IV 111th CONGRESS 2d Session H. RES. 1670 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 28, 2010 Ms. Giffords (for herself, Mr. Tonko, Mr. Childers, Mr. DeFazio, Ms. Richardson, Ms. Watson, Mr. Crowley, Mr. Courtney, Mr. Hare, Ms. Shea-Porter, Mr. Filner, Mr. Hinchey, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Rahall, Ms. Fudge, Mr. Farr, Mr. Rangel, Mr. Critz, Mr. Deutch, Mr. Boren, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Mr. Kildee, Mr. Heinrich, Mr. Maffei, Mrs. Halvorson, Ms. Pingree of Maine, Mr. Arcuri, Ms. Kilroy, Mr. Wilson of Ohio, Mr. Costello, Mr. Kissell, Mr. Schauer, Ms. DeLauro, Mr. Langevin, Mr. Boucher, Mr. Nadler of New York, Mr. Patrick J. Murphy of Pennsylvania, Mr. Peters, Mr. Olver, Mr. Foster, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Lewis of Georgia, Mr. Oberstar, Mr. Wu, Mr. Stark, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Rothman of New Jersey, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Ms. Loretta Sanchez of California, Mr. Mitchell, Ms. Corrine Brown of Florida, Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania, Mr. Hall of New York, Mr. Hodes, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Sutton, and Mr. Cummings) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means RESOLUTION Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives with respect to legislation relating to raising the retirement age under title II of the Social Security Act.

Whereas more than 53.4 million Americans receive Social Security old-age, survivors, and disability insurance benefits, including 36.5 million retirees and their spouses, 8.2 million disabled persons and their spouses, 4.5 million surviving spouses of deceased workers, and 4.3 million dependent children; Whereas the Social Security program is America’s most successful and reliable retirement program and it continues to serve Americans well; Whereas seniors have put in a lifetime of hard work, helping to make our economy grow and make our Nation great, and they deserve a dignified and secure retirement; Whereas Social Security benefits have already been cut by gradually increasing the full retirement age from 65 for individuals who attained early retirement age before the year 2000 to 67 for individuals who will attain early retirement age in or after the year 2022; Whereas the physical demands of a job differ from industry to industry and the longevity of individuals’ lives differs significantly, on average, according to their level of income, education, and access to health care; Whereas 45 percent of workers age 58 and older are in jobs that are physically demanding or have difficult working conditions; Whereas, according to data from the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, in April 2010, the job market for Americans age 55 and older had never been worse; Whereas there has been a 17 percent increase in age discrimination cases since 2007 according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; Whereas Social Security benefits for retirees currently average a modest $14,000 a year, with the average for women receiving benefits being less than $12,000 per year; Whereas raising the full retirement age above 67 for future retirees would reduce their benefits by 6 to 7 percent; Whereas, according to the National Academy of Social Insurance, 45 percent of women age 65 and older who live alone are below 150 percent of the Federal poverty level; and Whereas the Social Security program, which has a $2.5 trillion surplus, is not a cause of Federal budget deficits, and benefit cuts should not be proposed as a solution to reduce Federal deficits: Now, therefore, be it

That it is the sense of the House of Representatives that the retirement age under title II of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) should not be raised.