Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), along with Reps. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.) and Val Hoyle (D-Ore.), introduced the Social Security Expansion Act. The legislation would apply the Social Security payroll tax on income above $250,000 to ensure Social Security is fully funded for the next 75 years.
While Republican lawmakers are suggesting tax breaks for the rich, the Social Security Expansion Act would not raise taxes on more than 91 percent of American households who make $250,000 or less.
“At a time when nearly half of older Americans have no retirement savings and over 26% of seniors are trying to survive on an income of less than $17,500 a year, our job is not to cut Social Security as many of our Republican colleagues want to do,” Sanders said. “Our job is to expand Social Security so that every senior in America can retire with the dignity that they deserve and every person with a disability can live with the security they need.”
Sander said that expanding Social Security benefits by $2,400 a year will “lift millions of seniors out of poverty and extend the solvency of Social Security for generations to come by making sure that the wealthiest people in our society pay their fair share into the system.”
“Right now, a billionaire pays the same amount into Social Security as someone who makes $176,100 a year,” Sanders said. “Our bill puts an end to that absurdity. And by doing that, we can expand Social Security benefits and make sure that Social Security can pay out every single benefit owed to every eligible American for the next 75 years.”
Before Social Security was signed into law by former President Franklin D. Roosevelt, about 50 percent of American seniors lived in poverty, including people with disabilities and surviving dependents of deceased workers. Today, only 9.7 percent of seniors live in poverty, according to an analysis of the legislation conducted by the Social Security Administration at the request of Sen. Sanders in 2023.
“Social Security serves as a lifeline for millions of seniors, and hardworking Americans deserve to receive the benefits they paid into,” Warren said. “It’s a mistake for Donald Trump and his allies in Congress to focus on securing tax cuts for billionaires and large corporations when we should be focusing on expanding and increasing Social Security benefits so that everyone can retire with dignity.”
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