We realize it may be a stretch for ordinary people to want to keep up with the comings and goings of the Social Security Administration, but sometimes circumstances permit where someone does want to follow the latest news regarding the agency due to a possible retirement or disability interest. This blog is an ongoing piecemeal of recent stories that have involved Social Security. Some are tidbits and some are important things that should be known in the world of retirement or disability and others are just interesting stories and nothing more.
Why You Want To Pay Social Security Taxes
No one truly likes paying taxes, whether it is federal income tax, state income tax or Social Security tax. Not paying federal income tax can get you in trouble with the IRS, but no one is likely to come after you if you don’t pay Social Security taxes, but it doesn’t mean there are not consequences for avoiding Social Security taxes. The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College recently published a report indicating that people who avoid paying Social Security taxes are costing the Social Security trust funds $6.4 billion per year in lost revenues. This causes issues for the trust funds to have enough money to pay full benefits, but also hurts the people who are not paying Social Security taxes. Typically independent contractors or others who have jobs that are not considered to be conventional can avoid paying Social Security taxes, but in the long run it only hurts the worker. Paying into Social Security enables eligibility for retirement and disability benefits if you become unable to work. The higher the salary and the more Social Security taxes a person pays, the higher their benefit amount will be. Paying Social Security benefits is good for the entire system, but also for the worker who may depend on those benefits later in life.
Saul Nominated Again
President Donald Trump nominated Andrew Saul to be Social Security’s next commissioner for a term that ends in 2025. You may remember that Saul was nominated last year to serve until the end of 2018, but his nomination was not confirmed by the Senate before they adjourned last year. A confirmation hearing was held last year and during that hearing Saul said he would focus on modernizing Social Security’s information technology infrastructure. There has been no new confirmation hearing scheduled to consider Saul’s six-year appointment.
No SSA Benefit Increase For 2020?
According to a report from CNBC early projections show there may not be any cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in 2020. The decision of whether a COLA is given to Social Security beneficiaries is based on the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index from previous quarters. After examining the last quarter of 2018, there would little to no increase in benefits in 2020. The good news is things could change. There are nine months left before the COLA is calculated, so we are only 25 percent of the way to decision time and a lot can change during then.
