Advocates Push 2020 Dems to Address Social Security Reform

The solvency of Social Security has not been a focus of Democrats running for the 2020 presidential nomination, even as a new report reveals that the program's trust fund will run out of money in just 16 years. Instead, several candidates have focused on protecting or expanding Social Security benefits. Experts say that keeping the program funded past 2035 is no easy task, reports The Hill . Stephen Goss, the chief actuary of the Social Security Administration, says the report highlights how precarious the situation is, as the population ages and costs go up, warning that without action, by 2035, the trust fund will be depleted, and revenues coming in from payroll taxes would only be able to cover less than 80 percent of benefits. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) calls for an expansion of Social Security benefits and an extension of the lifeline of the trust fund by taxing the rich. Currently, the payroll taxes that fund Social Security only apply to the first $132,900 of salary. Sanders' proposal would reintroduce the payroll tax for dollars earned past $250,000. Sanders says his plan would extend solvency until 2071, while also expanding benefits. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) are co-sponsors. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has advocated for lifting the cap on payroll taxes altogether, an approach the Alliance for Retired Americans says would avoid creating a "reverse donut hole" of revenues and help stabilize the fund.