Congressman Goldman Fights Republican Attempts to Cut Social Security

Republican Proposed “Fiscal Debt Commission” Would Create a Secretive Group of Lawmakers Likely to Move to Privatize or Cut the Critical Program

Previous Commissions Proposed Drastic Cuts to Social Security

Read the Full Letter Here

Washington, DC – Congressman Goldman (NY-10) joined John Larson (CT-01), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), and 113 other House Democrats in a letter to Republican House Leadership opposing the creation of a fast-track commission designed to slash Social Security.

“Fiscal Commission legislation currently under consideration by the House Committee on Budget would create a process in which legislating would be done by a small group of individuals behind closed doors,” the members wrote. “The goal of these commissions would be to produce legislation that cuts benefits and calls for an up or down vote without hearings, and that is unamendable.”

Previous Social Security commissions have made recommendations that have pushed for both cutting and privatizing Social Security, all without full Congressional input. In 1983, the Greenspan Commission recommended raising the retirement age and making cuts to benefits. The President’s Commission to Strengthen Social Security pushed for privatizing Social Security. The Bowles-Simpson Commission recommended more cuts, reducing cost of living-adjustments, and raising the retirement age once again.

“There is no shortage of legislation that will improve the fiscal standing of the United States while directly benefiting the public. Democratic proposals include legislation that would extend Social Security’s solvency for another generation while expanding benefits the American people rely on – benefits that haven’t been expanded in more than 50 years,” the members continued.

Congressman Goldman has fought to help the beneficiaries by bolstering Social Security and extend its solvency by decades.

In May of 2023, Goldman cosponsored the ‘Social Security 2100 Act,’ which would protect the Social Security program and improve benefits. This legislation would increase benefit payments for current and new Social Security beneficiaries, protect beneficiaries against inflation, reduce taxes on Social Security benefits, and further bolster benefits of Social Security. This bill would also extend the solvency of Social Security by at least ten years and potentially decades.

Read the full letter here or below:

Dear Speaker Johnson and Leader Jeffries,

As you work to finalize Fiscal Year 24 appropriations legislation and other must pass bills, we urge you to exclude the creation of a so-called fiscal commission, especially with language that creates a “fast-track” process around regular order.

Fiscal Commission legislation currently under consideration by the House Committee on Budget would create a process in which legislating would be done by a small group of individuals behind closed doors. The goal of these commissions would be to produce legislation that cuts benefits and calls for an up or down vote without hearings, and that is unamendable.

This is not a simple debate over process. Without member input and public review, fiscal commissions have historically recommended cutting or privatizing Social Security:

The Greenspan Commission was the basis of the Social Security Amendments of 1983, which resulted in a raise in the retirement age that was the equivalent to a 13% benefit cut, a tax on benefits for middle income retirees, and the creation of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) which reduces the benefits of 2 million public servants.

The President's Commission to Strengthen Social Security, established by President George W. Bush, issued a report outlining three models of partial privatization of Social Security.

Most recently, the Bowles-Simpson Commission recommended raising the retirement age, reducing the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), and reducing benefit amounts for many earners.

Given this track record, and the stated intention of the Republican Study Committee, a Commission would have fast-track authority to enact greater cuts to Social Security and other programs vital to the American people. This is no profile in courage, it’s a direct circumvention of the process to expedite cuts to Social Security.

Let’s be clear, a Commission is not the solution. There is no shortage of legislation that will improve the fiscal standing of the United States while directly benefiting the public. Democratic proposals include legislation that would extend Social Security’s solvency for another generation while expanding benefits the American people rely on – benefits that haven’t been expanded in more than 50 years. It is Congress’s responsibility to conduct the oversight and recommend enhancements to solvency or cuts, and it should be done in the open and not behind closed doors.

We do not need a Commission to tell us what we must do, we need the political courage to take up these or any other proposals in regular order. Committees and subcommittees must have the ability to hold hearings to examine policy and mark-ups so that improvements can be made on behalf of our constituents.

We urge you to commit to regular order by opposing the creation of a fiscal commission in any must pass legislation.

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