Tag Archives: Social Security

Using EMV to Secure Social Security

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Identity thieves want Social Security numbers matched with names, addresses and birthdays.

And they have them. By the Millions!

On 90 Million Americans! Possibly 200 Million!

They used Experian to get information on 15 million T-Mobile customers – and threaten everyone in Experian’s databases. They stole information on 90 million people whos health insurance is provided by Anthem Blue Cross or Excellus Blue Cross.  And 22 Million current and former employees of the U. S. government, by hacking Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Plus 58 million customers of Home Depot and 70 million customers of Target.   The problem is growing. They are also targeting parking services such as Book 2 Park, Park N Fly, and One Stop Parking.

The sets intersect – it is likely many Home Depot customers also shop Target, work for the government and or have health insurance from Blue Cross Blue Shield.  But it’s also likely that very few of the 10 million customers of Excellus Blue Cross are also customers of Anthem Blue Cross so we are looking at a problem for at least 90 Million Americans, 28% of the country. That’s almost one out of three. And 200 million? That’s 2 out of 3.

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What Next? – For the 21st Century

Barack-Obamajoe-biden

What should we do now?

  1. Strengthen the safety net.
  2. Reverse the Citizens United and Florence v Burlington rulings.
  3. Place reasonable restrictions on Second Amendment rights, as  reasonable restrictions exist on First Amendment rights. And tax properties and income of religious institutions.
  4. Address Climate Change.
  5. Develop a Renewable & Sustainable Energy Infrastructure – Clean & Green within 15.

As President Obama said, in his Second Inauguration, (White House . Gov / The Atlantic)

“The commitments we make to each other …  do not sap our initiative; they strengthen us.  They do not make us a nation of takers; they free us to take the risks that make this country great.

“We will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations. 

“The path towards sustainable energy sources will be long and sometimes difficult.  But America cannot resist this transition, we must lead it. “

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How To Fix Social Security

Franklin-Roosevelt
Social Security will be solvent until 2038. (Social Security Adminstration, Summary of 2012 Annual Reports). Social Security is completely funded by the Social Security Tax and the payouts add nothing to the deficit. Reducing Social Security benefits will not reduce the Federal deficit one cent. Social Security benefits are fully funded until 2038. However, there are five changes to the structure of the Social Security tax that could, and I think should, be made.

First, eliminate the ceiling. Currently the Social Security tax is 6.2% of the first $110,000 of income. Everyone who makes $110,000 or less pays 6.2% of his or her income into the Social Security fund. People who make $50,000 pay $3,100. People who make $100,000 pay $6,200. People who make $110,000 pay $6,820. But people who make $1,000,000 also pay $6,820, as do people who make $100 million, or $1 billion. This makes Social Security a regressive tax. Eliminating the ceiling would make it flat tax.

Second, impose a floor, perhaps $25,000 per year. This would transform the tax from a regressive tax into a slightly progressive tax for the lower 80%.

Third, transform the structure of the tax to a fully progressive tax, as illustrated below.

Progressive Structure for Social Security
Income Tax Rate
Under $25,000 0.00%
$25,001 to $50,000 2.50%
$50,001 to $100,000 3.50%
$100,001 to $250,000 4.50%
$250,001 to $500,000 5.50%
$500,001 to $1.0 Million 6.50%
over $1.0 Million 7.50%
Table 1

Fourth, REQUIRE, elected and appointed representatives in all branches and at all levels of Federal government to participate in the program. That would include the President, Representatives in the House and Senate, the Honorable Justices of the Supreme Court, lower courts, as well as elected representatives in the governments of the states of the Union and territories.

And Fifth, consider Capital Gains, distributions from Trust Funds, and other distributions that are not “W2 Income” as defined by the Internal Revenue Service to be treated like “W2 Income” for the purposes of funding Social Security.

Other posts on tax policy:

  • How to Fix Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security, 11/29/12, here.
  • Occupy Wall Street – On Taxes, 9/28/12, here.
  • Progressive Tax Policy, 10/28/11, here.
  • Taxes – the Price We Pay For Civilization, 8/7/11, here.

How to Fix Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security

FDR in 1933
President Roosevelt created the Social Security Administration in 1935.

Pres. Johnson
President Johnson created Medicare in 1965.

President Obama
President Obama passed the Affordable Care Act in 2010.

People say “Medicare and Social Security are broken. They need to be fixed.” Some say they should be eliminated, or turned into voucher programs. What are the facts? What does “Broken” mean, in the context of Medicare and Social Security?

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