During a Senate Budget Committee Hearing this week, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) implored Republicans and Democrats to work together for the sake of protecting Social Security and Medicare programs.
Specifically, Murray called upon Republican lawmakers to ensure tax fairness with the ultra-high-net-worth. “Social Security and Medicare are really a lifeline to people. All across our country, people want us to save these programs—because they know these programs save people, “Murray began in the hearing.
“But, in the long term, they are in danger—as we have heard—if we don’t take action to shore them up,” she continued.
During the hearing, Murray pressed on tax fairness between the ultra-high-net-worth and other class sizes, claiming that if wealthier Americans paid their “fair share” of Social Security taxes, the program’s insolvency could diminish.
“If you make around $160,000 a year—you are paying the same amount into Social Security each year as a billionaire, Murray added. “Someone can make over 12 thousand times your salary—and yet their Social Security tax rate is a fraction of a fraction of what your rate is … It should be totally uncontroversial to suggest that we find ways to increase Social Security’s revenue in order to extend its solvency, and to make the system a little more fair.”
Calls against Social Security benefit cuts
Murray accused House Republicans of doing little to ensure tax fairness, adding that Republican lawmakers have inferred on making cuts to Social Security benefits in the past.
Republican lawmakers have been in hot water over claims that conservatives want reductions to governmental programs like Social Security and Medicare. Previously, Sen. Rick Scott’s (R-FL) Rescue America Plan called for the sunsetting of federal programs every five years, and last month, the Republican Study Committee (RSC) published a roadmap suggesting the full retirement age (FRA) be raised.
The RSC currently includes 176 out of the 222 Republican members in the House of Representatives, making it the largest group of House Conservatives.
After the roadmap was released, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-OR), criticized the plan, adding that it was “proof that Republicans are committed as ever to cutting Medicare and Medicaid while allowing Social Security to wither.”
House Republicans have previously stated they are against such reductions, and more notably during President Joe Biden’s State of the Union address earlier this year.
In a previous interview with CBS, Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) dismissed the idea of potential reductions, adding that cuts to Social Security and Medicare are “off the table.”
Centrist Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) told CNN’s State of the Union in January that a solution towards Social Security solvency would be increasing payroll taxes used to fund the program. “The easiest and quickest thing that we can do is raise the cap,” Manchin was quoted as saying. Manchin has previously said that he would not call for reductions to Social Security benefits.
The impact of potential reductions
Doubling down on the effects of cuts, Murray asked Kathleen Romig, director of Social Security and Disability Policy at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, about how possible reductions would harm marginalized communities including seniors, women, and people of color.
Romig remarked that without an employer-sponsored plan, saving for retirement can prove difficult for Americans. Features that come with Social Security, including spouse and survivor benefits, ultimately provide a lifeline for these groups.
“Most retirees’ incomes overall are modest, and so they really rely on those Social Security benefits to meet their basic needs: housing, food, health care, and bills. And so, cutting those benefits would really compromise the lifestyles of our nation’s seniors and people with disabilities,” Romig said. “And that’s especially true for women and people of color.”
SEE ALSO:
- Latest Social Security COLA Projects Increase of 3%
- Do Equity Investments Make Sense in Social Security?
- House Republicans Propose Social Security Benefit Cuts
Amanda Umpierrez is the Managing Editor of 401(k) Specialist magazine. She is a financial services reporter with over six years of experience and a passion for telling stories and reporting news. Amanda received her degree in journalism and government and politics at St. John’s University. She is originally from Queens, New York, but now resides in Denver, Colorado with her partner. In her free time, Amanda enjoys running, cooking, and watching the latest drama show.
