Categories
Terms and Conditions
All content expressed in the “Discuss” section of the National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI) website are those of the author or authors and do not reflect the opinion of the NASI staff or Board of Directors. NASI reserves the right to edit or delete any comments deemed offensive or disrespectful.
Social Security: Just the Facts Video
Have you seen our video, “Social Security: Just the Facts?” Click here to learn more and find additional resources for exploring each topic in more depth.
Social Security
Contributions or Taxes? Two Social Security Funding Paradigms
April 15th is a day we contemplate our financial relationship to government. It thus provides a suitable occasion to reflect on the distinction between Social Security contributions and income taxes. In discussions of Social Security, many disagreements stem from the fact that we view its funding from within different paradigms, namely some of us see these payments as insurance contributions, others as just another form of income tax. On this year’s Tax Day, this post considers the historical origins of this conceptual distinction, arguments for each of the two paradigms, and their implications for strategies of fiscal reform.
Read More…Steve Goss, SSA's Chief Actuary, on the Death of Robert J. Myers
New PEW Survey Reinforces Findings of NASI Report on “Americans’ Views on Social Security”
According to a new PEW Research Center For the People and the Press survey report, “Public’s Priorities For 2010: Economy, Jobs, Terrorism,” Social Security ranks fourth in Americans’ top priorities for President Obama and the Congress for 2010, ranked just below the Economy, Jobs and Terrorism. The PEW poll shows that six-in-ten Americans (66%) say that securing the Social Security system should be a top priority. Near uniformity in opinion between Democrats, Republicans, and Independents — (Dem. 68) (Rep. 62) (Ind. 66) — on Social Security provides further context on Americans overall opinion on the subject.
Read More…Don't Worry, Be Happy: Characterization of Social Security Trust Funds
The nature and significance of Social Security trust funds is sometimes misrepresented to the public. This appears to be the case in Social Security Brief #30 issued on May 12, 2009 by the National Academy of Social Insurance. The section of this brief entitled “Where does the Social Security surplus go?” states essentially the following:
Read More…Strengthening Social Security Wage Reporting For Farm Workers
Farm workers are at risk of not having their work count toward Social Security benefits because their employers may erroneously classify them as independent contractors or simply fail to pay Social Security taxes and report wages. Strengthening Social Security for Farm Workers: The Fragile Retirement Prospects for Hispanic Farm Worker Families supports legislation introduced in the 110th Congress, along with stronger enforcement of existing laws, to strengthen wage reporting. The proposal also notes that the changes would increase tax receipts and benefit the Latino farm worker population by increasing their Social Security benefits, providing better access to the Earned Income Tax Credit, and easing the burden on adult children of farm workers who have the triple burden of school debt, raising children and supporting aging parents.
