Let’s make a few points about Social Security and you can decide:
- You did not pay for your benefits.
- Because payroll taxes are used as primary funding, it may appear these are different from other taxes and thus related to you and your benefits. That is not the case.
- You are entitled to Social Security benefits as long as you are eligible based on current provisions of the law.
- The Social Security law can be changed at any time by Congress, changing the terms of eligibility and any other aspects of the program.
- There is no relationship between the taxes you pay and the benefits received. For example, spouses and ex-spouses can receive benefits without one related penny in taxes paid toward their benefit.
- Social Security is funded through payroll taxes, income taxes paid on up to 50% of the SS benefit received and the interest on the Trust Fund Treasury Bonds.
- Most people receive in benefits all the taxes they and their employer paid within 7-8 years of starting to collect.
- The excess of payroll taxes over benefits paid ceased in 2010 and thus purchase of new Treasury Bonds stopped.
- The only reason full benefits can be paid today is because of the interest being earned on the Bonds. About $80,000,000,000 per year.
- . The OASI Trust Fund reserves are projected to become depleted in 2034, at which time OASI income would be sufficient to pay 77 percent of OASI scheduled benefits.