Do your own math on SS plan March 20, 2005�
By Tim Zorn / Post-Tribune staff writer The numbers and theories flying around about Social Security�s future could make anyone dizzy. Is Social Security about to go broke? Or does it just need a little tweaking? Do you trust the government with your retirement money? Or do you prefer to risk it in the stock market? And would President Bush�s proposal, to let workers set up investment accounts with some of their Social Security taxes, make everything better? Some groups have come up with handy �calculators� to show people how much they could expect to make in different Social Security scenarios. But the numbers vary widely � not surprisingly, because different assumptions underlie the calculations. For example, U.S. Rep. Peter Visclosky, D-Merrillville, put on his office�s Web site last week a �calculator� that shows how much you�re likely to lose, not gain, under President Bush�s plan. The calculator was put together by the House Democratic leadership, which has been critical of Bush�s plan. Supporters of Bush�s plan say private investment builds up a bigger nest egg, over time, than Social Security does. �You�re going to see greater returns (with Bush�s plan) than you�re receiving today,� Indiana State Treasurer Tim Berry said. �I�m convinced you�ll be better off than you will be with just Social Security.� But according to the Democrats� �calculator,� people born after 1950 � the age range affected by Bush�s plan � would inevitably have smaller Social Security benefits if Bush�s plan became law. That�s because of a little-noticed aspect of a reform plan proposed by Bush�s Social Security Commission in 2001; Bush has said that plan was the basis for his proposal. Critics, such as the Center for Economic and Policy Research, say the 2001 plan includes a change in the method of calculating a person�s initial benefits � and thus reducing benefit increases. Even with private accounts, Social Security would produce less income if the change in calculating benefits became law, according to the Democrats. Berry wasn�t impressed with the Democrats� �calculator.� �You can make numbers do anything you want,� he said. No legislation embodying Bush�s plan has been introduced, so it�s too early to say if it would include a benefits-calculation change. Visclosky believes the government should �strengthen� Social Security, his spokesman said, without cutting benefits, raising taxes or borrowing more money. At the other end of the spectrum, the conservative Heritage Foundation has a �calculator� that shows how much individuals would make if allowed to invest all their Social Security taxes in personal retirement accounts. But the foundation says that doesn�t reflect Bush�s plan, which proposes diverting only a fraction of Social Security taxes to investment accounts. Contact Tim Zorn at 648-3073 or [EMAIL PROTECTED] Go figure Some �calculators� are available at the following Web sites: n www.socialsecurity.gov/ planners/calculators.htm n www.house.gov/visclosky n www.heritage.org/research/ features/socialsecurity n www.cepr.net/pages/ sscalculator.htm n www.socialsecurity.org/ reformandyou/sscalc/sscalc.php n www.iwpr.org/sscalc4/ calculator.html
