Policy Option Projections
Below are our projections of the effects of various retirement policy proposals on Social Security beneficiaries. For each proposal, we also link to SSA's actuarial projections of the effects on the Social Security trust fund.
- Benefit Formula
Changes - Cost of Living
Adjustment Changes - Covered Worker
Changes - Retirement
Age Increases - Taxation
Changes
Benefit Formula Changes
Details on the current benefit formula »
| Proposal | Start/End Date(s) | Proposed by? | Projected Effects on… | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beneficiaries in… | Trust Fundsa | |||
| Credit earnings to caregivers' records | ||||
| Up to 5 years at one-half average wage when caring for children under age six | 2012/NA | NASI | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B7.3 |
| Increase the computation period from 35 years | ||||
| To 40 years (does not apply to DI) | 2012/2020 | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B4.2 |
| Price index the PIA formula | ||||
| Reduce the formula factors by the difference in growth rates of wages and prices | 2018/NA | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B1.1 |
| Protect the bottom 30% of workers from price indexing | 2018/NA | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B1.2 |
| Reconfigure the minimum benefit | ||||
| For workers with 10 to 30 years of coverage (YOC = 4 quarters earned that year) set PIA up to 125% of the monthly poverty level | 2012/NA | NASI | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B5.2 |
| Reduce the 90%, 32%, and 15% PIA factors | ||||
| To 90%, 21%, and 10% over a 31-year period | 2012/NA | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B3.1 |
| To 69.2%, 24.6%, and 11.5% over a 28-year period | 2015/NA | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B3.4 |
| Reduce initial benefits | ||||
| By 5% | 2012/NA | SSAB | 2030 | 2050 | 2070 | OACT B7.2 |
NOTE: DI = disability insurance, OACT = Office of the Chief Actuary, SSAB = Social Security Advisory Board.
a. Because the timing of OACT updates to Trust Fund projections may not coincide with the timing of our updates, the specifications used to make these projections (e.g., years and amounts) may differ.