Social Security Administration (SSA) Secretary Martin O’Malley warned that raising the system’s retirement age would disproportionately hurt blue-collar workers, a day after the Republican Study Committee (RSC) announced the proposed age increase. .
The RSC, which represents nearly 80% of House Republicans, released a budget Wednesday that would raise the age for Social Security benefits “to account for increases in life expectancy,” without providing details. The current full retirement age for this program is he 67 years old.
“[Americans] I want their government to step up. [Social Security] “It’s not about shrinking, shrinking, watering down customer service, it’s about expanding,” O’Malley said during a House Ways and Means Committee hearing Thursday.
“I think those who advocate raising the age need to be mindful of the people who work hard all their lives and die earlier,” he says.
Democratic lawmakers denounced the RSC budget proposal.
“I don’t know about you, but I don’t believe Americans should be forced to work themselves to death,” said Rep. Bill Pascrell (D.N.J.).
“Underfunding the SSA is an attack on hard-working Americans and the benefits they have earned. This is not a right, it is a benefit earned,” said Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.). .
Republicans largely avoided the topic during the hearing.
The RSC proposal notes that President Biden supported raising the age from 65 to 67 when he was a senator in the 1980s. He said action was needed again on Social Security, given that the program is expected to fail within 10 years as it stands.
“Parliament has a moral and practical obligation to address social security issues as it approaches bankruptcy over a 10-year budget period,” the RSC’s proposal said.
Biden has proposed raising payroll taxes on Americans making more than $400,000 a year to keep the program fully funded.
O’Malley also supported Biden’s call Thursday to guarantee 12 weeks of paid leave to low-wage workers.
“It’s not true that we are one of the most developed economies in the world and yet we are one of the few countries without paid family leave,” he said.
Biden nominated former Maryland Governor O’Malley to serve as Social Security Commissioner in December.
Biden proposed increasing SSA’s discretionary budget by $1.3 billion to $15.4 billion to address SSA’s administrative problems, including staffing retention and backlogs in disability status applications.
“It’s been nine years since Congress gave SSA a budget hearing, and over those nine years, the services SSA provides have continued to decline,” O’Malley said.
O’Malley called on the committee to pass President Biden’s investment proposal for SSA, calling it a “solid step forward.”
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