Relevant and even prescient commentary on news, politics and the economy.

CBO’s 2015 Long-Term Projections for Social Security: Additional Information

CBO’s 2015 Long-Term Projections for Social Security: Additional Information The Social Security Policy Options, 2015 was not the only report released by CBO yesterday. You have this one filling out the details in the Long-Term Budget Outlook Haven’t read this one either. So you all get first shot at framing the debate! Go get ’em […]

VSPs Get Their Way With Budget Deal: Social Security Benefits Are Cut

by Barkley Rosser     (Econospeak) VSPs Get Their Way With Budget Deal: Social Security Benefits Are Cut All the Very Serious People are jumping up and down and cheering.  We have a budget deal in the House and the debt ceiling is being raised and there will be no more artificial budget crises until […]

Yes, Brad, He Has

This has produced another edition of “Simple Answers to Simple Questions.” Just to expand this a bit, and to deal with the 1987 absurdity, the proximate cause of the 1989 adjustment—an adjustment of less than 10% in the Dow that only took two full calendar months to return to its level at close on 12 […]

Social Security Defender Archive: Including Northwest Plan Docs/Spreadsheets

I have been working off and on, well mostly off because of ‘life’ and ‘laziness’, since 2010 on a project I modestly called the Social Security Defender. It is all built around a Google account and so has a Google+ page, a blog, an e-mail address and a Google Drive. Today I am going live […]

Table IV.B5: Social Security OAS and DI Actuarial Balances by 25 Year Subperiod

Table IV.B5.—Components of Summarized Income Rates and Cost Rates,Calendar Years 2015-89[As a percentage of taxable payroll]Lots of numbers here but the only ones want to focus on are those in the last column, those which show actuarial balances for each of the OAS and DI Trust Funds for for the next 25, 50 and 75 […]

Social Security Report: What is the “Low Cost Alternative”

Well one answer it line I in the above figure from the 2015 Social Security Report. Figure II.D7.—Long-Range OASI and DI Combined Trust Fund Ratios Under Alternative Scenarios [Asset reserves as a percentage of annual cost] Under the definitions used by the Social Security Actuary and Trustees the program is ‘Solvent’ over the short term […]

2015 Social Security Report Release Day (w/updates)

At 1:30 EDT the Trustees of Social Security will hold a media availability at which they will release the 2015 Social Security and Medicare Reports. If past practice holds the Reports will be released on line at or before that time in both a web (HTML) format and in PDF. Assuming past file name conventions […]

CRS: Social Security: What Would Happen If the Trust Funds Ran Out?

Very interesting paper that I missed in real time. Social Security: What Would Happen If the Trust Funds Ran Out? Almost everyone who addresses this question assumes that the answer is pretty simple: if either of the Social Security Trust Funds goes to zero than benefits will automatically drop from ‘Scheduled’ to ‘Payable’ which translates […]

April Fools! Belated Social Security Joke.

Compilation of the Social Security Laws: Title 2 FEDERAL OLD-AGE AND SURVIVORS INSURANCE TRUST FUND AND FEDERAL DISABILITY INSURANCE TRUST FUND[3] Sec. 201. [42 U.S.C. 401] (c) With respect to the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund (hereinafter in this title called the “Trust Funds”) there is […]