NEW YORK — Tens of millions of older Americans are about to get what may be the biggest raise of their lifetimes. On Thursday, the U.S. government is set to announce how big a percentage increase Social Security beneficiaries will see in monthly payments this upcoming year. It’s virtually certain...
Social Security Checks Set to Rise About $20 Month in 2021 Amid Coronavirus Fallout
WASHINGTON — Social Security recipients will get a modest 1.3% cost-of living-increase in 2021, but that might be small comfort amid worries about the coronavirus and its consequences for older people. The increase amounts to $20 a month for the average retired worker, according to estimates released Tuesday by the Social Security Administration....
White House Drops Payroll Tax Cut After GOP Allies Object
WASHINGTON — The White House reluctantly dropped its bid to cut Social Security payroll taxes Thursday as Republicans prepared to unveil a $1 trillion COVID-19 rescue package, yielding to opposition to the idea among top Senate allies. “It won’t be in the base bill," said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, speaking...
Trump's $4.8 Trillion Budget Proposal Revisits Rejected Cuts
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump unveiled a $4.8 trillion election year budget plan on Monday that recycles previously rejected cuts to domestic programs like food stamps and Medicaid to promise a balanced budget in 15 years — all while leaving Social Security and Medicare benefits untouched. Trump’s fiscal 2021 plan...
AP Fact Check: Trump's Exaggerated 'Great American Comeback'
WASHINGTON — The "great American comeback” President Donald Trump claimed in his State of the Union speech drew on falsehoods about U.S. energy supremacy, health care and the economy as well as distortions about his predecessor's record. In arguing, in essence, that he has made America great again, Trump took...
Full Text of President Trump's 2020 State of the Union Address
The full text of President Donald Trump's State of the Union Address, as provided by the White House. on Tuesday, Feb. 4, 2020: Madam Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, the First Lady of the United States, and my fellow citizens: Listen to this article: Three years ago, we launched...
Retiree Checks to Rise Modestly Amid Push to Expand Benefits
WASHINGTON — Millions of retirees will get a modest 1.6% cost-of-living increase from Social Security in 2020, an uptick with potential political consequences in an election year when Democrats are pushing more generous inflation protection. The increase amounts to $24 a month for the average retired worker, according to estimates released Thursday...
Report: Medicare, Social Security Face Shaky Fiscal Futures
WASHINGTON — The financial condition of the government's bedrock retirement programs for middle- and working-class Americans remains shaky, with Medicare pointed toward insolvency by 2026, according to a report Monday by the government's overseers of Medicare and Social Security. It paints a sobering picture of the programs, though it's relatively...
Congressmen Deride 'No Match' Letters. Does Farm Bureau Leader Agree?
Last week, Congressmen Jim Costa (D-Fresno) and TJ Cox (D-Fresno) sounded the alarm about the Social Security Administration reinstating the practice of sending “no match” letters to employers. The letters notify employers that an employee’s name and social security number don't match. SSA encourages corrective action, such as filling out...
Social Security Checks Will Grow in 2019 as Inflation Rises
WASHINGTON — Tens of millions of Social Security recipients and other retirees will get a 2.8 percent boost in benefits next year as inflation edges higher. It's the biggest increase most retired baby boomers have gotten. Following a stretch of low inflation, the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, for 2019 is...