A recent editorial from the Boston Globe urged President Joe Biden to increase Social Security taxes on high income earners as he campaigned on to help fix the Social Security funding problem and stress that it should be included in the infrastructure plan Biden recently introduced.
The editorial makes sense, it is calling for something Biden himself has already called for and would not impact low wage earners or middle class families. At some point something has to be done to fix Social Security’s funding problem so why not now? Below is a conclusion of Biden’s previous plan to fix the Social Security funding problem as identified in an analysis of the Biden plan by the Urban Institute.
Conclusion of Biden Plan
Biden’s presidential campaign has developed detailed plans that would improve Social Security’s finances, enhance Social Security benefits, and expand SSI. These plans would improve financial security for older adults and people with disabilities, lifting more than 1 million Social Security beneficiaries out of poverty in 2021, according to our projections. Biden’s plan would also improve Social Security’s finances, but it would not entirely eliminate the program’s long-term financial deficit, and future tax increases or benefit cuts would likely be needed to balance the program.
By extending the Social Security payroll tax to earnings above $400,000, Biden’s Social Security plan would increase the program’s revenue, relative to what it would collect under current law, 7 percent in 2021, 12 percent in 2040, and 16 percent in 2065. Only workers earning more than $400,000 a year would pay additional payroll taxes under Biden’s plan. These workers would make up less than 1 percent of the workforce in 2021, but that share would edge up over time as wage growth increases the portion of workers earning more than $400,000.
