• 21
  • July
    2010

In June, members of the Nevada Alliance, an association of retired persons, picketed the offices of Senate candidate Sharron Angle over her controversial plans to privatize Social Security. The retirees held signs with messages like "Don't Kill Social Security" and "Stop Hiding from NV Seniors." NARA President Scott Watts categorized Angle's privatization plan as "dangerous" and "extreme."

According to position statements on Angle's website, she wants to create "personalized accounts for the next generation." By "personalized account," Angle presumably means that individuals will be responsible for managing their own retirement accounts similar to accounts such as 401(k) plans that employees contribute to through employment. Many people fear that individuals will not be able to successfully manage their own accounts or that natural fluctuations in stock market performance will put certain individuals at risk for not having sufficient income during retirement.

Politicians have proposed privatizing Social Security in the past, but the plan has never gained much traction as Americans, like these retirees, have fought back. In fact, Social Security privatization seems like a political non-starter. But as Americans and American politicians face deeper and deeper deficits, many issues that were before sacrosanct are now on the table for budget cuts. That appears to include Social Security privatization and other measures to control public benefits costs, such as the suggestion by Ohio Representative John Boehner to push back retirement age to 70 for Social Security recipients.

Ohio retirees who are concerned about plans to privatize Social Security and modify it in other ways can contact a local chapter of the Alliance for Retired Americans and view more information about issues affecting retired people at http://www.retiredamericans.org/. If you have questions about other public benefits, such as Social Security Disability, you should contact an experienced SSD attorney.