Ben: It'll last 75 more

By Paul Glasser

U.S. Rep. Ben Chandler says Social Security might require a few minor “tweaks” to remain solvent but predicts it will benefit seniors for another 75 years.

Saturday was the 75th anniversary of the program President Franklin Roosevelt created. There are 52.5 million members, and they receive average monthly payments of about $1,100 according to the Social Security Administration.

Chandler, a Versailles Democrat, spoke to several dozen members at the Franklin County Senior Activity Center Monday to address their fears about changes to Social Security.

“Anything that would be done would be very minor in nature,” he said.

However, a proposal by Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan would allow people to put Social Security funds into personal accounts – similar to a plan presented by President George W. Bush.

According to the Associated Press, the plan has not been endorsed by Republican leaders and attracted support from only a few members.

Privatization would be “catastrophic,” Chandler said, and would result in a massive inequality among retirees.

“People who have investing skills would obviously do better than people who don’t,” he said. “I don’t think that’s a very good idea at all.”

However, the Social Security trust fund could become insolvent by 2037, according to the Associated Press. Chandler said only minor changes would be necessary to keep the fund solvent -– he didn’t comment directly on possible solutions such as reducing benefits or raising the age of retirement.

“The thing about Social Security is that it’s a mathematical equation,” he said. “There are a number of different options.”

However, one option could be eliminating the cap on income taxed for Social Security benefits. Only the first $106,000 of income is subject to taxation and Chandler said removing that limit might be an option for the future.

If the economy recovers, no action could be required, he said.

Max Thomas, 57, is a retired state employee and said he’s concerned about any proposal to raise the age of retirement for Social Security above 65 years.

“Raising the age would not be good for a lot of people,” he said. “I don’t think it’s fair to those individuals.”

Thomas, a Democrat, said he agrees with Chandler and is opposed to plans to privatize Social Security.

“I think it would only benefit the rich, big brokers and Wall Street,” he said. “You’d be gambling. The little guy would suffer.”

Thomas said he has a good pension from state government and wouldn’t rely on his Social Security benefits – however he knows some relatives who do.

“They worked all their life and have an expectation for it to be there,” he said.

A spokesman for Republican Andy Barr, who is challenging Chandler in the November election, said he is opposed to privatization.