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2042
January 09th 03:46:45 PM
If all goes according to plan I will be retiring in 2051. It sounds like a long way off to many politicians, but I am already working on saving for my retirement with an IRA, because like most young people, I know that unless something is done I can't count on Social Security. Yet, Senator Baucus the new chairman of the Senate Finance committee that handles Social Security has been telling people not to worry, because Social Security won't run out until 2042, which to him seems a long way away. But not for us...
2042 is nine years before I retire and begin taking money out. As a recent article in US News and World Report noted, the view that we can do nothing now because it doesn't go broke till 2042 is a profoundly confused statement.
From the writer at US News:
But I have to say that a brief chat I had late yesterday afternoon with Baucus didn't imbue me with much confidence. I asked him flat out if there would be major Social Security reform in this new Congress. Baucus slowly and rather unenthusiastically replied, "Oh, I don't know. The trust fund doesn't reach zero until 2042." His choice to focus on the year 2042 is telling. Proponents of the go-slow approach to reform usually concentrate on that year–when the IOU-filled trust fund is predicted to be exhausted and benefits will have to paid out of current revenue, resulting in a 25 percent cut. But those in Washington who want something done right now focus instead on the year 2018, the first year when benefits will exceed tax revenue coming in. That's when the trust fund–now used to bankroll current spending, masking the true size of the federal budget deficit–will need to be tapped to fully pay benefits.
Posted by Mark Harris
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