There are multiple slabs of Social Security benefit amounts for US citizens, but there is one new policy option among a few introduced by the Congressional Budget Office recently. Aimed to help save the program’s finances over time, this option includes handing out a flat social security amount to every retiree.
However, the CBO has said that this measure would cut down benefits for about three-quarters of future beneficiaries, with just one quarter getting some advantage out of this.
How much payment is the CBO planning on giving?
The amount that the Congressional Budget Office is proposing is $1,660 per retiree, and $2,250 for a couple. According to the latest stats, the average Social Security benefit for all retirees and survivors is about $1,900 a month.
ALSO READ | Renting a house in these 10 US cities could drain your wallet
There are two alternatives that the CBO is proposing. On their website, their proposal reads, “Under the first alternative, the benefit amount would be the same for all beneficiaries, set to 150 percent of the FPL, which would equal about $1,990 per month in calendar year 2026.”
Regarding the second benefit, CBO says, “the uniform benefit amount would be set to 125 percent of the FPL, equaling about $1,660 per month in calendar year 2026. That year, about one-quarter of newly eligible beneficiaries would receive higher benefits and about three-quarters would receive lower benefits.”
Will this new measure be enough to save the program eventually?
If the second alternative is considered, Social Security benefits would be set to 150% of the federal poverty guidelines, as per CBO. All of this is aimed at saving Social Security’s finances and keeping the program up and running, but CBO’s numbers suggest otherwise. According to it, these new alternatives would only pay for approximately 12% of the cost of the tax cuts being considered by the Congress.
