[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 149 (2003), Part 1]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages 264-265]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




     INTRODUCTION OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY GUARANTEE PLUS ACT OF 2003

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. E. CLAY SHAW, JR.

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, January 7, 2003

  Mr. SHAW. Mr. Speaker, whether we live in prosperous or uncertain 
times, American families need economic security--the kind of economic 
security that Social Security provides. For 68 years, Social Security 
has protected workers and their families from falling into poverty if a 
breadwinner retires, suffers disability, or dies. Social Security has 
endured, unlike many other government programs, because its architects 
designed it to be owned by workers and to treat all workers fairly.
  Social Security has evolved over the decades, strengthening its 
protections and finances along the way. However, our nation's 
demographics and economics are fundamentally changing, and Social 
Security's ability to continue meeting its promises is threatened. The 
Social Security Guarantee Plus Plan I am introducing today will enable 
Social Security to continue fulfilling its vital role in the lives of 
all Americans.
  First, the Guarantee Plus Plan keeps intact the Social Security 
safety net. Promised benefits, including cost of living increases, are 
guaranteed for people receiving benefits today, tomorrow and for all 
future generations.
  Second, the plan treats all workers fairly. Workers have paid into 
the system, it's their money, and we must protect and enhance their 
investment. It's not fair to workers to raise their payroll taxes or 
lower their benefits. Nor is it fair for the government to tell workers 
to work longer. That's why my plan does not raise taxes, does not lower 
benefits, and does not change the retirement age.
  Third, Social Security payroll taxes belong to the workers who paid 
them. My plan gives workers a real ownership stake in Social Security 
by allowing them to choose to receive a tax cut to invest directly in 
prudent, individually-selected, market investments. For the first time, 
a nation of savers, not the government, will own and control the assets 
backing Social Security. Should an individual die before becoming 
eligible, the balance of their money will be passed along to their 
heirs.
  Fourth, under my plan, Social Security can be counted on for the next 
75 years, and beyond. Real assets guarantee current and future 
benefits, establishing a sound and sustainable financial footing. No 
longer will there be a need to periodically increase taxes or lower 
benefits to keep the program working.
  Beyond keeping these promises to all Americans, we must also do more 
to improve Social Security for the women of our nation. Because of 
their longer life expectancies and lower earnings, women are more 
likely to suffer poverty in old age. Social Security is a vital safety 
net for these women. In addition, because benefits are based on 
earnings, women are disadvantaged when they choose to stay home to 
raise their children. The Guarantee Plus Plan protects our daughters, 
our mothers, our aunts and our grandmothers, not only by securing the 
future of Social Security and guaranteeing full benefits, but also by 
enhancing benefits for widows, divorced spouses, and working mothers. 
These benefits become available immediately in my bill.
  Here's how the Social Security Guarantee Plus Plan works. The plan 
guarantees full, promised, current law benefits for all workers, 
whether you are 6 or 65. Just as companies must back your pension plan 
with real assets, the Guarantee Plus Plan saves Social Security by 
setting aside real assets, not IOUs, to pre-fund benefits. These assets 
are saved in each worker's own account, thereby providing workers the 
opportunity to create real wealth for themselves and their families.
  Workers who choose to participate will receive a refundable credit of 
up to 4 percent of their earnings to establish their own Social 
Security Guarantee Account. Workers, not the government, would select 
where to invest their Guarantee Account funds. The assets in these 
accounts would grow tax-free. No withdrawals would be permitted until a 
worker starts receiving benefits to ensure that the money is preserved 
for retirement.
  At retirement or when the worker becomes disabled, a portion of the 
Guarantee Account is paid directly to the worker and the rest is used 
to help pay full, guaranteed Social Security benefits. But that's not 
all.
  In addition to the much needed improvements in benefits for women I 
mentioned, my plan eliminates the retirement earnings penalty for all 
workers age 62 and older and reduces the so-called Government Pension 
Offset affecting spouse and survivor benefits to certain government 
workers.
  Other plans may cost less, because they cut benefits or raise taxes. 
If our goal is to pay full promised benefits, boost women's benefits, 
and return Social Security to financial independence, the Guarantee 
Plus Plan is the lowest-cost proposal to date. The Guarantee Plus Plan 
does all this and pays for itself over the seventy five-year actuarial 
period, and that's confirmed by the Social Security Administration's 
Office of the Actuary. Even under the most conservative estimates, the 
Guarantee Plus Plan allows the new Social Security system to generate 
surplus cash in the Latter part of the century, actually adding black 
ink to the government's bottom tine.
  My plan uses general revenues to fund the accounts. Even assuming 
borrowing for a transitional period, my plan pays back every borrowed 
dollar plus interest within the seventy five-year evaluation period. 
Not only would we pay off the mortgage on Social Security, we would 
leave workers with substantial account balances and the federal 
government with excess cash.
  The Guarantee Plus Plan also meets or exceeds all of the President's 
principles for reform--pays promised benefits to retirees, near-
retirees, and all workers; no tax increases; no government investing; 
fully preserves disability and survivor benefits; offers individually 
controlled, voluntary personal retirement accounts that will augment 
Social Security. In addition, my plan is consistent with the first 
option to establish personal accounts recommended by the President's 
Commission to Strengthen Social Security. My plan also accomplishes the 
objectives agreed to by the House during the 107th Congress to 
guarantee current law promised benefits, with cost-of-living 
adjustments to current and future retirees, without increasing taxes.
  This past November, we witnessed yet another election cycle featuring 
Social Security as a key issue. Once again, Americans showed their 
willingness to explore new ideas to strengthen this vital program, 
since the old ways must be improved upon for future generations. Once 
again candidates who took a stand on ways to save Social Security not 
only held their own, they won. Yet, once again, not one penny has been 
invested in saving our nation's most successful retirement program. The 
result--while politicians debate, the price tag for saving Social 
Security only goes up and up.
  From the time of Social Security's enactment until today, the history 
of the program's evolution has demonstrated that while everybody has 
his or her own ideas on how to strengthen the program, progress toward 
that goal is only achieved through bipartisan cooperation. It's tong 
past time for us to lay all our best thoughts on the table and work 
together to build on our success to make a stronger Social Security 
system that is an asset to all and not a liability to our children and 
grandchildren.

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