Questions on the Archer-Shaw Plan

["Steven H. Johnson" <info@sscommonsense.org>]

Dear Rep. Shaw,

I read your comments with interest. And I liked the basic objective
you're trying to meet - protecting benefits to future retirees,
without an increase in the payroll tax.

I have some questions.

First, a question of clarification.  What exactly is it that happens
when a person retires?  Does Social Security adjust its benefit
check downward, according to the amount that the individual will
be receiving from their personal account-financed annuity?  In
other words, are you proposing the sort of mechanism that Jim
Kolbe characterized as a "clawback"?  [Though I don't like the
word clawback, I think the mechanism is a good idea.  It's a good
way of equalizing results among cohorts who could otherwise be
treated quite differently by the stock market, depending on the
points in time at which they retire.]

Second.  What's the real rate of return you're assuming in your
calculations?  For private account portfolios overall?  For the
stock market portion of those portfolios?

Third.  What's the total size of the asset pool that will ultimately
be accumulated in personal accounts, relative to GDP?

Fourth.  What do you anticipate to be the size of the Social Security
Trust Fund, relative to GDP, over the next several decades, if the
Archer-Shaw proposal is adopted and implemented?

Thank you for participating in this forum.  I think this has been
an excellent process.  I commend the sponsors, the panelists, and 
the moderator for a job well done.  I've also greatly appreciated
reading the comments of the other on-line participants.

-Steve Johnson.