In early January, Social Security’s retiring Chief Actuary, Steve Goss, released an actuarial valuation of a proposal intended to improve the solvency of the Social Security trust funds based on 2024 valuation results and intermediate assumptions. The request for the proposal valuation was submitted by Rep. Steny Hoyer (D-MD) and economist Dr. Wendell Primus, and therefore is referred to in this post as the Hoyer/Primus proposal. The proposal includes a total of 17 provisions that would affect the system’s finances. Some of the more significant proposal provisions would increase system revenues while other significant proposal provisions would generally decrease system benefits.
This post will not analyze or comment on (with one exception) any of the specific proposed changes. Nor will we provide our thoughts on the likelihood of this proposal passing in the near future (unlikely). Instead, we will simply discuss whether enactment of the Hoyer/Primus proposal would fix the system. In brief, while the proposal would definitely improve Social Security’s solvency, it should not be considered as a “fix” for 75 years or any specific period.
