Email this article 
Financial stability risks of the U.S. social security system
- Authors: Lebedeva L.F.1
-
Affiliations:
- Georgy Arbatov Institute for U.S. and Canada Studies Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN)
- Issue: No 5 (2023)
- Pages: 56-66
- Section: Foreign Policy
- URL: https://edgccjournal.org/2686-6730/article/view/662238
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.31857/S2686673023050085
- EDN: https://elibrary.ru/CJFXCL
- ID: 662238
Cite item
Open Access
Access granted
Subscription or Fee Access
Abstract
The Social Security program, playing a vital role in reducing poverty among the old aged groups, is facing growing challenges. While the population age structure has been shifting towards an old aged-dependent, the volume of pension benefits has turned to exceed payroll taxes as a financial source of the pension system. The paper points out the role of public pensions as a source of income, especially important for the low-income Americans. Increasing self-sufficiency of the retired persons, their ability to support families; Social Security funds are at the risk of shrinking financial reserves. While payroll tax revenues have increased over the long period; they are not expected to be enough for funding pension benefits after the third decade; if payroll tax stays as it is, without being raised.
Keywords
About the authors
Liudmila F. Lebedeva
Georgy Arbatov Institute for U.S. and Canada Studies Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN)
Email: l.lebedeva@iskran.ru
Moscow, Russian Federation
References
- SSA. Annual Statistical Supplement. 2022. Available at: https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2019/index.html (accessed 28.12.2022).
- Retirement Confidence Survey, EBRI, 2022. Available at: https://www.ebri.org/docs/default-source/rcs/2022-rcs/2022-rcs-summary-report.pdf (accessed 10.02.2023).
- OECD Employment Outlook. OECD, 2021. Р. 37.
- Americans Expect Comfortable Retirement. Gallup. Available at: https://news.gallup.com/poll/258320/nonretired-americans-expect-comfortable-retirement.aspx?g_source=link_NEWSV9&g_medium=NEWSFEED&g_campaign=item_&g_content=More%2520Nonretired%2520Americans%2520Expect%2520Comfortable%2520Retirement (accessed 16.01.2023).
- Social Security Lifts More People Above the Poverty Line Than Any Other Program, cbpp, April 19, 2022.
- The 2022 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors insurance and Federal Disability Insurance Trust Funds. SSA, 2022, p. 97. Available at: https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/TR/2022/tr2022.pdf (accessed 06.02.2023).
- Population Projections to 2060. U.S. Census Bureau. Current Population Reports. 2020.
- and 2022 Trustees Reports. Social Security Board of Trustees, 2022. Available at: https://www.ssa.gov/policy/trust-funds-summary.html (accessed 06.02.2023).
- Tax policy. Payroll tax rates. Available at: https://www.taxpolicycenter.org/statistics/payroll-tax-rates (accessed 20.12.2022).
Supplementary files
