Summary
We support:
- Gradually increasing the age of eligibility for Social Security benefits
- Using a chained index of inflation to more accurately adjust benefits over time
- Retaining the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)—in the absence of a Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI)—to offset the impact of payroll taxes on lower-income households
- Raising the income cap on Social Security taxes only to the extent necessary to restore long-term actuarial balance
If you have already made up your mind, then scroll to the bottom of the page and take the poll to let us know how you feel. If you need to hear more, please read the background section below.
Curious how your views compare? Early input has a meaningful impact—vote below (scroll down) to see the current results.
Your input helps us refine these policy positions.
Background
Long-Term Sustainability
Social Security was established at a time when life expectancy was significantly lower than it is today. The system now faces increasing pressure due to longer life spans and the retirement of the baby boom generation.
Despite these challenges, we believe the system can be restored to long-term actuarial soundness with gradual and predictable policy changes, particularly if action is taken sooner rather than later.
Protecting Current Retirees
We believe that individuals who are at or near retirement should receive the benefits they have been promised. For practical purposes, this includes those currently in their late 50s and older.
At the same time, maintaining the system’s integrity requires that benefits reflect their intended structure, without unintended increases over time.
Inflation Adjustment (Chained CPI)
We support adjusting Social Security benefits using a chained measure of inflation, which more accurately reflects changes in consumer behavior over time.
Many economists believe that the current method of indexing benefits tends to overstate inflation, resulting in higher benefit growth than originally intended. Moving to a chained index would represent a modest adjustment that improves long-term sustainability.
Retirement Age Adjustments
We support gradually increasing the retirement age to reflect longer life expectancy.
Under this approach:
- Full retirement age would gradually rise to 70
- The minimum eligibility age would increase from 62 to 64
- The maximum benefit age would increase from 70 to 72
To minimize disruption, these changes would be phased in gradually:
- Individuals currently ages 54–58: full retirement at 67
- Ages 50–54: full retirement at 68
- Ages 46–50: full retirement at 69
- Under 46: full retirement at 70
We believe that a phased approach provides individuals with time to plan while improving the long-term financial stability of the system.
Tax Policy and Progressivity
We support maintaining the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)—in the absence of a Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI)—which helps offset the regressive nature of payroll taxes.
We also support increasing the income cap on Social Security taxes only to the extent necessary to restore actuarial balance.
It is important to recognize that Social Security already incorporates progressive elements. Lower-income workers receive benefits that are proportionally higher relative to their contributions. In addition, benefits for higher-income recipients are partially taxed under the broader progressive income tax system, further increasing overall progressivity.
Fiscal Responsibility
The purpose of these reforms is to ensure that Social Security remains financially sustainable over the long term without contributing to federal deficits.
We do not support using Social Security reforms as a tool for general deficit reduction beyond what is necessary to maintain the program’s solvency.
Go to Table of Contents or to the Next Policy Position.
Ready to weigh in? At this stage, each vote has a meaningful impact—see the current results after voting.
Your input helps us refine these policy positions.