Tough issues, like tough nuts, crack hard. Social Security and entitlement reform, while assuring senior citizens that they will receive the benefits of hard work, is one such issue.
Here in Little Rock, we older Americans are watching closely what the U.S. Congress--especially Congressman French Hill and Senators Tom Cotton and John Boozman--do to preserve Social Security this session. And we have a suggestion.
Today, we need action from Congress, a real solution--or first step--toward keeping Social Security viable. So, with the 114th Congress in full swing, there is a new idea in town, a real solution, a chance to guarantee the efficacy and solvency of Social Security broadly, and this program specifically. Various components of that solution are gaining favor, and all are being personally briefed to Congress by the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC), a 1.2 million-strong group of senior citizens.
The high-level briefings are to the right people, with the right numbers and with a genuine aim of getting new approaches discussed, legislated and ultimately made part of the law. The briefings have been across the board, to Democrats and Republicans, including to Ways and Means Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price and Social Security Subcommittee Chairman (and legendary POW) Sam Johnson. Again, the door is opening.
So, while we may worry about how hot it will be this summer in Little Rock, it will take more than worry to achieve real change in Washington. It will take effort and pressure from all older Americans to elevate this issue--but we must refocus now on entitlement reform, beginning with keeping Social Security solvent in both a fair and fiscally responsible way. No more shell games, procrastination or scripts that set one portion of the nation against another. Let's get down to brass tacks.
Specifically, since it will affect all of our lives here in Arkansas, we want a solution that addresses the incontrovertible facts. Today, an aging population receives benefits from a declining work force, and it is only going to get worse, creating a slow-motion collision. Benefits going out will outpace receipts on Social Security disability insurance by the end of 2016, while the other entitlement programs will grind toward broke at various times beyond that.
Make no mistake; we will feel that grinding--the shake of an empty can--in Little Rock and in every city, large and small.
To get beyond this reality, Congress must follow the fiscal compass to true north, which involves adopting a rescue plan such as the AMAC blueprint. That essentially boils down to: Without raising taxes--something employers and employees cannot afford--we must guarantee a cost-of-living increase every year for everyone, adjusting COLA rates based on income levels so that low-income individuals receive more than high-income workers, while raising the age of early retirement to 64 and full retirement to 69.
Here is the kicker: There is also a way to allow all retirees to enjoy the benefits of the free market also. Recognizing that Social Security was never intended to be the sole source of income for retirees, the AMAC approach adds a voluntary, tax-deductible Early Retirement Account (ERA) to compliment the other major components of the Social Security guarantee. This creates a "best of both worlds" option for all future American workers.
How? Workers who contribute to an ERA--which cannot be accessed until age 64 or upon death or total disability--over the course of their careers would have a true lockbox of money on which they could rely during retirement. ERA funds would be invested in guaranteed, low-interest-bearing accounts or annuities and in secure companies, like those included in the S&P 500, for best possible returns.
Opening this discussion with local members of Congress--demanding some accountability in a program we all depend upon and which must be preserved--is only the start of the process. AMAC is committed to assuring that benefits stay equitable, available and sufficient, while also being committed to keeping our country solvent over the long term.
If this not done now and by us--or by our representatives--then when and by whom? Surely we can and should expect our members of Congress to do more than "admire the problem."
AMAC, which already has 10,619 committed members in Arkansas, is right: This is an issue whose time has come, and this is the time to resolve--not just talk about--the entitlement insolvency crisis. Like it or not, this crisis will impact each of us throughout our great natural state. So let us go and meet it in Washington first.
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Gary Jefferson of Little Rock is a delegate for the Association of Mature American Citizens, a senior advocacy organization.
Editorial on 06/13/2015