[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 23 (Wednesday, March 6, 2002)]
[House]
[Page H719]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL SECURITY TO LATINO COMMUNITY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Rodriguez) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to talk about the importance 
of Social Security and how it impacts the Latino population throughout 
this country.
  We must remember that the initial intent and purpose of the Social 
Security retirement system was to help alleviate the poverty among our 
elderly Americans and to meet the retirement needs of all workers. We 
must not forget the severe poverty that our seniors suffered prior to 
Social Security. Social Security has become the single most effective 
Federal anti-poverty program in our history, lifting more than 11 
million seniors out of poverty.
  Latinos are critically affected by any proposed changes in the Social 
Security System. A significant segment of the workforce, Latinos, and 
especially Latinas, women, represent a disproportionate percentage of 
those who lack employer pension coverage. We, as Hispanics, tend to 
work in small companies, small businesses, which do not have pensions. 
We are underrepresented in government jobs and for that reason do not 
have a lot of the pensions that others do. More than other segments of 
the population, Latinos depend heavily on Social Security to live their 
senior years in dignity.
  The Latino population is growing rapidly. Currently, Latinos 
constitute 8 percent of the total U.S. workforce, and by 2010 Latinos 
are projected to account for 13.2 percent of all the workers. From 1997 
to the year 2020, the number of Latinos that are aged 65 will double.
  Unfortunately, despite the gains in education and other areas, 
Latinos still remain concentrated in low-wage jobs that provide few 
benefits. While more than 51 percent of Anglos workers have employer 
pension coverage, the same is true for only one-third of the Latino 
workers. Accordingly, Latino retirees are more than twice as likely as 
Anglo retirees to rely solely on Social Security benefits as a means of 
economic support.
  In addition, Latinos are less likely than Anglos to receive incomes 
from interest on savings and investments. For example, in 1998, of all 
the persons reporting interest income, only 5.3 percent went to 
Latinos.
  I would like to also applaud the efforts of some groups that are 
looking at the impact that any changes in Social Security will have on 
women. While reforming the Social Security System, we have serious 
implications for women, and especially Latinas. The women in our 
community, Latinas, may be the most severely impacted of all 
populations. The Latinas are more likely than other women to work 
inside the home and are less likely than other women to have retirement 
savings accounts.
  Moreover, Latinas are less likely than other workers to have access 
to private pension coverage, and they tend to receive the lowest wages 
of any group in the work force. Relying heavily on Social Security 
benefits, changes in marital status or the loss of a principal wage 
earner places Latinas in a particularly vulnerable situations.
  Given the paramount importance of Social Security to Hispanic men and 
women, we must approach so-called reform efforts with caution, weighing 
the impact on this key, fast-growing population. I am concerned that 
the plans to privatize Social Security would drain needed resources 
from the Social Security Trust Fund and jeopardize benefit payments to 
retirees, the blind, disabled workers and survivors.
  The leading plan proposed by the administration's hand-picked Social 
Security commission would drain $1.5 trillion from the trust fund in 
just the next 10 years, money that is already being used for other 
purposes. Privatization of Social Security would require cuts in 
guaranteeing Social Security benefits. The President's Social Security 
commission recommended a privatization plan that cuts benefits for 
future retirees by up to 46 percent. Everyone would be subject to these 
cuts, not just workers who choose to have individual accounts, and 
Latinos would be hit the hardest.
  Social Security privatization would expose individual workers and 
their families to greater financial risks. Under privatization, benefit 
levels would be determined by the volatile stock market, by the 
worker's luck in making investments, and by the timing on his or her 
decisions to retire. In light of the Enron disaster, we know the risks.
  Latinos, who are, more than other groups, dependent on Social 
Security as a guaranteed income stream in retirement, would lose under 
privatization.
  Other proposals, while well-meaning, would not help us reach our goal 
of ensuring future solvency. I ask that, as we look at Social Security, 
we make sure we look at its impact on special populations as well as 
the baby boomers and what we consider the baby echos, those kids of 
those baby boomers.

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