QuoteOn average, those born in the 1960s are scheduled to receive 133% as much in lifetime benefits as they and their employers pay in taxes on a present value basis, CRFB said, citing findings from the Congressional Budget Office.
Put another way, retirees in that cohort are scheduled to receive all of their contributions, plus interest, along with an additional 33 cents for every $1 they and their employer paid in
https://www.newsnationnow.com/business/your-money/social-security-retirees/
The whole discussion about Social Security is so exasperating when people talk about getting back what they have put in. We should never have created SS contributions as a separate line item that leads people to believe that it is some sort of savings program.
I always ask these people: "How much did the first Social Security recipient contribute?" Answer: $0.00. It was always intended as an insurance program, not a pension savings plan.
In fact, the official name of the program is "Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability
Insurance." It was always intended to provide a floor and it was extended to old people because until recently, old people were the most impoverished age group in America (now we are the wealthiest).
Frankly, I think it should be means tested and someone like me, who has ended up being very lucky in life, should not get out what I put into it. And when I say "very lucky" I am not even in the top 10%. It is ridiculous for people in the top 10% to be getting benefits from an anti-poverty insurance program.
Elizabeth Warren: "When they get older, they get THAT money back to help them retire." (my emphasis)
But they don't. THAT money went to their grandparents and parents. I don't get any money BACK. I get NEW money that comes from the next generation who have enough struggles without paying for me to live a life of ease, which is mostly what I live these days.
And though I have not yet taken Social Security, I will take it even though I think my benefit should probably be lower than it is. Just like I took the mortgage tax deduction even though I think it should be abolished. #TragedyOfTheCommons
This:
Quote"The reality is that Social Security is not a savings program where workers' payroll tax contributions are saved in an account and used to pay their benefits," CRFB wrote. "Rather, Social Security is a pay-as-you-go social insurance program where current workers' payroll taxes finance the benefits of current retirees."