Washington, D.C. — New legislation was introduced in Congress yesterday that would rebalance the Social Security trust funds and ensure that all promised benefits can be paid for the next nearly two decades. Rebecca Vallas, Director of Policy for the Poverty to Prosperity Program at the Center for American Progress, released the following statement on the introduction of the Social Security Earned Benefits Payment Act in the House and Senate:
For more than 60 years, Social Security Disability Insurance has been a core pillar of the nation’s Social Security system, providing critical economic security when it is needed most. Rebalancing the two Social Security trust funds—through a temporary, modest reallocation of payroll taxes, as the Social Security Earned Benefits Payment Act would do—or merging the two funds would ensure that Social Security is able to pay all promised benefits until 2034. Congress should take swift action to pass this important legislation. Failure to do so would be nothing short of devastating to millions of workers with disabilities and their families and would erode Americans’ confidence in Social Security. The nation’s Social Security system is far too important to the American people to hold it hostage to congressional politicking.
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For more information on this topic or to speak with an expert, contact Liz Bartolomeo at lbartolomeo@americanprogress.org or 202.481.8151.
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