- WEEKLY POLL
- Exclusive on the Web
Social Security: A Top-Rated Government Agency Takes Another Positive Step Forward
The Social Security Administration (www.ssa.gov), was set up in 1935 to provide
an income "safety net" for people retiring or unable to work due
to disabilities, is one of America's top-rated government programs. A recent
survey, known as the American Customer Satisfaction Index of a sample of
Social Security's nearly 28 million beneficiaries, found that these citizens,
on average, gave the SSA one of the highest ratings ever. Particularly noteworthy
were customer comments about the courtesy shown by SSA employees and the
timeliness of benefit checks.
Recently the SSA took another consumer-oriented step. Beginning with the Fall
of l999, it launched a program to send out information to all SSA participants
over the age of 25. This means contacting between 120 and 130 million people
who are currently working, but not yet receiving SSA benefits. The Social Security
Administration plans to send out a SOCIAL SECURITY STATEMENT each year so that
you and I can estimate our benefits when we retire. Information you can expect
on these new statements includes:
-
A summary of your earnings to date.
-
What monthly benefit you could receive if you decide to retire as early as age 62 or wait till later.
-
Should you die and leave dependents behind what monthly Social Security income your surviving family members might receive.
-
An explanation of the benefits you may receive in the event you become disabled.
-
A summary of the Social Security taxes you have paid during your working years.
For example, if you discover your projected SSA benefits seem too
low, you can work on a personal savings program to supplement Social
Security. For most beneficiaries these benefit checks supply, on average,
only about 40 percent of pre-retirement income. For higher-income recipients
the percentage is even lower unless you want to take a "big hit" at
retirement, saving more now becomes a high priority. You can also think
about whether you want to continue working beyond the traditional retirement
age and whether you should be pouring more savings into tax-sheltered
investments (e.g., IRAs and Keoghs).
Another recently added feature is an electronic newsletter (SSA e-news), available
free on the Internet ( www.ssa.gov), covering
a wide variety of consumer topics.
Founded in 1987, Take Charge America, Inc. is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. TCA offers a variety of services including financial education, credit counseling, and debt management. To learn more about TCA or its programs please call 1-800-823-7396 or visit www.takechargeamerica.org.
- BUSINESS DIRECTORY
- COMMUNITY RESOURCE
