The Social Security Surplus is Real

[RRand98163@aol.com]

Dear Rep. Nadler,

  I am absolutely amazed at your responses to my comments, and believe they 
show a frightening lack of understanding of the issues. I think all I can do 
is repeat my comments in simpler and clearer language.

1. H. R. 1043 provides for transfers of funds generated by general revenues 
to the Social Security Trust Fund. Thus those funds will not be available for 
other purposes, such as tax reductions or desirable spending increases. So 
either taxes will be higher, spending less, or borrowing greater than if such 
transfers were not made. How can there be any argument about this? 
2. Increasing the retirement age in line with increases in life expectancies 
means keeping the Social Security system just as generous to future retirees 
as it is today. Maintaining the retirement age at 65, and the early 
retirement age at 62, means that the system becomes more generous than it is 
today. Increasing the retirement age is not cruel treatment to any group of 
workers unless you say that the present retirement ages represent cruel 
treatment to those currently retiring.
3. The annual 75 year projections show that the value of benefits over the 
next 75 years exceeds the value of taxes by 2.1% of covered payroll.  The 
excesses of annual tax revenues  over benefits is less than required to 
compensate for future projected excesses of benefits over expenses.  Not 
enough money is currently being set aside each year  to  provide for the 
projected future deficits.  Proper accounting would classify such a result as 
a deficit, not a surplus.