Introduction
Social welfare is an important area that requires the attention of politicians. Therefore, policymakers should monitor the provision of social assistance to citizens. The rationale behind the importance of this bill is that there is a danger of reducing or ending social expenditures beginning in 2035. Thus, the law should solve the funding problem and extend the entitlement program until 2096 (Defazio, Sanders introduce legislation, 2022). At the same time, the advantage of this law is the expansion of benefits, which will contribute to the refinement of individuals and the equal provision of payments.
General Statement
It is important to note that Congressman Peter DeFazio and Senator Bernie Sanders have proposed a sepal bill for consideration. The aim of the bill is to enhance Social Security and extend welfare payments. The bill’s sponsors are attempting to ensure that while the cost of living rises, people will continue receiving Social Security payments at a high level (Sanders, n.d.). To achieve this, the focus is on funding and reviewing the charges according to the expense growth necessary for a supportive life. The Senate did two readings and referred it to the Finance Committee in June. The general status of the law in the legislative process is an introduction.
History of the Bill
Social Security has been considered for more than 80 years; at that time, it was established that Americans were entitled to sufficient and timely payments. In 2020, it was estimated that Social Security lifted 22 million Americans out of poverty, including more than 16 million seniors. The lawmakers note that Social Security has a surplus of $2.85 trillion in the fund. Accordingly, it is possible to provide payments to every retiree until 2035 (George, 2018). After 2035, it is essential to reduce the payments, but this will have a negative impact on the standard of living of pensioners. Thus, the developers of the law offer options to expand social welfare.
It is significant to mention the history of the bill’s introduction and attempted passage. On February 13, 2019, the bill was introduced in the previous session in Congress but failed to gain support (George, 2018). Thus, an attempt to pass the bill in 2021 would get sufficient votes to proceed. After the bill was amended and expanded, it was presented again for a vote. Workers added additional clarifications explaining the funding sources and implementation plan. Accordingly, the major issues that arose during the provisional vote have already been resolved. At the same time, the sponsors of the bill actively support it and promote it among the population.
The Context of The Bill
In today’s world, states confront economic problems that affect citizens’ quality of life. The bill responds to the fact that in 13 years, social benefits will be discontinued. Therefore, today it is one of those laws designed to ensure citizens’ rights. The high inflation is negatively affecting seniors who live only on those copayments. Accordingly, it is necessary not only to extend the program but also to expand it. However, the lack of funding raises questions about the sources of funding for the continuation of Social Security (Howard, 2021). The sponsors proposed a program that would increase the payment by $200. In this way, the problem of insufficient Social Security for a comfortable and dignified life would be addressed.
Summary of the Bill
The main points of the law are that it will promote the solvency of the state for another 75 years. This would be accomplished by raising taxes on those whose income exceeds $250,000 a year (Sanders, n.d.). Thus, people earning less will not be assessed additional taxes. This is intended to assure that workers pay a fair share based on their profits. This is because the tax system today does not differentiate people based on their level of wages. Accordingly, the tax increases will only apply to individuals with high earnings. The next point is the extension of Social Security benefits. This way, in addition, people will receive $200 in their checks (Sanders, n.d.). The bill also proposes an increase in the cost-of-living adjustment. This is needed to calculate the price index and potential expenses of retirees. The Social Security level should be set based on these calculations.
Another important clause is the special attention to millionaires and billionaires. Therefore, the law proposes to increase the portion of the flame for them to be used as a source of financing for social benefits. Prominent businessmen must pay a 12.4 percent tax and an additional labor tax. An essential element of the law is to expand the group of persons who can be compensated. This will help avoid a large group of people living below the poverty line. Thus, an indexation of 125 percent would establish minimum benefits for all pensioners. The law proposes additional social security. That is a renewal of payments for students, children under 22 with disabilities, or deceased workers (Sanders, n.d.). These payments will cover their university or college education if their parents are injured or die on the job. However, the author proposes to merge the Disability Insurance Trust Fund with the Old Age and Victims Trust Fund. Old-Age and Disability Trust Fund. Accordingly, additional funding could be available, which would be allocated based on need.
Riders Attached
It is important to note that there are three laws related to the Social Security Expansion Act. The first bill is Social Security 2100: A Sacred Trust, which seeks to provide pensions for all taxpayers. Its main changes are cost-of-living adjustments, protections for low-income workers, and support for widows and widowers. At the same time, the law aims to reduce waiting times for assistance due to disability (Skidmore, 2019). The bill would work with SSA to monitor employees in need of assistance. Accordingly, the bill is a supplement to the Social Security Expansion Act.
Reason for Introducing the Bill
Inflation in the United States is having a much greater impact on older persons and other social development recipients than this year’s gain in earnings. Currently, some lawmakers are working on a proposal to enhance Social Security benefits by $ 2,400 per recipient annually while also strengthening the system’s finances. Peter DeFazio, a Democrat from Oregon, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, an Independent from Vermont, introduced the Expanded Community Safety Act on June 9 (Zhong et al., 2021). The proposal comes after the Social Security Administration warned that if no action was taken to reform the program, Americans would stop getting their full Social Security benefits for about 13 years (Zhong et al., 2021). Each year, Social Security recipients receive a single cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, based on inflation, which must maintain their standard of living.
Why I Stand for the Bill
I support the bill because it aims to enhance the standard of living of retirees. Protecting former employees is a necessary factor in today’s society. It appears to me that the benefits that an employee’s partner can receive are necessary to ensure welfare. At the same time, the bill sets clear criteria for this, namely age 62 or having a child to support (Zhong et al., 2021). The bill specifies sincere social assistance to be paid to disabled children if a parent dies in the workplace. A significant factor is the reinstatement of student benefits, which would also incentivize the education of employees’ children. Thus, the bill also proposes to unbundle payments for an employee’s family if the need arises.
The relevance of this bill is that if passed, it will become effective on January 1, 2023. This is because lawmakers have already developed a plan and identified potential sources of funding for Social Security (Sanders, n.d.). Therefore, I believe that the law is already capable of working in the social system. At the same time, the advantage of the bill is the indexation of payments based on increases in the cost of living. Thus, pensioners will be able to receive a more significant amount of compensation during inflation. It is essential to mention that the bill clearly specifies the percentage of the annual amount based on which the payment is calculated. Therefore, it enables each pensioner to estimate the correctness of the accrual of income.
I believe the decision to create a Social Security Trust Fund is optimal. This is necessary to accumulate resources that can be used to pay social security benefits to retirees. The creation of the Board of Trustees will resolve the issue of additional compensation in the event of disability and support of the employee’s family (Sanders, n.d.). The amount of compensation will be recalculated on the basis of the analysis conducted by the specialists of the Board of Trustees. Thus, additional deductions will also take into account inflation and increases in the cost of living (Sanders, n.d.). Accordingly, the bill is designed for the long term and enables problems to be addressed in the event of changes in the economic situation.
Impact on Helping Profession
It is essential to note the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on people receiving Social Security and Medicare. Considering that Social Security payments to retirees originate from the taxes of current workers, problems occur. For example, the Fund that accumulates financing does not obtain a certain portion because of the incapacity of the population. At the same time, the law replaces the concepts of “social assistance tax” and “health insurance” (Sykes et al., 2022). Thus, the bill proposes introducing an “additional and non-labor tax” (Sykes et al., 2022). Accordingly, it will be possible to accumulate funds for investment activities and use them for retirees who worked in helping professions. Moreover, in the event that a retiree becomes disabled by Covid -19 obligatorily, the pensioner should receive social insurance.
It is significant to notice that the law privileges such a helping profession as railroad workers. Children of retired or injured workers are provided the opportunity to receive a scholarship for education not until age 19 but until age 22 (Sykes et al., 2022). Accordingly, this expands the age range and offers additional possibilities for kids. Another advantage is granting a scholarship not only in secondary and elementary school but the broader wording “in an educational institution” is used (Sykes et al., 2022). In this way, the children of railroad workers are eligible for scholarships at institutions of higher education. These amendments supplement the special law on railroad workers and the social assistance they are entitled to receive.
Ethical Concerns
There are several opinions about improving and increasing social payments to retirees. One group of individuals argues that social and pension reforms should be implemented to redistribute the money. Others argue that an additional tax should be imposed on working people. Even in Jesus’ parable of the Talents, “the enslaved person was mocked and sent out of the house because he buried his money in the ground instead of investing it. Therefore, this confirms the ethics of introducing and developing a law on social insurance for retirees” (Howard, 2021, p. 123). It will permit people with years of service to receive decent compensation in their old age. At the same time, there are questions about the fairness of burdening young employees with additional taxes. It is significant to emphasize that paying taxes guarantees that when they retire, they will also be provided with payment (Howard, 2021). Accordingly, this ethical consideration reinforces the relevance of a bill that continues to compensate in the future.
Significantly, it should be specified that from a moral point of view, children should help retired parents. Social Security has gone a long way toward easing these obligations. This assistance now relies on the state. Although it is worth noting that it is still the younger generation of workers, including the children of pensioners, who pay taxes, they are not directly helping pensioners. The next moral consideration is assistance from civil society and not government programs. Non-government organizations are concerned with society’s urgent needs, including assistance to retirees. Therefore, the moral issue is whether these organizations should provide aid to retirees already guaranteed by the state (Howard, 2021). This law introduces decent benefits for people, which is why additional support from nongovernmental organizations will no longer be needed.
Impact on Multicultural and Diversity Issues
State agencies would now focus a considerable amount of attention on combating discrimination. Despite this, 65 percent of African Americans nationwide were not eligible for benefits. Moreover, a large proportion of African Americans in the South are often excluded from funding programs (Howard, 2021, p. 83). This is because of discrimination based on race, gender, color, religion, and national origin. The Social Security Expansion Act does not address discrimination in detail. However, it indicates that social security benefits for retirees should accrue according to a transparent system. Therefore, the law specifies the length of service and relevant percentages, which excludes discriminatory accrual of payments.
Since the bill is aimed at the social security welfare of pensioners, special attention is focused on two groups. As specified in the law, people who lost their ability to work on the job and workers who died in the workplace. Thus, this suggests that welfare payments to workers’ families and such employees are sufficient to provide them with a life of dignity. Accordingly, one of the goals of The Social Security Expansion Act is to compensate for the lost benefits due to an accident at the workplace. Retirees with disabilities under the law are not discriminated against but receive additional assistance for their children’s education (Howard, 2021). It also applies to the families of deceased employees, who are supposed to receive social benefits. Thus, the bill aims to protect the families of dead and disabled laborers.
Conclusion
Hence, the bill aims to provide additional benefits and higher payments to pensioners. This will have a positive impact on the quality and standard of living of pensioners and other beneficiaries. It is especially significant to note that workers who have lost their ability to work or the families of workers who have died at work are particularly highlighted in the provisions of the bill. Accordingly, it enables additional support to be provided in such cases. At the same time, the draft law is intended to determine the sources of funding for social payments. Therefore, it specifies additional taxes for business people and the calculation of taxes depending on profits.
Another feature of the Social Security Expansion Act is the annual review of social benefits. This is a necessary phenomenon in today’s society, where there is both development and rapid inflation. Such a measure will provide retirees with benefits that allow them to live decent lives. It is essential to note the additional social guarantees for the children of workers with low income, disability, and death in the workplace. The provision of student payments will enable them to receive an education on an equal basis with other kids. In this way, the bill aims to enhance the standard of living of pensioners and provide additional guarantees for families who suffered at their jobs.
References
Defazio, Sanders introduces legislation to expand and strengthen social security. (2022, Jun 9). Congressman United States Congressman Peter DeFazio. Web.
George, V. (2018). Social security and society. Routledge.
Howard, C. (2021). The welfare state nobody knows. Princeton University Press.
Sanders, B. (n.d.). S.4365 – Social Security Expansion Act. Congress.gov.
Skidmore, M. J. (2019). Social Security and its enemies: The case for America’s most efficient insurance program. Routledge.
Sykes, B. L., Ballard, M., Giuffre, A., Goodsell, R., Kaiser, D., Mata, V. C., & Sola, J. (2022). Robbing Peter to Pay Paul: Public assistance, monetary sanctions, and financial double-dealing in America.RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 8(1), 148-178.
Zhong, X., Brucaj, A., & McManus, T. (2021). Should You Delay Your Social Security Benefit?.Michigan Academician, 47(3), 28-28.