[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 30 (Tuesday, March 11, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H850]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            SOCIAL SECURITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore [Mr. Stearns]. Under a previous order of the 
House, the gentleman from Michigan [Mr. Smith] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. SMITH of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I am a member of the Committee on 
the Budget. Last week Alan Greenspan, the Chairman of the Federal 
Reserve, came before our committee. Today Secretary Rubin, Secretary of 
the Treasury, came before our committee. They made, I think, a very 
important point that everybody should be aware of. That is that Social 
Security has very serious problems for the future.
  Mr. Speaker, I would just like to talk about some of the things that 
are happening in Social Security that means that the benefits for 
existing retirees are threatened as well as the potential for 
retirement benefits for workers that are going to retire in the future.
  In terms of the Federal budget, Social Security uses up now 22 
percent of the total Federal budget. What is happening is we have a 
system in Social Security where existing workers pay their taxes in to 
support the retirement benefits of existing retirees, a pay as you 
GOPAC.
  That is the way it is today. That is the way it always has been since 
Social Security started in 1935. What is happening is there is a fewer 
number of workers. The birth rate is going down, so we are seeing a 
fewer number of workers paying in their taxes to support an increasing 
number of retirees. For example, in 1945, there were 42 people working 
paying in their taxes to support the benefits of each retiree. By 1950, 
that went down to 17 individuals working paying in their taxes to 
support each retiree. Today there are three people working, paying in 
their taxes to support each retiree.
  What has happened at the same time is an increasing number of 
retirees. The life span is much longer. When we started Social 
Security, the average age of death was 61, even though the retirement 
age was 65. And today the average age of death is almost 74 years. If 
you are fortunate enough to live to be 65 years old, then the average 
age of death is 84 years old. So a tremendous increase in the number of 
retirees which is going to be compounded by the fact that the baby 
boomers, that huge population growth after World War II, are going to 
start to retire in about 2011.
  So everybody is guessing we are going to run out of money, there is 
not enough money coming in to pay the outgo after 2011. Dorcas Hardy, a 
former Social Security Commissioner, estimates that we are going to run 
out of money as early as 2005.
  Let me give you an example of the increased cost of Social Security. 
This year on average we are paying out for Social Security benefits 
$700,000 a minute. By 2029, we will be paying out $5,600,000 a minute. 
Today $700,000, by 2029 it is going to be $5,600,000. A tremendous 
increase in cost.
  How do we solve the problem? I have introduced a bill last session 
that makes 12 modest changes for future retirees, that holds safe 
existing retirees, but it slightly slows down the increase in benefits 
for higher income retirees. It adds an additional year that you are 
going to have to work to be eligible for retirement. It has some 
changes in the bend points. It makes changes in the requirements of a 
spouse receiving Social Security benefits that did not work, but the 
point is how do we make the changes. How are we going to come to grips 
with changes in a program that has been called the third rail, that if 
politicians start touching this like they did Medicare, they are going 
to be chastised in the next election.
  I urge my colleagues to come forward. Let us start taking our heads 
out of the sand.
  Mr. President, I ask you, Secretary Rubin, I ask you, colleagues, I 
ask you, let us start dealing with this program. If we delay the 
solutions of solving Social Security, that simply means that the 
solutions are going to be much more drastic. It is important that we 
start today working on these solutions for Social Security.
  I invite my colleagues to examine my bill. Let us run this idea up 
the flag pole. Let us come up with better solutions, but let us not put 
this decision off by simply appointing a commission that is going to 
come back 2 or 3 or 4 years later with three different proposals on how 
to solve it.

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