$100,000 in Social Security benefits? New proposal would cap them.

Some of America's wealthiest couples are collecting $100,000 successful Social Security benefits — a six-figure payout that a new proposal says should beryllium capped to assistance the status programme debar insolvency successful 2032.

About 1 cardinal idiosyncratic Social Security beneficiaries person astatine slightest $50,000 successful yearly payments, oregon much than $100,000 for a retired couple, according to an investigation by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan deliberation vessel focused connected fiscal and budgetary issues. 

Although that represents little than 2% of the astir 56 cardinal radical 65 oregon older who get Social Security, the CRFB's investigation projects that the stock volition turn implicit time, fixed the yearly cost-of-living accommodation for Social Security benefits and arsenic a increasing fig of Americans scope status age.

How overmuch would a six-figure headdress save?

Capping Social Security payments astatine $100,000 for couples oregon $50,000 for azygous older Americans would prevention arsenic overmuch arsenic $190 cardinal implicit a decennary and adjacent astatine slightest 20% of the program's solvency gap, the investigation found. The "six-figure limit" could beryllium combined with different imaginable fixes — specified arsenic lifting the income exemption for Social Security taxes oregon boosting the payroll taxation — to plug the program's backing hole. 

"The wealthiest seniors are collecting from Social Security for the archetypal clip $100,000 successful benefits," Marc Goldwein, elder argumentation manager astatine the CRFB, told CBS News. "This is simply a programme that, erstwhile you spell backmost to its founding, was a measurement of extortion against falling into poverty. The information that an income enactment programme would wage six figures is simply a small silly."

The CRFB's connection suggests indexing the $100,000 payment threshold either to ostentation oregon by utilizing wages arsenic a peg. That would defender against middle- and low-income households being affected by the projected headdress arsenic the Social Security Administration issues cost-of-living increases.

The $100,000 couple

Couples who jointly person much than $100,000 successful Social Security benefits are those who person earned astatine slightest the Social Security taxable maximum income, which present stands astatine $184,500, for astatine slightest 35 years and who assertion their benefits astatine their afloat status age, which is 67 this year.

A maximum-earning couple, some property 67 and claiming this year, would person $101,000 successful yearly benefits, oregon astir $8,416 successful monthly payments, according to the CRFB. 

By comparison, the mean monthly payment for a retired idiosyncratic is $2,071, according to Social Security.

If the status program's spot money becomes insolvent, each Social Security beneficiaries would look a payment chopped of astir 20%, according to experts. Because millions of seniors trust connected Social Security for each oregon astir of their income, specified a simplification would apt sharply thrust up poorness among older Americans.

AARP's response

AARP, a radical representing Americans 50 oregon older, pushed backmost against the program to enactment a lid connected benefits for definite affluent beneficiaries.

"Proposals that absorption connected capping Social Security don't code the occupation successful beforehand of Congress: ensuring each American gets each dollar they person earned," Jenn Jones, AARP vice president for fiscal information and livable communities, said successful a statement. "What's worse, ideas similar this hazard becoming a backdoor to broader cuts."

Older Americans besides don't privation to spot their benefits reduced aft paying into the programme during their careers, she added.

Edited by Alain Sherter

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• Social Security