U.S. President Joe Biden speaks during an event at the Royal Castle, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in Warsaw, Poland, March 26, 2022.
Aleksandra Szmigiel | Reuters
President Joe Biden’s proposed budget for 2023 is intended to provide the Social Security Administration with additional funding to improve services.
Some groups say the gains don’t go far enough.
Biden wants to increase discretionary funding to the Social Security Administration in proposed budget for 2023 $1.8 billion, out of a total of $14.8 billion. That’s an increase of about 14% from the level of funding enacted in 2021 for the government agency that administers retirement, disability and survivorship benefits for about 70 million Americans.
Under the proposed $14.8 billion budget, another $1.6 billion (also 14% increase from 2021) will go toward improving agency services, while working to protect the integrity of the agency. program will raise $224 million more than in 2021.
Biden also looking for more money for Social Security last year, proposed a 9.7% increase, or a total of $14.2 billion, for 2022, to help improve customer service amid the pandemic Covid-19 is happening.
Proposed changes to Social Security
An additional $1.6 billion in services will go to field offices, state disability services, and remote service centers. The funds will also be used to add staff to help reduce wait times and speed up disability claims.
The proposal would also allow the agency to make changes to help ensure that everyone who needs the agency’s services can access them, including those experiencing homelessness, children with disabilities, or people with disabilities. adults with intellectual or mental disabilities.
More from Personal Finance:
Obama’s former Education Secretary urges Biden to cancel student debt
How to take leave, even if your company doesn’t offer it
Lawmakers want to ease the pain of high gas prices with direct payments
A $224 million increase from 2021 to protect program integrity will bring the total to $1.8 billion. Those funds will ensure that the program is providing the correct benefits to those who qualify and that program funds are being spent responsibly. The money will also be used to support the investigation and prosecution of fraud.
Teams hope to see more
The National Commission on the Preservation of Social Security and Medicare praised the proposed funding for the Social Security Administration’s operations, which “have been strained by the pandemic and more than a decade of The GOP is forced to cut spending,” the nonprofit advocacy group said Monday. .
This funding could help reduce customer service bottlenecks, including long wait times for the agency’s 800 number and disability hearings, and help the agency reopen its current offices. The school was closed during the pandemic, it said.
However, the team also said they hope to see more in the budget.
“While we appreciated many aspects of the President’s fiscal year 2023 budget proposal, we had hoped that it would reflect the efforts of Democrats in Congress to promote Security. social security, including increasing necessary benefits and adjusting wage limits so that the wealthy pay their fair share into the system,” said Max Richtman, president and chief executive officer of the National Commission. to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, said in a statement.
VALERIE MACON | AFP | beautiful pictures
ONE the bill was reintroduced in Parliament by Delegate John Larson, D-Conn., in October will provide a benefit boost to new and existing beneficiaries, amounting to about 2% of the average benefit. In addition, it would also set a higher minimum benefit level for low-income workers.
That act also seeks to increase the Social Security tax paid by those with higher wages by reimpositioning the payroll tax on people earning $400,000 or more. Currently, payroll taxes of 6.2% paid by both employee and employer apply only to wages up to $147,000 in 2022.
Biden’s new budget proposal also comes because of the trust funds that Social Security relies on to pay benefits. expected to be depleted by 2034. At that point, 78% of the promised benefit will be paid out.
The Committee on a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonprofit, took issue with the fact that Biden’s budget didn’t address that.
Maya MacGuineas, chair of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, said in a statement.
