Securing Retirement Income for Tomorrow's Retirees
June 3, 2003
The Fifth Annual Retirement Research Consortium Conference titled "Securing Retirement Income for Tomorrow's Retirees" (PDF) was held on May 15—16 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The conference was another step toward reaching consensus on the need for reform, with the first two sessions focusing on the potential Social Security reform and personal accounts.
The joint effort of Boston College Center for Retirement Research and Michigan Retirement Research Center resulted in a conference where leading experts on retirement research got a change to share their work and debate over the future of retirement policy. The following papers were among the many contributions:
A panel consisting of William Shipman, Carriage Oaks Partners and co-chair of Cato's Project on Social Security Choice; Richard Burkhauser, Cornell University; Jeffrey Brown, University of Illinois; and Kent Smetters, University of Pennsylvania, discussed different aspects and implementation of Social Security personal accounts.
In his introductory remarks, James Lockhart, deputy commissioner of Social Security, presented the problems facing Social Security as a result of baby boomers being five years away from early retirement, people living longer in retirement, and declining birth rates:
As presented in the 2003 Trustees Report, $3.5 trillion dollars needed today to cover the cash shortfall over the next 75 years triples if the time horizon is extended to infinity, not including the $1.4 trillion needed to redeem the trust fund. While an immediate 15 percent tax increase or 13 percent benefit cut establishes solvency through 2077, waiting until the trust fund exhaustion date would translate into 46 percent tax increase or 31 percent benefit cut. Since these are very unattractive plans, personal accounts have been seen as the only feasible way.
In light of these facts, the findings about growing reliance on Social Security over the last decade with one third of retirees relying on Social Security for 90 percent of retirement income, magnifies the scope of the problem.
Lockhart reminded everyone Greenspan's warning about the lack of action bringing later adjustments that are both "abrupt and painful." He also reminded President Bush's remarks: "I hope that Members of Congress will join with the Social Security Administration and other interested parties in a national dialogue about how to best strengthen and protect Social Security ... We must encourage for all of people the security and independence provided by savings. I want America to be an ownership society, a society where a life of work becomes a retirement of independence."
Stephen Friedman, assistant to the president for economic policy and director of the National Economic Council, reiterated the problems facing Social Security and explained the president's vision of Social Security reform.
During "Older Americans Month" when Social Security Administration launched "Save for your Future" campaign, this conference was a timely reminder of the importance of independent policy research in advancing Social Security reform.
2005 Index |
2004 Index
2003 Index |
2002 Index |
2001 Index
2000 Index |
1999 Index |
1998 Index
|
