The Rational Way To Fix Social Security Funding

Sadly, Social Security has a funding problem. In about 10 years, the Social Security Trust Fund will not have enough money to fully pay the benefit earned by retired workers. It will only be able to pay about 80% of what workers now receive.

This must be fixed. Retirees deserve their full benefit checks - especially the millions who rely exclusively on their Social Security check to live. 

Republicans would have you believe the retirement age must be raised or benefits cut to fix the funding problem. That is unacceptable. Those doing physical labor for a living cannot wait extra years to retire. And those receiving minimal checks cannot afford to have their benefits cut.

There is another solution - one that does not require cutting benefits or raising the retirement age.

Consider the following.

A worker making $176,100 a year or less pays 6.2% of their income into the Social Security Trust Fund.

Someone making $500,000 a year pays only 2.18% of their income.

Someone making $1,000,000 a year pays only 1.09% of their income.

And someone making $1,000,000,000 a year pays only 0.00001% of their income.

Does that seem fair? Of course not!

Raising the cap on taxable income paid into the Social Security Trust Fund to $250,000 would fully fund Social Security for decades. And eliminating the cap completely would fully fund Social Security in perpetuity. 

Raising the cap on income is the rational and common sense way to fix Social Security funding. It would not hurt anyone receiving current benefits or punish laborers who need to retire at the current age - and it would not hurt anyone making less than $176,100 a year. It would just mean the wealthy would pay a little more (although still probably a smaller percentage that the working class and most of the middle class pay).

But this can't happen as long as Republicans control our government. They are the party of the rich, and would rather protect the rich while punishing workers. Remember that when you next go to vote!