Reform Proposals
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The Ryan Budget's Radical Priorities
Revised July 7, 2010
I. Summary The Roadmap for America’s Future, which Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) — the ranking Republican on the House Budget Committee — released in late January, calls for radical policy changes that would result in a massive transfer of resources from the broad majority of Americans to the nation’s … -
Podcast: Testimony of Robert Greenstein before the Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform
June 30, 2010
Robert Greenstein, the Center’s Executive Director, discusses the need to be careful in addressing budget deficit in a testimony before the President’s Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform on June 30th, 2010.
Duration: 6:46
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Testimony of Robert Greenstein, Executive Director and Jim Horney, Director of Federal Fiscal Policy before the Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform
June 30, 2010
Members of the Commission, Thank you for giving us the opportunity to speak to you today. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a nonpartisan research and policy institute that focuses both on fiscal policy and on programs and policies of particular importance to low- and moderate-income … -
Ryan’s Response to Center’s Analysis of “Roadmap” Is Off Base
Revised May 6, 2010
We are quite disappointed that, in responding to our analysis[1] of his budget plan, Rep. Paul Ryan accuses[2] the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities of “partisan demagoguery” as well as “factual errors and misleading statements.” Quite the contrary, we applied the same rigorous analytical process to Rep. Ryan’s Roadmap for America’s … -
Audio Clip: Jim Horney Discusses Cost-of-Living Increase for Social Security on National Public Radio
October 22, 2009
Jim Horney Discusses Cost-of-Living Increase for Social Security on National Public Radio
Duration: 3:45
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A Balanced Approach to Restoring Fiscal Responsibility
July 9, 2008
In a recent paper, “Taking Back Our Fiscal Future,” a group of policy analysts from several Washington think tanks proposed a radical change in budget procedures related to Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid as a way to address budget deficits projected for future decades. They urged Congress to establish 30-year budgets, or caps, for these programs. The White House would conduct a review every five years. If it projected that expenditures would exceed the caps, the programs would face automatic cuts or related tax increases.
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Social Security and Inheritance
May 3, 2006
Executive Summary: Inheritance is one of the least understood issues in the Social Security debate. Supporters of private accounts often cite the ability to pass an account on to one’s heirs as an especially attractive feature of private accounts, one that the traditional Social Security system cannot match. For … -
Reforming Social Security Sooner Rather Than Later
April 28, 2006
A common refrain is that it is better to act sooner rather than later on Social Security reform. President Bush, for example, argues “Putting off real reform makes fixing the system harder and more expensive.”[1] As a general principle, the common refrain is right. Acting sooner rather than later allows … -
Social Security Administration Proposal To Revise Disability Determinations Is Not Justified
April 18, 2006
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is proposing to change how it evaluates age as a factor in establishing eligibility for disability benefits. Under the change, SSA would raise by two years the ages at which key rules used to determine eligibility for Social Security disability insurance (SSDI) or Supplemental Security … -
African Americans and Social Security: The Implications of Reform Proposals
January 18, 2006
Social Security is a critical program for African Americans. Some 4.8 million African Americans currently receive Social Security benefits, and African Americans benefit disproportionately from many of Social Security’s features, including a progressive benefit structure and survivors and disability benefits. Proposals … -
Press Release: Social Security Is a Good Deal for African Americans, Report Finds: Privatization Carries Special Risks for African Americans
January 18, 2006
African Americans receive modestly more in Social Security benefits for each dollar they pay in payroll taxes than whites do, explains a new report from the Washington, D.C.-based Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. The report is based on a wide range of studies conducted by government … -
Social Security Is a Good Deal for African Americans, Report Finds: Privatization Carries Special Risks for African Americans
January 18, 2006
Social Security is a critical program for African Americans. Nearly five million African Americans receive Social Security benefits; roughly half of them are retired workers, and the other half are either disabled workers or the spouses or children of disabled, retired, or deceased workers. African Americans benefit disproportionately from several features of the … -
Be Careful To Read The Fine Print When Supporters Claim Their Social Security Plans Restore Sustainable Solvency
June 6, 2005
The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Chief Actuary has certified that at least 11 proposals restore “sustainable solvency” to Social Security.[1] The certification of “sustainable solvency” does not mean, however, that a plan is sound. The actuaries are responsible for scoring … -
Does Galveston Offer a Model For Social Security Reform?
June 2, 2005
Some, including President Bush, have pointed to the experience of Galveston, Texas as demonstrating why private accounts should be incorporated into Social Security. In 1981, Galveston and two other Texas counties opted out of Social Security and established their own substitute Social Security systems for county employees.[1] … -
Would Private Accounts Provide A Higher Rate Of Return than Social Security?
June 2, 2005
Executive Summary Administration officials and other proponents of private accounts often compare the rate of return in Social Security to the rate of return they say would be achieved through private accounts. For example, in his State of the Union address, the President stated, “Here’s why the personal accounts … -
Ways And Means Social Security Bill Could Include Costly, Poorly Targeted Retirement Tax Proposals
May 27, 2005
House Ways and Means Chairman Thomas has suggested that new tax cuts to promote retirement savings should be considered as part of Social Security reform. Expanding retirement saving — especially among low-income families, many of whom have little or no savings — is an important goal, and steps … -
An Overview of Issues Raised by the Administration's Social Security Plan
Revised February 7, 2005
This analysis is based on the briefing on the Administration’s Social Security plan that was provided to reporters on February 2 by a “senior Administration official.” 1. Administration Acknowledges Private Accounts Would Do Nothing to Improve Social Security Solvency. The Administration official … -
New White House Details Show the Proposed Private Accounts
February 4, 2005
A fact sheet released by the White House on February 3 acknowledged that retirees who receive a real rate of return on their private accounts equal to three percent above inflation (which is the Congressional Budget Office’s projected rate of return on such accounts, with risk adjustment) … -
An Analysis of Senator Graham’s Social Security Plan
Revised February 4, 2005
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) introduced a Social Security plan in the 108th Congress, reportedly developed with the help of White House staff, that is based on the main plan designed by President Bush’s Social Security Commission. This analysis examines that plan. The Graham plan is broadly consistent with the new details that … -
How the Individual Accounts in the President’s New Plan Would Work
Revised February 4, 2005
In his State of the Union Address, President Bush outlined some of the details of the private accounts he is proposing but did not mention a critical fact about those accounts — individuals who chose to take up these accounts also would get a large, automatic reduction in their Social Security benefit. In effect, the … -
White House Press Secretary’s Description of Administration’s Private Accounts May Leave Misimpressions
February 3, 2005
In a briefing today, White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan contended that a story on the Administration’s Social Security plan printed in today’s Washington Post was inaccurate.[1] McClellan said: “The story is wrong. Individuals get to keep everything they set aside in personal accounts, plus the … -
So-Called "Price Indexing" Proposal Would Result In Deep Reductions Over Time In Social Security Benefits
Revised January 28, 2005
Increasing attention is being accorded to a proposal to make a major change in how Social Security benefits levels are set. Under a proposal that President Bush’s Social Security Commission put forward in 2001, Social Security benefits would shrink dramatically over time as a share of workers' pre-retirement wages, … -
Senator Misrepresents CBO Report in Launching Misleading Attack on Fiscally Responsible Social Security Plan
January 4, 2005
On December 22, the Congressional Budget Office released an analysis of a Social Security plan designed by M.I.T economist Peter Diamond, one of the world’s foremost experts on retirement issues, and Peter Orszag, an economist at the Brookings Institution. [1] On one measure after another, the CBO report demonstrated the … -
Should the Budget Rules Be Changed So That Large-Scale Borrowing To Fund Individual Accounts Is Left Out of the Budget?
December 13, 2004
Recent plans to replace part of Social Security with individual accounts would significantly increase federal borrowing for at least several decades. Over the next 10 years alone, various individual account proposals funded by borrowing would increase deficits and borrowing by between $1 trillion and $5.3 trillion. Such … -
Should the Budget Be Changed to Exclude the Cost of Individual Accounts?
December 13, 2004
Executive Summary Proposals to replace part of Social Security with individual accounts are now a focus of attention, with the President expressing a strong desire to push forward on creating individual accounts within Social Security. This paper considers the appropriate budgetary treatment of proposals to create such …
