However, the impact is much greater for the future retiree than for the current retiree . The male earning $95,000 per year and retiring in 2045 is estimated to lose over $200,000 by participating in the Social Security system.
In the next graph the depicted net benefits are averaged for people turning age 65 anytime during the years 2005 through 2045. However, we do see the impact of gender and wage level. Because women tend to live longer, they generally collect Social Security benefits for a longer time. As a result, they get a higher net benefit, on average, no matter what the wage level.
Restrictions On Potentially Deceptive Communications
Because of the importance of Social Security to millions of Americans, many marketers packaged their mailings to resemble official communications from the Social Security Administration, hoping recipients would be more likely to open them. In response, Congress amended the Social Security Act in 1988 to prohibit the private use of the phrase “Social Security” and several related terms in any way that would convey a false impression of approval from the Social Security Administration. The of this law was upheld in United Seniors Association, Inc. v. Social Security Administration, 423 F.3d 397 , cert den 547 U.S. 1162 126 S.Ct. 2346 .
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Seniors Champions Prevail In Key Races Across The Nation
As the country awaits full election results, we congratulate all of the seniors champions who prevailed in key races across the U.S. last night. Several candidates who the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare enthusiastically endorsed have emerged victorious in both the House and the Senate. These wins represent a resounding rejection of MAGA-nomics by voters in bellwether districts and states. While clearly concerned about inflation, these voters have said NO to more tax cuts for the wealthy and powerful corporations and NO to cuts in workers Social Security and Medicare benefits, including reducing COLAs or raising the eligibility ages for both programsContinue reading.
Civil War And Reconstruction Era
Status of the states, 1861
Irreconcilable sectional conflict regarding of and ultimately . With the of Republican , conventions in thirteen slave states declared secession and formed the , while the federal government rel=nofollow> Union) maintained that secession was illegal. In order to bring about this secession, military action was initiated by the secessionists, and the Union responded in kind. The ensuing war would become the deadliest military conflict in American history, resulting in the deaths of approximately 620,000 soldiers as well as upwards of 50,000 civilians.
began in earnest following the war. While President Lincoln attempted to foster friendship and forgiveness between the Union and the former Confederacy, on April 14, 1865 drove a wedge between North and South again. Republicans in the federal government made it their goal to oversee the rebuilding of the South and to ensure the rights of African Americans. They persisted until the when the Republicans agreed to cease protecting the rights of African Americans in the South in order for Democrats to concede the . Southern white Democrats, calling themselves , took control of the South after the end of Reconstruction, beginning the . From 1890 to 1910, the Redeemers established so-called , most blacks and some impoverished whites throughout the region. Blacks would face nationwide, especially in the South. They also occasionally experienced vigilante violence, including .
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Social Security Number Theft
Because Social Security Numbers have become useful in and other forms of , various schemes have been perpetrated to acquire valid Social Security Numbers and related identity information.
In February 2006, the Social Security Administration received several reports of an email message being circulated addressed to “Dear Social Security Number And Card owner” and purporting to be from the Social Security Administration. The message informs the reader “that someone illegally is using your Social Security number and assuming your identity” and directs the reader to a website designed to look like Social Security’s Internet website.
“I am outraged that someone would target an unsuspecting public in this manner,” said Commissioner . “I have asked the Inspector General to use all the resources at his command to find and prosecute whoever is perpetrating this fraud.”
Once directed to the phony website, the individual is reportedly asked to confirm his or her identity with “Social Security and bank information”. Specific information about the individual’s credit card number, expiration date and is then requested. “Whether on our online website or by phone, Social Security will never ask you for your credit card information or your PIN,” Commissioner reported.
The Reality About Social Security
Dont be fooled by scare tactics that the Republicans employ when calling for reform. The Republicans way to reform the program is to cut benefits. Instead, we should require millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share into the program. Democrats have plans to do just that, and use the additional revenue to protect and expand benefits and extend solvency.
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Fraud In The Acquisition And Use Of Benefits
Given the vast size of the program, sometimes occurs. The has its own investigatory unit to combat and prevent fraud, the Cooperative Disability Investigations Unit . The Cooperative Disability Investigations Program continues to be one of the most successful initiatives, contributing to the integrity of SSA’s disability programs. In addition when investigating fraud in other SSA programs, the may request investigatory assistance from other law enforcement agencies including the Office of the Inspector General as well as state and local authorities.
Private Retirement Savings Crisis
While -adjusted stock market values generally rose from 1978 to 1997, from 1998 through 2007 they were higher than in March 2013. This has caused workers’ supplemental retirement plans such as to perform substantially more poorly than expected when current retirees were investing the bulk of their savings in them. In 2010, the median household retirement account balance for workers aged 55 to 64 was $120,000, which will provide only a trivial supplement to Social Security benefits, but about a third of households had no at all. 75% of Americans nearing retirement age had less than $30,000 in their retirement accounts, which Forbes called “the greatest retirement crisis in American history.”
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