Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., today introduced a bill that, if passed by Congress and signed by the president, would insure Social Security's solvency for the next 75 years—without having to cut a single person's benefit.
Sanders' solution is simple: gradually eliminate the cap on wages subject to the payroll tax, starting with people earning more than a quarter-million a year.
His “Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act” has the endorsement of some key senators, including Democratic Sens. Daniel Akaka, Patrick Leahy, Barbara Boxer, Claire McCaskill, Sheldon Whitehouse, Al Franken and Richard Blumenthal. In the House, Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., introduced a companion bill.
“The most effective way to strengthen Social Security for the next 75 years is to eliminate the cap on the payroll tax on income above $250,000,” Sanders said in a prepared statement. “Right now, someone who earns $106,800 pays the same amount of money into Social Security as a billionaire. That makes no sense. The Keeping Our Social Security Promises Act will ensure the long-term solvency of Social Security without cutting benefits or raising taxes on the middle class.”
The $106,800 Sanders referred to is the current payroll tax cap. Here's how the Sanders bill eliminates that cap over time: In the first year the bill is in effect, people earning less than $250,000 but more than the cap would not pay any additional payroll tax, while those earning more than $250,000 would pay the tax on that portion of their earnings in addition to what they earn up to the cap. In other words, there is a tax-free “doughnut hole” between the cap and the $250,000 threshold.
As the payroll tax cap increases over time based on average wage increases, as it would under current law, the doughnut hole would shrink, and eventually disappear. At that point, all earned wages would be subject to the payroll tax.
This is a variation on what President Obama proposed as a presidential candidate for addressing the long-term Social Security solvency issue, Sanders said today.
Instead of any discussion of cutting Social Security benefits in any way—whether by raising the retirement age or through imposing a “chained CPI (consumer price index)” formula that would erode the buying power of seniors over time—the conversation should be about passing a measure such as this one. Let's get this bill on the forefront of the discussion about securing Social Security's future, and tell the White House, the deficit-reduction “supercommittee,” and anyone else who has their budget knife out under the mistaken notion that Social Security contributes to our deficit problems (it doesn't), “No cuts to Social Security.”
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
Over 80 percent of Truthout‘s funding comes from small individual donations from our community of readers, and the remaining 20 percent comes from a handful of social justice-oriented foundations. Over a third of our total budget is supported by recurring monthly donors, many of whom give because they want to help us keep Truthout barrier-free for everyone.
You can help by giving today. Whether you can make a small monthly donation or a larger gift, Truthout only works with your support.