CBO Finds GOP Social Security Plans Would Slash Benefits by Thousands of Dollars, Fail to Extend Solvency

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new report from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), requested by House Budget Committee Ranking Member Brendan F. Boyle, found that Republican Social Security plans would result in steep benefit cuts for American workers while failing to extend the solvency of the Social Security Trust Fund. CBO found that raising the retirement age to 69 — as proposed by the Republican Study Committee, the Heritage Foundation, and other Republican groups — would result in an average yearly benefit reduction of about 13 percent for those subject to the full cut.

Ranking Member Boyle’s Statement:

“Social Security is a sacred promise that after a lifetime of hard work, Americans have earned the right to retire with dignity,” said Ranking Member Boyle. “This independent, nonpartisan report shows just how devastating Republican plans to rip away hard-earned Social Security benefits would be for American workers. Instead of saving Social Security by making the ultra-rich pay their fair share, the GOP is hell-bent on gutting benefits for the middle class. Democrats will never stop fighting to keep the promise of Social Security and defend Americans’ retirement security from Republican attacks.”

Key Findings in CBO’s Report:

This report from CBO analyzes the impact of raising the full retirement age to 69, as proposed by the Republican Study Committee (RSC), the Heritage Foundation, and other far-right groups. Supported by nearly 80 percent of House Republicans and 100 percent of House Republican Leadership, the RSC has repeatedly proposed devastating cuts to Social Security. The report found that:

• Increasing the retirement age from 67 to 69 for all beneficiaries younger than age 59 today would lead to smaller lifetime benefits for all recipients. 

• For workers currently in their 30s and 40s who are subject to the full retirement age increase, the average annual benefit cut would be 13 percent, or around $3,500 a year.
• Average lifetime Social Security benefits would be reduced by 8 percent for those subject to the full increase in the retirement age.

• Increasing the retirement age would push some beneficiaries to claim disability benefits, modestly increasing expenditures for that program.

• Though increasing the retirement age would reduce spending, it would not create enough savings to change the expected exhaustion date of the Social Security Trust Fund, which is projected to be unable to pay full benefits by the end of Fiscal Year 2034.

Democrats Have a Proven Plan to Protect Social Security Benefits:

• While Republicans continue to attack Social Security and Medicare, Ranking Member Brendan F. Boyle and Senate Budget Committee Chairman Sheldon Whitehouse have introduced the Medicare and Social Security Fair Share Act. This legislation would extend the solvency of Social Security and Medicare indefinitely by making the nation's highest earners contribute their fair share, as verified by the Chief Actuaries of the Social Security Administration and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The full report from the Congressional Budget Office can be found here.

###