Thrive How To Celebrate Your Middle ChildAn intense battle over Social Security is brewing and TSCL is gearing up for major Congressional action. Recently retired Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan waded back into the fray to tell Congress "Our choices right now are not between good and better; they're between bad and worse. The problem we now face is the most extraordinary financial crisis that I have ever seen or read about. Irrespective of what you say should be done on the tax side, you still have to cut some benefits on the expenditure side." The statement is chilling considering Greenspan oversaw the largest single overhaul of the program in history, chairing the National Commission on Social Security Reform in the early 1980's.."Under current Social Security law, that is all that's required to later claim benefits," Hyland explains. "To file a claim, individuals must have a work-authorized Social Security number, and would become vested for benefits with ten years of earnings," Hyland says. "The oldest of those who are eligible for the deferred action could feasibly have worked illegally long enough to already be vested for Social Security - even for disability benefits," Hyland notes. This would add to the program's solvency problems since the Congressional Budget Office and Social Security Trustees have estimated that the Social Security disability trust fund will be fully insolvent by 2016..The Senior Citizens League opposes the plan that was advanced by the Budget Committee this week since it would lead to increased costs for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and it would cut benefits for Social Security recipients. Instead, we support legislation like the Social Security 2100 Act and the Improving Access to Affordable Prescription Drugs Act, which would strengthen and reform the Social Security and Medicare programs responsibly, without cutting benefits for current or future retirees. … Continued
10 Moves For An Active VacationIt is possible there could also be another emergency spending bill or, as we reported above, even a full-blown stimulus to try and keep the economy going..Plan your withdrawals to boost your Social Security benefits. While you want to allow your retirement savings to grow tax-deferred as long as you can, withdrawing money from an IRA earlier is sometimes to your advantage. Doing so may help you delay starting Social Security benefits, allowing your benefits to grow 8% for every year you wait after attaining age 66 and until age 70..Most Americans contribute 6.2 percent of every paycheck to Social Security, but due to the payroll tax cap, people earning more than 8,400 contribute nothing over that amount. Eliminating the payroll tax cap would extend the solvency of the program responsibly, without cutting benefits for seniors. Do you agree? … Continued