U.S. SSA COLA for 2021...1.3% Increase

[Pib]

 

 

https://www.ssa.gov/news/press/releases/2020/#10-2020-1

News ReleaseSOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Announces 1.3 Percent Benefit Increase for 2021

Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits for approximately 70 million Americans will increase 1.3 percent in 2021, the Social Security Administration announced today.

The 1.3 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will begin with benefits payable to more than 64 million Social Security beneficiaries in January 2021. Increased payments to more than 8 million SSI beneficiaries will begin on December 31, 2020. (Note: some people receive both Social Security and SSI benefits). The Social Security Act ties the annual COLA to the increase in the Consumer Price Index as determined by the Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Some other adjustments that take effect in January of each year are based on the increase in average wages. Based on that increase, the maximum amount of earnings subject to the Social Security tax (taxable maximum) will increase to $142,800 from $137,700.

Social Security and SSI beneficiaries are normally notified by mail starting in early December about their new benefit amount. Most people who receive Social Security payments will be able to view their COLA notice online through their personal my Social Security account. People may create or access their my Social Security account online at www.socialsecurity.gov/myaccount.

Information about Medicare changes for 2021, when announced, will be available at www.medicare.gov. For Social Security beneficiaries receiving Medicare, Social Security will not be able to compute their new benefit amount until after the Medicare premium amounts for 2021 are announced. Final 2021 benefit amounts will be communicated to beneficiaries in December through the mailed COLA notice and my Social Security's Message Center.

The Social Security Act provides for how the COLA is calculated. To read more, please visit www.socialsecurity.gov/cola.

NOTE TO CORRESPONDENTS: Here is a fact sheet showing the effect of the various automatic adjustments.

To get more Social Security news, follow the Press Office on Twitter @SSAPress.

[Pib]

Partial snapshot from the Fact Sheet....a 1.3% COLA increase means approximately

a $20/month increase for the typical retiree.

[cmarshall]

But we don't know yet how much the Medicare Part B premium will rise reducing the net increase. 

[Pib]

7 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

But we don't know yet how much the Medicare Part B premium will rise reducing the net increase. 

 

At least Congress has done something to help minimize any Medicare Part B increase....below are a couple news articles on the subject.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/29/congress-may-limit-medicare-part-b-premium-increase-for-2021-.html

 

https://www.aarp.org/retirement/social-security/info-2020/cola-set-for-2021.html#:~:text=Social Security and Medicare Part B premiums&text=The 2021 monthly premium for,a COLA for most beneficiaries.

 

 

[mtls2005]

Hearing about some proposals for an Emergency adjustment of 3%.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/15/house-lawmakers-to-propose-emergency-3percent-social-security-cola.html

 

 

[bunnydrops]

8 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

Hearing about some proposals for an Emergency adjustment of 3%.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/15/house-lawmakers-to-propose-emergency-3percent-social-security-cola.html

 

 

Although a 3% increase would be nice. I think it would be fairer if it was a one time set pay out. Those on the lower end of the SS scale need the money at least if not more than those at the top.

[Jingthing]

Possibly better news in the future for certain groups of social security recipients.

 

Namely those with very low checks and the very old.

 

As many know most people make their claim early at age 62 because they need the money.

 

That's fine unless the person lives into their 80s. Then taking that lower check can really bite.

 

ttps://www.fool.com/retirement/2020/08/16/4-social-security-changes-joe-biden-wants-to-make/

Edited October 17, 2020 by Jingthing

[Pib]

4 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

Hearing about some proposals for an Emergency adjustment of 3%.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/10/15/house-lawmakers-to-propose-emergency-3percent-social-security-cola.html

 

 

Two Congressmen submitted that proposal.  Every year our elected representatives make all all kinds of glorious proposals.  99% of them don't even get out of committee but it gives a representative something to put in their periodic newsletter to their constituents.

[Jingthing]

44 minutes ago, Pib said:

Two Congressmen submitted that proposal.  Every year our elected representatives make all all kinds of glorious proposals.  99% of them don't even get out of committee but it gives a representative something to put in their periodic newsletter to their constituents.

Sure but any potentially good legislation has got to start somewhere. If it's not even proposed, it has zero per cent chance.

[Pib]

46 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Sure but any potentially good legislation has got to start somewhere. If it's not even proposed, it has zero per cent chance.

I figure this proposal has zero chance. 

[Pib]

Those two congressmen that proposed the legislation (just before the upcoming election) already have their proposal proudly displayed on their websites for their constituents.

 

https://defazio.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/defazio-larson-announce-legislation-to-provide-seniors-emergency-social

 

https://larson.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/larson-announces-aarp-endorsement-legislation-save-social-security

 

[Jingthing]

54 minutes ago, Pib said:

Those two congressmen that proposed the legislation (just before the upcoming election) already have their proposal proudly displayed on their websites for their constituents.

 

https://defazio.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/defazio-larson-announce-legislation-to-provide-seniors-emergency-social

 

https://larson.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/larson-announces-aarp-endorsement-legislation-save-social-security

 

You're conflating two separate issues. There is the emergency proposal and also something much more substantive, to fight the "president's" execute order that stops payroll contributions to social security.

[cmarshall]

On 10/17/2020 at 5:45 PM, Pib said:

Two Congressmen submitted that proposal.  Every year our elected representatives make all all kinds of glorious proposals.  99% of them don't even get out of committee but it gives a representative something to put in their periodic newsletter to their constituents.

If Biden wins and the Dems take both Houses of Congress, as appears likely, then they will certainly make various increases in SS benefits payments.  They already passed the Social Security 2100 Bill in the House in 2019 that includes an across-the-board increase in retirement benefits of 2% over and above any COLA adjustment.  Of course, the bill never got to the floor of the Senate, but next year some version will pass both houses.  Since the bill was written before Covid it is likely that the actual increase will be more than 2%.

 

 

Edited October 19, 2020 by cmarshall

[Jingthing]

2 hours ago, cmarshall said:

If Biden wins and the Dems take both Houses of Congress, as appears likely, then they will certainly make various increases in SS benefits payments.  They already passed the Social Security 2100 Bill in the House in 2019 that includes an across-the-board increase in retirement benefits of 2% over and above any COLA adjustment.  Of course, the bill never got to the floor of the Senate, but next year some version will pass both houses.  Since the bill was written before Covid it is likely that the actual increase will be more than 2%.

 

 

Well, hopefully.

But I think even more likely is that with the votes they would raise the income cap of the social security payroll thing. That at least would make future funding more secure.

[Pib]

20 hours ago, cmarshall said:

If Biden wins and the Dems take both Houses of Congress, as appears likely, then they will certainly make various increases in SS benefits payments.  They already passed the Social Security 2100 Bill in the House in 2019 that includes an across-the-board increase in retirement benefits of 2% over and above any COLA adjustment.  Of course, the bill never got to the floor of the Senate, but next year some version will pass both houses.  Since the bill was written before Covid it is likely that the actual increase will be more than 2%.

 

 

I looked up the Social Security 2100 Bill status.  It never made it out of house committee like the great, great majority of proposals.  Just more election year pandering. 

 

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr860

 

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/860

[cmarshall]

44 minutes ago, Pib said:

I looked up the Social Security 2100 Bill status.  It never made it out of house committee like the great, great majority of proposals.  Just more election year pandering. 

 

https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/116/hr860

 

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/860

Not true.  It had 210 Democrat co-sponsors in the House, which is hardly typical.  It therefore amounts to an election promise by the Democratic Party.  In addition to providing a real increase to the SS retirement benefits, it reduces taxes on SS benefits, and solves the long-term funding problem by increasing the payroll tax by $0.50 per average worker per week per year until 2043, resulting in a net increase in the worker's payroll tax from 6.2% to 7.4%.  That's not my own preferred solution to the funding issue, but it will work.  Biden's plan calls for removing the cap on payroll tax for incomes above $400k/year.  I would just remove the cap altogether.

 

That bill will die with the current Congress, but there will be a new version next year, if the Dems control the WH and the Congress, for sure.

Edited October 20, 2020 by cmarshall

[Pib]

15 minutes ago, cmarshall said:

Not true.  It had 210 Democrat co-sponsors in the House, which is hardly typical.  It therefore amounts to an election promise by the Democratic Party. 

The fact remains it did not pass the House as you said earlier....it may have a lot of sponsors (208 according to below tracker) but it's still in committee (being passed around to different committees).  Election year pandering. 

 

https://www.congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/860/actions

 

Edited October 20, 2020 by Pib