BREAKING: Bad news on COLAs for Seniors

[Alan Grayson]

Help me stop the federal government from cheating seniors yet again. Become a citizen co-sponsor of my “Seniors Deserve a Raise” Act >>

We got some bad news today about the Social Security Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs). Let me explain .…

Since 1975, Social Security COLAs have been based upon the CPI-W, the consumer price index for urban workers. They should have been based on CPI-E, the consumer price index for the elderly, but that wasn’t calculated until the 1990’s. And it’s a big difference. Seniors spend more on healthcare than others do; the real cost of healthcare has skyrocketed since 1975. Seniors spend less on gasoline than others do; the real cost of gasoline peaked in 1981. As a result, the real value of Social Security benefits is three percent LESS today than it was in 1975.

That means that by promising to maintain the purchasing power of these earned benefits, and failing to do so, the government has cheated seniors out of $388 billion since COLAs began, and $25 billion during last year alone. That means that on average, each and every senior should be getting approximately $400 more each year in Social Security checks.

Today, based on the wrong Consumer Price Index, the Social Security Administration announced that the 2016 COLA will be zero percent. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Cheating our seniors out of the retirement they were promised is utterly unacceptable. That’s why I filed a bill to give seniors the raise that they deserve, by fixing the COLAs. Become a citizen co-sponsor of my Seniors Deserve a Raise Act, right now>>

Fixing Social Security COLAs will ensure that millions of seniors (and the disabled, who receive the same COLAs) are getting the benefits that they deserve. $400 a year may not seem like a lot to Donald Trump and his GOP friends/butlers, but I know the difference that it can make. It can mean being able to make the mortgage or rent payments on time, being able to pay the credit card bills, or even just being able to buy groceries.

Here’s some good news: I lined up fifty other Members of Congress to be “original cosponsors” of my Seniors Deserve a Raise Act, even before I introduced it. They care. So should you.

We can get our seniors the raise they deserve, but only if you’re willing to help. Become a citizen co-sponsor of my “Seniors Deserve a Raise Act” now>>

Our seniors have done so much for us. The least we can do is keep our promise to give them the secure retirement they paid for, and earned. Thank you for your help.

Courage,

Rep. Alan Grayson
Candidate for U.S. Senate

[SamKnause]

1. Thank you Rep. Alan Grayson.

[MoonRiver]

3. Yes! N/t

[RKP5637]

2. Thanks!!! n/t

[lpbk2713]

4. And of course ... the predictable outcry until next November ...

DAMN YOU OBAMA.


?w=189

[Scuba]

28. It would be nice if the President would fight for this cause like he did for the TPP.

[Faryn Balyncd]

5. "no inflation", yet Medicare Part B premiums are scheduled t rise by 52% for 30% of beneficiaries

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10027221823



K & R

Thank you, Rep. Grayson, for working to fix these problems.

[fasttense]

9. Soo, if there is no inflation and the elderly don't need COLA then why do healthcare insurance

corporations need an increase in their premiums???

What COLA do insurance companies use? Maybe we should all use it?

[jwirr]

11. I would assume that those Part B costs will be reflected in

the next budget cycle.

Since I have never gotten more than $11 a month raise from the COLA it is not me who is going to get hurt. There are others included in the COLA who get this same deal and they get a lot more a month raises.

Don't some government employees and the military get raises under the COLA as well?

[edhopper]

6. Thank you

it is beyond me why seniors vote for the Party that wants to end SS and Medicare.

[JDPriestly]

13. A lot of seniors are abortion voters and don't realize that the party that claims it wants to save

the lives of fetuses does not care about the lives of seniors, at least not enough to make sure that all seniors have enough to eat and can afford their medications.

[MindPilot]

18. The only way you can not vote for that party is to not vote.

One wants to give it all to Wall Street, the other wants to just deny benefits.

[edhopper]

19. Many, if not most Dems

do not want to deny benefits. Many want to increase them.

Or haven't you listened to Bernie, or Hilary, or O'Mally.

[MindPilot]

21. The PTB won't let Bernie anywhere near the presidency, no matter how many votes he gets.

(Remember when that Al Gore guy got the most votes, but some other dude took the office?)

O'Mally won't make it through the primaries, and Hillary...well, I tend to believe about 3% of what she says.

I hear those CPI chains rattling.

[edhopper]

23. Maybe, maybe not

Shit happened in Florida to allow 5 Justice to screw the country. period. Are you saying there was some grand Illuminati conspiracy or something?

Show me where the Dems want to deny benefits.

http://www.ontheissues.org/celeb/Democratic_Party_Social_Security.htm

http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2015/07/13/Democrats-Call-Major-Change-Social-Security

http://www.thenation.com/article/harry-reid-finally-settles-it-social-security-table/

[bkkyosemite]

7. Let's see now.........no COLA

yet my prescription premium will go up, my dental premium will go up, my vision premium will go up, my car ins. will go up, my rent just went up $100., and anyone else who wants to raise their rates on me will go up. Yet my fixed income will stay the same AGAIN......and at least 5% is needed not 2.9% if they are going to pass something. Each year I go farther in the hole because my fixed income does not keep up with the rest of my rising costs.

[Worried senior]

22. Couldn't have said this

better myself.

I bet Congress gets it's COLA this year tho. They really need it.

[Omaha Steve]

8. You can use our Act Blue Grayson for Senate link to donate

https://secure.actblue.com/contribute/page/duforgrayson

[Binkie The Clown]

10. Since I retired, I drive less than 50 miles a month.

I put gas in my car maybe 3 or 4 times a year. I take the bus a lot. I walk to the supermarket. I use my bicycle whenever possible. Gas prices have no direct effect on my budget. Basing the COLA for seniors on gasoline prices is bogus!

[Vinca]

20. Gas prices are about the only thing that has gone down and I suspect that's temporary.

Food prices, overall, have been steadily going up. Why isn't the COLA based on that? Pretty soon a senior won't be able to buy a decent brand of cat food. LOL.

[CharlotteVale]

12. It says it all about the Democratic party that every single Democrat in

Congress isn't co-sponsoring this.

[Eleanors38]

25. 2 issues which are the coal mine canaries for what Party viability remains:

1) Weakening women's right to choose;

2) Backsliding on Social Security.

These have been my leading indicators for over 20 years.

[Bubzer]

14. Thanks for all you do Alan

I've got a long way to go before I need to rely on services for the elderly, including Social Security, But I'm grateful whenever actions are taken to help those who are among our most vulnerable citizens. The twilight years should be as relaxing and golden as possible for anyone and everyone who has lived that long.

Thank you, once again, for having the courage and guts to do what you do.

[jtuck004]

15. "We got some bad news today" < Actually got it in the last elections. Just didn't realize it.n/t

[turbinetree]

16. Would it not be nice.............................

to have him as either the Majority leader, Majority Whip or Speaker of the House...................... a progressive.



Honk------------------for a political revolution Bernie 2016

[Cleita]

17. Time for seniors to "storm the Bastille" I think.

They can start with sending letters to their Reps and Senators outlining exactly how they are getting raised on their expenses, rent, health care, insurance etc. and how the COLA denial will not be sufficient to cover them and cause real hardship. Also, LTTE to local news papers could help. If enough people send in this kind of testimony, maybe they will have to sit up and address it. We have around $2.6 trillion in the fund, there is no reason seniors can't be given enough to cover the cost of retirement after a lifetime of work and contributing to the system.

[Eleanors38]

26. Been sending shots off in the night (with checks) to preserve SS.

[Ilsa]

24. Does this also affect SS Disability and those on

SS because they've never been able to work?

[cascadiance]

27. Alan, thanks for doing this!! And another "compromise" you could perhaps help us with...

There are many of us who've lost all of our savings now before we are able to collect social security, and because segments of our economy like the tech sector which is beset by outsourcing through free trade bills as well as "guest labor" programs like H-1B have been having to go in and out of states of being unemployed between short term contracts (the new way of keeping us "disposable" if later they can get the H-1B Visa quota expanded to let them replace us with cheaper labor). For now we're doing a lot of "placeholder" work, and dipping in to our IRA and 401k plans to make ends meet, which will also impact our ability to live under social security later too.

The 10% penalties on IRAs are a situation that most don't think about until we are faced with them after we've already taken them out for the previous year. And the exceptions to let one write down that 10% penalty are so complicated and weird that most of us don't really find ways to accomplish them. Most of us in the situation of unemployment periods would like to take advantage of writing down what we pay in health insurance (COBRA, etc.) in between jobs when we are unemployed that tax law permits. BUT, it is specific in the language that in order to qualify for taking advantage of that tax write-off for lowering or removing that 10% penalty "poor tax", we need to be unemployed at least 12 CONSECUTIVE weeks. Note that isn't "cumulative" 12 weeks that many of us have when we're unemployed multiple times during the year with these short term work bouts and trying to be conscientious of getting reemployed again when ending a job. I discovered too late last year when I was unemployed cumulatively over 4 months, but not consecutively over 2 months.

And these short term jobs often don't have 401k plans either. And if you have an older 401k plan that was administered by a company that you worked at when you were under 55 years old, but now you are over 55 years old, you can't take a withdrawal out of that 401k without getting hit by a 10% penalty either. And if you are just dealing with contract jobs with no 401k, you aren't able to roll your old 401k over to a newer one that would later allow you to withdraw from it without the 10% penalty.

We're being screwed, and these laws need reform to help us pay less taxes, and to not encourage us to stay unemployed for three months or longer consecutively. I would think that Republican congress people would also like to:
1) change laws to take away incentives for people to collect unemployment for 3 months or longer to avoid tax burdens. I'm sure they would like less money being spent on unemployment payouts.
2) change laws to help people save money on taxes (aka the 10% penalties in both examples I cite above).

Now if they don't like to save people money on taxes because they only want to reduce taxes on the wealthy, and such changes wouldn't help that goal, then CALL THEM OUT ON THAT, and show the hypocrisy they have of "wanting less taxes" without qualifying it for the hidden clause "for the rich". I know you'd be good at this, and cornering them to do something that they could champion working together with you to lower people's taxes and reduce government spending on unemployment, and in the process helps so many of us that are being screwed right before we enter our retirement years, with the reduced COLA on social security also about to screw us too!

I tried to get my congress woman to work on this earlier this year, but I think she was too busy voting for TPA (UGGH!!!) earlier this year to do much work in this area.

Thanks for listening to us on DU... I like it when I believe people like you and Bernie Sanders pay attention to what we say here. I still think he might have borrowed an idea I posted a few times earlier on putting in place a war surtax on the top marginal income tax rates to raise revenue on those who should pay it and serve as an incentive to have the rich want to fund wars (and the military industrial complex) less, that might affect how campaign donations are done to politicians and what they want them to do.

[Number9Dream]

29. Shame on the BLS

Gas prices don't outweigh the increases in food, medicine, and property taxes. This is bullshit!