After the balance in Social Security's Disability Insurance Trust Fund dipped to a low level in 2015, Congress passed and President Obama signed a bill that temporarily diverted more of the F.I.CA. taxes from Social Security's Retirement and Survivors Trust Fund to its Disability Trust Fund for three years, 2016-2018. So how's the trust fund doing in 2019 without the additional revenue? Not too bad. With the extra revenues, the Disability Trust Fund gained $18.1 billion in the first seven months of last year. In the first seven months of 2019, without the additional tax revenue, the Disability Trust Fund gained $2 billion. As of last month, the Disability Trust Fund balance was a healthy $99.1 billion.
If you just keep denying people who are disabled and others move off (to retirement benefits), it really helps the government's bottom line! Well, this part. In the meantime, they are getting medicaid, declaring bankruptcy, defaulting on student loans... Just because you call a rose by any other name... It's still a rose.
ReplyDeleteIt doing OK, but I think the DI Trust Fund will drop for the year. Revenues seem to be higher in the first half of the year, while expenses are almost flat. Taking that into account I think the Trust Fund will lose $3-4 billion for the year (which is OK since the Trust Fund has almost $100 billion). I based this on using the revenue for 2015-2018 to get the difference between yearly revenue and that predicted on the basis of the first 7 months average, and then applying that to 2019, and doing the same for cost. (This assumes the increased revenue for 2016-2018 was for calendar years, which I think is the case.)
ReplyDeleteTim, even with beneftis they would default on student loans taking the opt out of payment option, go on retirement at age and declare bankruptcy for faulty savings practices. So what is your point?
ReplyDeleteMore people working and paying taxes, thats how pyramid schemes work.
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ReplyDeleteI could be wrong, but can't the department of education garnish even retirement and disability payments (except not SSI, not entirely) for satisfaction of student loan debt? Opting out of payment isn't exactly what I would call an "option" at that point. Also, student loans are not discharged in bankruptcy.
The garnishment is for taking non federal student loans. If you have federal student loans, you may be eligible to have your loans cancelled through a "total and permanent disability" (TPD) discharge. A discharge means that you don't have to repay the loans.
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