1. United States
2. Texas
3. Letter

Social Security’s retirement trust fund is projected to face a funding shortfall in 2032. This is a year earlier than last year’s projections according to an annual report released Tuesday. Medicare’s hospital insurance trust fund will be unable to pay full benefits in 2033, which is unchanged from last year’s estimate. Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano said the Trump administration is “committed to protecting and strengthening Social Security” and “eliminating waste, fraud, abuse, and ensuring program integrity.” Confirmed and willful Social Security fraud accounts for a very small fraction of the program’s payouts, though the government faces tens of billions in improper payments, mostly due to administrative errors or overpayments. Approximately 26.5 million people rely on Social Security for 75% or more of their family income—roughly 22% to 34% of all older Americans. President Reagan worked with a bipartisan group to sign the Social Security Amendments of 1983 to extend the solvency of the system. It was a massive bipartisan compromise negotiated with Democratic Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill. The legislation raised payroll taxes, gradually increased the full retirement age from 65 to 67, delayed cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), and made a portion of benefits subject to federal income tax. I urge you to show the leadership that President Reagan and Speaker Tip O’Neill demonstrated in 1983 to protect our senior citizens who depend on Social Security.