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Supreme Court Further Limits Rights To Social Security Benefits
December 09th 03:39:49 PM
The Supreme Court has shown once more just how insecure Social Security benefits really are.
On Wednesday, December 7th, the Court ruled in the case of Lockhart vs. the United States that the government has the right to withhold a portion of an individual’s Social Security benefits each month in order to pay outstanding student loan debt of retirees.
When the Social Security Act was first passed in 1935, benefits were explicitly protected from debt collectors. Congress changed all that in 1996 when it passed the Debt Collection and Improvements Act which gave government the right to withhold a portion of an individual’s Social Security benefits in order to pay his or her outstanding debts.
James Lockhart, a 66 year old disability beneficiary, began having money deducted from his Social Security benefits in 2002 to pay back his outstanding student loan debt. He sued the government contending that a 1991 law, which placed a ten-year limit on the time period in which the government can collect its debts, ought to protect his benefits from seizure. He lost.
Forget the fact that the insolvency of the current system means that scheduled benefits of future retirees will be cut by at least 24%, Lockhart will now continue to have $143.10 deducted from his monthly Social Security check every month.
Concurring with the decision of the Court, Justice Scalia wrote "[Congress] flatly contracted and thereby effectively repealed part of the Social Security Act." Those are chilling words that should leave all college students with student loans wondering "what part of my Social Security benefits are they going to cut next?"
Posted by Nicola Moore
Comments
ummm...WOW!!!
Posted by Adam Cahn on December 10th 01:54:52 PM
Anybody know Alito's thoughts on this subject?
Posted by Adam Cahn on December 10th 07:29:15 PM
Are you kidding me? I would have expected this ridiculous a post on Crock The Vote. I guy has managed to avoid paying back his student loans all the way to retirement and now the take it out of his socialist insecurity check? Horrors!! First of all, they totally should do this. This isn't even a benefit cut, just a creditor getting it's money. Second, with Republican-style Socialist Insecurity Equity Funds, it would most likely be an even easier case to make that a debt collector *can* attach them to relieve debts. Third, it's not just socialist insecurity but all property that's in jeopardy when congress is in session. That includes your proposed SS Equity Funds which would be just as easy for congress to take as anything else not protected constitutionally in a very specific way. You think there's gonna be a law protecting them? Congress can change that faster than it took me to write this post.
SS Equity Funds EQUAL Big Government Corruption!
S4 Sucks and Gives Change!
Posted by Noid on December 16th 04:13:04 PM
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