Opinion: SB197 threatens the financial stability of Utah seniors
Almost 10,000 senior households in the state rely on this relief to help them get by. That could easily be 15-20,000 people. They are your parents, your elderly friends and neighbors, struggling to keep up with rising prices and medical costs while living on fixed incomes.
This is the first time legislation has been proposed to destroy this senior benefit in the over 40 years it's been working for low-income senior Utahns in danger of being taxed out of their homes, which is the reason it was created by the Legislature.
If SB197 passes, the fiscal note says taxpayers might save $4.55 per year in taxes, while costing seniors $930 per year in critical help. What's smarter and more compassionate? That $4.55 per year gets 204 times the return to support our seniors. I think Utahns, with a history of charity, goodwill and caring see the sense in that equation and would be willing to contribute $4.55 once a year to support our low-income seniors. Is it really worth just over a penny a day to force our grandparents from their homes due to increased costs and inflation?
A better solution is Senator Wayne Harper's SB224, keeping the program intact with slight improvements to keep up with inflation and rising costs. What's amazing is that it will cost taxpayers only 68 cents per year, according to the fiscal note analysis! This is the bill the 10,000 Utah households who received this help and those Utahns who support humane tax policy need to support. A prompt call to your legislators and the governor to support SB224 is absolutely critical.
This program is also essential for widows and widowers. Let's remember what happens when a spouse passes when a couple is living on Social Security: you lose the income your spouse was getting, resulting in a severe ongoing cash crunch. Many times medical issues precede the spouse's passing, often impacting the bank account these seniors rely on for co-pays, medications and higher premiums.
Why is this even being proposed? Past reports showed the state's share on the Circuit Breaker program was less than 10% of the cost, with the rest being borne by Utah's counties. Sen. McCay apparently laments chipping in anything, and the fiscal note on Sen. Harper's SB224 estimates that amount will be $4.5 million, a bargain compared to what else our tax dollars go to. How is it that 15-20,000 low-income seniors don't deserve critical relief when last year, just 10,000 students were awarded 18 times that amount, $82 million, through the Utah Fits All Scholarship program? Oddly, in 2023, McCay's committee mandated an increase in costs to the counties of over three times that estimate, resulting in a $14 million cost increase in just one year.
SB197 is also more costly. Many tax administrators around the state are not happy with the deferral program that allows people to not pay their taxes until ownership is transferred. They fear the unpredictability when the numbers of households deferring their taxes vary and their annual budgets fluctuate, while deferral will simultaneously create the need to hire more administrative staff to implement the program when 10,000 households are forced on to it. The deferral program was implemented in Salt Lake and Weber counties in 2023. Dozens applied, but only one household between those two counties benefited. Last year it went statewide and only seven households benefited, while about 10,000 households got homeowner's credit. This failed program is being revamped and the newest experiment is being forced onto the seniors of our state while denying them any opportunity for actual financial relief.
So now you get to make the choice: show love to 10,000 senior low-income households for 68 cents per year, or reap $4.55 in yearly savings.
Please call.
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Los Angeles Times
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Yahoo
2 hours ago
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Newsweek
3 hours ago
- Newsweek
Americans Fear End of Social Security as They Know It
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Seven in 10 Americans worry that Social Security won't be there for them when they retire, according to new survey from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies (TCRS). TCRS is a division of Transamerica Institute (TI), a nonprofit, private operating foundation, and conducts one of the largest and longest-running annual retirement surveys of its kind. For generations, Social Security, which celebrated its 90th anniversary on August 14, has formed the bedrock of retirement income for tens of millions of Americans, and also pays out benefits to disabled people and survivors of deceased workers. However, despite its enduring popularity and importance, it faces a looming insolvency crisis that lawmakers have less than 10 years to solve. The survey from TCRS, which polled 10,009 adults above the age of 18 between September 11 and October 17, 2024, found that among non-retirees, 71 percent agreed with the statement: "I am concerned that when I am ready to retire, Social Security will not be there for me." Almost nine in 10 Americans (87 percent) have one or more greatest retirement fears, ranging from health to financial. The top two greatest fears are declining health that would require long-term care (39 percent) followed by Social Security being reduced or ceasing to exist in the future (37 percent). According to the latest report from the Social Security Trustees, the program's two trust funds—the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) and Disability Insurance (DI) funds—are projected to reach insolvency by 2034. At that point, benefits would be funded solely through incoming payroll taxes, triggering an automatic cut of around 21 percent unless Congress takes action. While several options have been tabled by lawmakers to fix the issue, such as The Fair Share Act and raising the retirement age, no meaningful progress has been made. Doug Carey, founder of WealthTrace and a chartered financial planner, told Newsweek that the main driver of fears around Social Security's longevity is this political inaction. "I believe it's the political climate and the lack of action over many administrations," he said. "Most politicians do not want to touch benefits since they believe it will only hurt their reputation and reelection chances now. That is why this keeps getting pushed into the future until it simply has to be addressed." Stock image/file photo: An elderly woman holding an empty wallet. Stock image/file photo: An elderly woman holding an empty wallet. GETTY The study also revealed Americans are concerned about seeing their personal savings through their post-working years. Sixty-three percent of Americans said they either believe they won't save enough to meet their needs by the time they retire or, if already retired, they failed to save enough—28 percent "strongly agree" and 35 percent "somewhat agree" with that statement. And for nearly a third of Americans—32 percent—Social Security is expected to be their primary source of retirement income. That compares with 29 percent who expect to rely primarily on retirement accounts, 12 percent on other savings and investments, and 11 percent on continued work. Only 9 percent see a company-funded pension as their main income source. The survey also showed that reliance on Social Security is even greater among retired women with six in 10 women retirees (59 percent) indicating it is their primary source of income, compared with 47 percent of men retirees. For those not yet retired, 29 percent of women and 22 percent of men said Social Security was their expected primary source of retirement income. Carey added that many Americans are already adjusting their retirement plans based on the assumption of reduced benefits. "What many people are doing is simply assuming their benefits will be cut by anywhere from 25 percent to 50 percent. They can then plan accordingly by retiring later, saving more, or changing their planned spending in retirement," he said. Some, Carey noted, choose to claim benefits early at age 62 to "lock in" payments, believing they are less likely to be reduced once started. Jackson Ruggiero, co-founder of told Newsweek that the poll's findings are unsurprising. "The program is facing real financial challenges, but just as importantly, people don't trust Congress to fix it in time," he said. "Because of this uncertainty, many people are changing how they plan for retirement. Younger workers especially are focusing more on personal savings through 401(k)s and IRAs, and some are assuming they'll get little or nothing from Social Security. That's understandable, but also a bit extreme." Looking forward, Ruggiero advised a balanced approach for those concerned about their retirement savings and the future of Social Security. "Plan like your benefits might be reduced, not gone. Save what you can now, take advantage of employer retirement plans, and if possible, delay taking Social Security to get a bigger monthly check," he said. Both experts agreed on one point—Congress is moving too slowly to fix the looming insolvency dilemma. "They are doing nothing, and I predict they won't do anything until the year where it's clear Social Security benefits will have to be cut. Currently that is 2033," Carey warned. This is not the first time Social Security has faced a funding cliff. In the early 1980s, the trust funds were similarly close to depletion. Lawmakers responded with reforms that included faster payroll tax increases, a gradual rise in the retirement age, and taxation of some Social Security benefits. "Social Security has served as the cornerstone of retirement income since its establishment nine decades ago. It provides millions of older Americans with guaranteed income, so that they can retire with greater financial security," Catherine Collinson, CEO and president of Transamerica Institute, said. "With the estimated depletion of the Social Security trust funds looming large, now is the time for policymakers to identify reforms that can help ensure the program's sustainability for the next 90 years."
