UPDATE: Thank you all for your great questions! I will be submitting them to Begich's staff tomorrow morning.
Hey guys. So I am partaking in the Social Security Blogathon being put together by Roger Fox and members of the Social Security Defenders group. I will be publishing a diary on Wednesday, March 27th. I have been in touch with Senator Mark Begich's (D. AK) staff regarding his bold plan to strengthen Social Security known as the Protecting and Preserving Social Security Act of 2013 that he has reintroduced and Congressman Ted Deutch (D. FL-21) has introduced similar legislation in the House. Here's the plan:
I've written quite a bit about this plan which has been endorsed by the Alaskan AARP and the Strengthen Social Security Coalition:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Increases Benefits for Seniors and Persons with Disabilities. Currently, Social Security benefits are adjusted by the Consumer Price Index for workers. However, costs and spending patterns for seniors do not mirror those of the workforce. That is why Sen. Begich’s bill calls for adjusting cost-of-living increases with a Consumer Price Index specifically for the elderly which was created to more accurately measure the costs of goods and services seniors actually buy.
Lifts the Cap on High-Income Contributions. Current law sets a cap based on income at $113,700 for paying into Social Security. If an individual’s wages hit that total for the year, they no longer pay into the program. Sen. Begich’s bill lifts the cap and asks higher income earners to pay Social Security on all their earnings in order to increase the program’s revenue stream and extend the overall solvency of the program.
Extends Social Security for approximately 75 years through modest revenue increases gradually implemented over the course of seven years. - Alaska Native News, 11/14/12
Feel free to review the plan and the details in the link I posted above. I also wrote about Senator Bernie Sanders (I. VT) plan to protect and strengthen Social Security which you can read about here:
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today introduced legislation cosponsored by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to strengthen Social Security by making the wealthiest Americans pay the same payroll tax that nearly everyone else already pays.
Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) introduced the companion bill in the House. He joined Sanders at a news conference in the Capitol to discuss their bill to bolster Social Security without raising the retirement age or lowering benefits.
Under their legislation, those with yearly incomes of $250,000 or more would pay the same 6.2 percent payroll tax already assessed on those who earn up to $113,700 a year. Applying the Social Security payroll tax on income above $250,000 would only affect the wealthiest 1.3 percent of Americans, according to the Center for Economic and Policy Research. Social Security officials say that simple change would yield about $85 billion a year to keep the retirement program strong for at least another 50 years.
The legislation is based on a proposal that President Barack Obama made in 2008 during his first campaign for the White House. - VT Digger, 3/7/13
One question I keep hearing is what's the difference between the two plans, which I will be submitting to Begich's staff. Any questions you have about the plan, please post them in the comments. Thanks!