Social Security

A little over sixty years ago the nation struggled through what was, up to then, the most dramatic crisis since the Civil War. The economy was uprooted after the crash of the stock market and the country's financial stability was destroyed. One of the many steps taken to alleviate the burden on the American people was the passing of the Social Security Act of 1935 and its amendments by Congress and the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt (http://www.socialsecurityreform.org/history/index.cfm). Under the provisions of the Act, the government would take on the responsibility of taxing the income of all working Americans and returning the money through numerous public benefits and programs which provide monthly benefits to nearly 45 million retired and disabled workers, their dependents, and survivors. Now the nation faces an economic and political problem with the program instituted to help people.

In the first half of this century the government will face the task of paying benefits to a baby-boom generation with funds it will not have. Social Security is the largest Federal Program, accounting for 23 percent of all Federal spending. Almost all political sides agree that Social Security must be reformed in some way before the baby-boom generation begins to retire and collect. Social Security benefits refer to all those measures established by the government through legislation that help an individual or household to maintain an income of a certain level, insure income if one's employment is lost, provide other assistance for disability, old age, survivors, and other forms of compensation.

Social Security may be defined through several characteristics: (1) participation is mandatory. (2) Eligibility for benefits and levels of benefits depends on past contributions made by earners. (3) Benefit payments begin at a stipulated time such as at retirement from work, upon temporary unemployment, or with disability (4) Social-insurance benefits are means-tested - one's wealth or lack of wealth does not determine whether benefits are granted (Compton's). (5) Currently Social Security funds are collected and distributed on a pay - as - you -go (PAYG) system in which Social Security taxes from individuals are immediately distributed by the means of the Social Security Administration as it sees best fit. This means that taxes collected are not reserved for the individual who has paid them: in the current state he or she must

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