It will have depleted it's reserves in approximately 10 years. Expenditures exceed revenue, but only by about 15-20% by then. So either there's going to be a cut in benefits and/or the retirement age will be bumped up, just like we did in 1983[1], and as originally intended when designed. Most likely the latter, but it seems legislators are too chicken to do it until their backs are up against the wall. And conservative legislatures are probably content to wait until it's an exigent crisis to maximize their chance at selling privatization.
[1] We only recently just reached the tail-end of the 1983 reforms' gradual shift in retirement age.
> So either there's going to be a cut in benefits and/or the retirement age will be bumped up
Or...raise the contribution limit which fixes the whole thing easily without having to screw over the people that paid in and just want to get back what they were promised.
Raise the retirement age? Really? All this advancement to make our lives better and more efficient, and we're going to conclude that we all need to to work more?
And meanwhile we can piss away cash by the trillion but when it comes to social security suddenly there's no money to be found anywhere.
They've fooled everyone into believing "the fund will be depleted" in x years. Then put some more money in assholes.
But Social Security solvency isn't the only thing that needs to be addressed. Medicare, for example.
Considering that the population has decided it doesn't want any more significant immigration, ensuring the median age (along with median working age) will increase faster than lifespans, it seems foolhardy to think we can have our cake and eat it, too. Any kind of tax increase is a difficult sell.[1] If we can successfully raise the limit on payroll taxes, we better make it count. Note that social security disability benefits exist and presumably would remain an option for those unable to work.
[1] We only recently just reached the tail-end of the 1983 reforms' gradual shift in retirement age.