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| What the Public Really Wants...on Retirement Security
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Ruy Teixeira,
The Century Foundation,
Center for American Progress,
1/14/2008
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The economy has not delivered strong wage growth or adequate savings opportunities in recent years for average Americans, resulting in widespread economic anxiety and insecurity. Not surprisingly, then, one particular area of anxiety is retirement. In this new brief from Ruy Teixeira's What the Public Really Wants...series, polling data consistently show that not having enough money for retirement is at the top of Americans’ economic concerns.
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Download the PDF file here.
View the series archive here.
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| Facing the Problems of Providing Long-Term Care for the Oldest Old
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Beverly Goldberg,
The Century Foundation,
6/11/2007
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As the first members of that huge generation known as the baby boomers begin to reach retirement, they are clearly more active and in better health than were earlier generations reaching that milestone. The boomers are looking forward to some two decades or more of what they believe will be an active, enjoyable third stage of life, given increases in longevity. What few of them have spent time contemplating, however, are the long-term problems that those extra years can bring: Will they be able to afford their new longevity? Will they remain healthy until the day they die? Who will care for them when they no longer can care for themselves? Beverly Goldberg examines these questions in the latest issue brief from The Century Foundation.
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Download the PDF document here.
View the press release (PDF).
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| What the Public Really Wants on Jobs and the Economy
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Ruy Teixeira,
The Century Foundation,
Center for American Progress,
10/26/2006
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In this brief from the "What the Public Really Wants..." series, Ruy Teixeira makes sense of the wealth of polling data available on Americans' views about jobs and the economy.
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Download PDF file here
What the Public Really Wants Archive
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| Meeting Social Security’s Long-Range Shortfall
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Robert M. Ball,
The Century Foundation,
9/5/2006
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Long-time Social Security Commissioner Ball presents a simple plan for restoring long-term financial balance to Social Security while preserving the program's structure and value.
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Download in PDF format
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| Aging Gracefully
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Peter R. Orszag,
J. Mark Iwry,
William G. Gale,
Century Foundation Press,
8/15/2006
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Aging Gracefully gathers a collection of essays that highlight policy ideas for promoting greater retirement savings among Americans. The essays were written as part of the Retirement Security Project, which is dedicated to promoting common sense solutions to improve the retirement income prospects of millions of American workers. The project is supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts, in partnership with Georgetown University’s Public Policy Institute and the Brookings Institution.
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Ordering Information (The Brookings Bookstore)
Table of Contents (pdf)
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| Reforming Tax Incentives to Promote Private Savings for Retirement
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
8/2/2006
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Three straightforward reforms for the tax code that would better target incentives to the families who need to improve their retirement security the most.
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Download in PDF format
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| The Basics: Public Policy in an Older America
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The Century Foundation,
4/11/2006
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Examines the "graying" of America and anticipates the effects of the coming retirement of the baby boom generation.
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Download in PDF format
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| Apart at the Seams: The Collapse of Private Pension and Health Care Protections
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Charles R. Morris,
Century Foundation Press,
2/9/2006
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An exploration of how the collapse of private sector retirement and health benefits came about and how it has affected the landscape of American social insurance.
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Order Online
Table of Contents (pdf)
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| Building A Real "Ownership Society"
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J. Larry Brown,
Robert Kuttner,
Thomas M. Shapiro,
Century Foundation Press,
7/12/2005
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Current proposals to create an “ownership society” are contrary to well-established, successful policy strategies of broadening ownership and intensify the shifting of risk to individuals.
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Download in PDF format
Order Online
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| Four Questions and Answers about the Social Security Trust Funds, the National Debt, and Sound Fiscal Policy
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
7/6/2005
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Four key questions about Social Security trust funds, the national debt, and fiscal policy.
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Download in PDF format
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| Disaster Ahead! The Breathless World Of The New Dismal Scientists
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
5/24/2005
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Why claims of a "generational crisis" are almost entirely bogus.
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Download in PDF format
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| Understanding the Proposed Cuts to Social Security Benefits
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
The Century Foundation,
4/29/2005
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Summay of the potential impact of "progressive price indexing" on future benefits.
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Download in PDF format
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| False Promise: How Social Security Privatization Would Sting Young Adults
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Libby Perl,
The Century Foundation,
3/9/2005
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Today’s young people would receive much lower guaranteed benefits with private accounts than they would under the current system.
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Download in PDF format
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| Bush's House of Cards: The Privatization Fraud
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Various Authors,
The American Prospect,
2/10/2005
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A special issue on the drive to privatize Social Security, cosponsored by The Century Foundation, EPI and the Campaign for America's Future, with articles from Paul Starr, Robert Kuttner, Dean Baker, Henry Aaron, and many others.
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Link to Issue
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| Back to the Future: The Harsh Reality Underlying a Proposed Change in Social Security
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Bernard Wasow,
Martha Paskoff Welsh,
The Century Foundation,
2/3/2005
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How price-indexing would negatively affect living standards for retirees.
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Download in PDF format
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| Why We Need Social Security
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Paul Starr,
The American Prospect,
2/1/2005
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The philosophy and values behind Social Security that have made it so successful.
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Link to Article
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| The Basics: Social Security Reform (Revised for 2005)
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The Century Foundation,
2/1/2005
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A revised edition of this popular resource for information about the Social Security program and its future, with a new chapter on privatization proposals.
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Download in PDF format
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| In Search of Retirement Security: The Changing Mix of Social Insurance, Employee Benefits, and Individual Responsibility
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Tersea Ghilarducci,
Van Doorn Oons,
John L. Palmer,
Catherine Hill,
Century Foundation Press,
1/31/2005
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Thirteen experts consider the changing face of retirement in America.
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Table of Contents (pdf)
Order Online
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| Ten Myths about Social Security
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
The Century Foundation,
1/26/2005
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Revealing popular misconceptions about the financing 'crisis', the effects of private accounts, the value of the trust funds, and more.
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Download in PDF format
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| A Bloody Mess
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Norma Cohen,
The American Prospect,
1/11/2005
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How Britain’s retirement system got to where it is today is a twisted tale that combines political ideology with fiscal expediency.
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Link to Article
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| Twelve Reasons Why Privatizing Social Security is a Bad Idea
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
12/14/2004
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Why less costly and less painful reforms to Social Security should be considered instead of the privatization plans the President is currently considering.
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Download in PDF format
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| Scare Tactics: Why Social Security Is Not in Crisis
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
11/15/2004
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The "crisis" in Social Security is actually quite manageable, despite the alarmism voiced by those who favor replacing all or part of the program with private investment accounts.
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Download in PDF format
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| The "Unfunded Liabilities" Ruse
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
10/25/2004
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Debunking the myths about the threat of long term unfunded liabilities in the federal budget.
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Download in PDF format
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| Policy for a Secure Retirement
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
5/5/2004
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Will the three main sources of retirement income—private pensions, private saving, and Social Security—add up to enough to assure Americans of the retirement they have come to expect?
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Download in PDF format
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| A New Minimum Benefit for Social Security
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Bernard Wasow,
4/12/2004
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One big idea for improving retirement security and lifting the elderly poor out of poverty: the minimum Social Security benefit. A Century Foundation Idea Brief.
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Download in PDF format
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| Promoting Retirement Savings
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
2/6/2004
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The Bush administration's proposals to restructure tax breaks for private saving in the 2005 budget plan are using the legitimate need for reforms as a subterfuge for pursuing a policy that will leave the current system’s fundamental problems unsolved.
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Download in PDF format
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| False Alarm: Why the Greatest Threat to Social Security and Medicare is the Campaign to "Save" Them
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Joseph White,
Johns Hopkins University Press,
10/1/2003
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The financial challenges facing Social Security and Medicare are long-term rather than imminent, and can and should be addressed through incremental adjustments rather than radical approaches.
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Order Online
Table of Contents (pdf)
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| Reassuring News in the 2003 Social Security Trustees Report
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
6/1/2003
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The Social Security Trustees’ 2003 annual report suggests that while the economy may be in recession, the program continues to look strong in the short and intermediate run.
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Download in PDF format
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| Reducing Benefits and Subsidizing Individual Accounts
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Peter A. Diamond,
Peter R. Orszag,
The Century Foundation,
6/15/2002
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An analysis of the plans proposed by the President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security. A white paper cosponsored by The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
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Download in PDF format
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| The Basics: Social Security Reform (Revised for 2002)
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The Century Foundation,
6/15/2002
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Offers readers the best available facts, figures, and arguments about what is right with Social Security and what is wrong with it.
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Download in PDF format
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| Setting the Record Straight: Social Security Works for Latinos
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
5/1/2002
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There is little difference in net Social Security benefits between Hispanic and non-Hispanic populations, contrary to suggestions that the program benefits ethnic groups unequally.
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Download in PDF format
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| Setting the Record Straight: Women and Social Security
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
4/1/2002
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Women tend to depend on Social Security and spousal benefits longer and in greater proportion to their total retirement income than men do.
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Download in PDF format
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| Setting the Record Straight: Two False Claims about African Americans and Social Security
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Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
3/1/2002
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Debunking privatization advocates' claims that African Americans lose out in the current system, and would stand to gain from private accounts.
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Download in PDF format
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| What Would REALLY Happen Under Social Security Privatization? Part I: Solving a Problem by Creating a Bigger One
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/2001
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Diverting payroll taxes to private accounts would actually add a large additional financial burden to Social Security instead of alleviating the projected shortfall.
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Download in PDF format
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| What Would REALLY Happen Under Social Security Privatization? Part II: Millionaires One and All?
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/2001
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The returns on accounts touted by advocates of privatization are based on numerous false and misleading assumptions.
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Download in PDF format
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| What Would REALLY Happen Under Social Security Privatization? Part III: IRAs and 401(k)s You Can Not Control or Leave to Heirs
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/2001
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Claims of enhanced control and ownership for workers over their assets in Social Security privatization schemes are greatly exaggerated.
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Download in PDF format
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| What Would REALLY Happen Under Social Security Privatization? Part IV: Insecurity for the Disabled and Dependents of Workers
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Greg Anrig, Jr.,
Bernard Wasow,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/2001
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Current debates over the future of Social Security leave out the fact that many beneficiaries are not retired workers.
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Download in PDF format
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| Questions Raised by the Plan Endorsed by President Bush's Social Security Commission
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Henry J. Aaron,
Peter R. Orszag,
Alicia Munnell,
The Century Foundation,
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities,
11/30/2001
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Analysis of preliminary descriptions of three plans by President Bush's Social Security commission that would divert revenue from Social Security into individual accounts.
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Download in PDF format
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| False Alarm: Why the Greatest Threat to Social Security and Medicare Is the Campaign to "Save" Them
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Joseph White,
Johns Hopkins University Press,
9/1/2001
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The financial challenges facing Social Security and Medicare are long-term rather than imminent, and can and should be addressed through incremental adjustments rather than radical approaches.
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Table of Contents (pdf)
Order Online
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| Perspectives on the Draft Interim Report of the President’s Commission to Strengthen Social Security
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Henry J. Aaron,
Peter R. Orszag,
Alan S. Blinder,
Alicia Munnell,
The Century Foundation,
Center on Budget and Policy Priorities,
7/23/2001
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Analysis of President Bush’s Social Security reform commission’s argument, as presented in its 2002 draft interim report, and concludes that the commission’s materials contain a number of misleading statements and factual errors.
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Download in PDF format
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| Life in an Older America
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Lawrence K. Grossman,
Mia Oberlink,
Robert N. Butler,
Century Foundation Press,
7/1/2001
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Leading experts from the worlds of public policy, health care policy, economics, media, and advertising debunk the myths surrounding aging and correct the flawed predictions for the nation's future.
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Order Online
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| Are Americans Saving Enough for Retirement?
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William G. Gale,
The Century Foundation,
6/15/2001
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Part of The Century Foundation’s Aging in America series, this report addresses the issue of retirement savings and income security.
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| Countdown to Reform: The Great Social Security Debate
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Henry J. Aaron,
Robert D. Reischauer,
Century Foundation Press,
2/15/2001
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A comprehensive examination of Social Security’s strengths and weaknesses and an assessment of recently developed reform proposals.
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Table of Contents (pdf)
Order Online
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| Social Security Reform Check List #2
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
5/22/2000
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A summary of Harvard economist Martin Feldstein’s 2000 plan to reform Social Security that exposes some serious weaknesses in the proposal.
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Download in PDF format
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| Insuring the Essentials
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Robert M. Ball,
The Century Foundation,
1/1/2000
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A collection of essays and commentaries from Robert Ball's six decades of personal and professional involvement with Social Security.
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Table of Contents (pdf)
Order Online
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| Pensions for the Twenty-First Century
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Dean Baker,
The Century Foundation,
6/15/1999
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Public debate emphasizing Social Security's long-term financial soundness has overshadowed our national private pension system’s need for serious reform. A Century Foundation white paper.
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Download in PDF format
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| Governor Bush's Individual Account Proposal
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Henry J. Aaron,
Alan S. Blinder,
Alicia Munnell,
Peter R. Orszag,
The Century Foundation,
6/1/1999
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Possible effects of then-Texas Governor George W. Bush's 1999 proposal to divert part of their Social Security payroll taxes into individual accounts.
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Download in PDF format
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| Myths and Misunderstandings About Public Opinion Toward Social Security
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Lawrence R. Jacobs,
Robert Y. Shapiro,
The Century Foundation,
6/1/1999
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Common assumptions regarding the public’s thinking about Social Security are often based on half-truths or simply are wrong. A Century Foundation report.
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Download in PDF format
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| Saving, Growth, and Social Security
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James H. Schulz,
The Century Foundation,
5/14/1999
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Dire predictions about the costs of a growing elderly population and intergenerational competition are exaggerated.
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| Broken English
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The Century Foundation,
4/8/1999
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When the United Kingdom privatized its pension funding schemes in the 1980s, the government sought to decrease state and employer contributions while increasing individual investment and saving. The outcomes of this program have not, in many cases, been beneficial to British retirees.
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Download in PDF format
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| Chile's Experience with Social Security Privatization
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The Century Foundation,
3/10/1999
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Shortcomings of Chile's social insurance reforms, often cited as a model for privatizing the American Social Security system.
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Download in PDF format
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| President Clinton's Social Security Package, the Federal Budget and the National Debt
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
3/2/1999
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Two misunderstood points in President Clinton’s 1999 proposal for strengthening Social Security regarding its relationship to the federal budget surplus and to the national debt.
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Download in PDF format
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| Investing the Social Security Trust Funds in Stocks
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The Century Foundation,
3/1/1999
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The effects of investing Social Security revenues in the stock market. with particular attention paid to the ability of such investments to reduce the short-fall in revenues predicted within the next 30 years.
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Download in PDF format
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| Beyond the Basics: Social Security Reform
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Richard C. Leone,
Greg Anrig, Jr.,
The Century Foundation,
2/15/1999
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Distinguished experts clarify critical facts about Social Security and its future while highlighting widely repeated but inaccurate claims about the system.
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Order Online
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| Social Security Reform Check List #1
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/1998
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A summary of the Social Security reform plan proposed by former commissioner of Social Security Robert M. Ball.
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Download in PDF format
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| Social Security Reform Check List #4
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/1998
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Senators Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) and Robert Kerrey (D-Neb.) introduced legislation in 1998 that would make significant changes to Social Security.
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Download in PDF format
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| Social Security Reform Check List #3
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/1998
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Points out several serious weaknesses in a 1998 proposal by the National Commission on Retirement Policy that would fundamentally restructure Social Security.
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Download in PDF format
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| Social Security Reform Check List #5
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
12/10/1998
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Senator Phil Gramm (R-Tex) sponsored a plan in 1998 to transform Social Security by diverting a share of the payroll taxes that finance today’s system into individual investment accounts.
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Download in PDF format
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| Who’s at Risk?
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The Century Foundation,
12/2/1998
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How privatization of the Social Security system would affect 8 different groups of Americans.
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Download in PDF format
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| Social Security: A Women’s Issue
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The Century Foundation,
10/27/1998
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Important differences between the financial circumstances of men and women and Social Security's role in reducing poverty among elderly women.
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Download in PDF format
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| Countdown to Reform
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Henry J. Aaron,
Robert D. Reischauer,
Century Foundation Press,
9/1/1998
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Two of the nation’s leading authorities on Social Security address the historical context of retirement security, major problems, the pros and cons of privatization, and the prospects of various reform proposals. A Century Foundation book.
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Order Online
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| Countdown to Reform
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Henry J. Aaron,
Robert D. Reischauer,
Century Foundation Press,
9/1/1998
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Two of the nation’s leading authorities on Social Security address the historical context of retirement security, major problems, the pros and cons of privatization, and the prospects of various reform proposals.
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Order Online
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| Straight Talk about Social Security
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Thomas N. Bethell,
Robert M. Ball,
Century Foundation Press,
7/1/1998
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An attempt to correct the widespread misinformation about the financing of the Social Security system which distorts much of the current debate over reform. A Century Foundation report.
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Order Online
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| Social Security: More, Not Less
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Robert Eisner,
Century Foundation Press,
6/15/1998
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Rejecting the most alarmist views about the solvency of Social Security while providing a blueprint for keeping the system strong and fair.
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Order Online
Read Chapter 4
Read Chapter 5
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| The Full Returns from Social Security
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Dean Baker,
The Century Foundation,
6/15/1998
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Social Security provides returns that are quite competitive with private sector investment instruments when the full value of the program is taken into account.
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Download in PDF format
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| The Basics: Social Security Reform
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
6/1/1998
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The aging of America’s “baby-boom generation” has ignited debate about the future of Social Security.
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| 10 Myths About Social Security
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
6/1/1998
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This issue brief reviews 10 myths about social security and demonstrates why each is not supported by the facts.
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Read the Brief
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| The Moynihan Social Security Proposal
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The Century Foundation,
The Century Foundation,
4/10/1998
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New York senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan recently proposed a plan to enact a large cut in the Social Security payroll tax while significantly reducing benefits. This issue brief examines the proposal in greater detail.
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Read the Brief
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| Social Security: The Real Deal
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The Century Foundation,
4/7/1998
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Outlines the structure of the Social Security program and criticizes proposals to privatize the program, which often ignore obvious facts and distort others.
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Read the Brief
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| The Great Deficit Scares
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Robert Eisner,
Century Foundation Press,
10/15/1997
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Deficits in the areas of budget, trade and Social Security are less ominous than politicians and the mainstream media have led us to believe. A Century Foundation report.
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Table of Contents (pdf)
Order Online
Read the Foreword
Read the Introduction
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| Stick with Public Pensions
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Richard C. Leone,
Foreign Affairs,
7/15/1997
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The shift in the balance between retirees and workers is real, and the sooner adjustments in retirement programs are made, the smaller they will need to be.
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Download Report (PDF)
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| Saving Social Security with Stocks
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Dean Baker,
The Century Foundation,
2/1/1997
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Privatization proposals in the January 1997 report of the Advisory Council on Social Security are based on highly unrealistic claims. A Century Foundation white paper.
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Download in PDF format
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| Social Security: Visions and Revisions
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W. Andrew Achenbaum,
The Century Foundation,
1/1/1986
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It has seemed in recent years as if the nation's social security crisis is in a state of permanent crisis. But from its very beginnings almost fifty years ago, when it was a very different system, it has been under stress.
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