Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by skinnymuch 1703 days ago
On top of that, forget that social security part stops at ~$120K-ish. I realize that you are supposed to get a lot of it back, but can you guarantee 100% that will be the case to an 18 year old right now. More than that, it doesn’t exactly fit in with the system that a safety net for when you’re 60+ is forced upon people via taxes that stop mid way through the top 5%+ income amt. it is almost farcical
2 comments
88913527 1703 days ago
The wage limit for 2021 is $142,800 and it's increasing to $147,000 in 2022.

https://www.ssa.gov/oact/cola/cbb.html

link
nobody9999 1703 days ago
>The wage limit for 2021 is $142,800 and it's increasing to $147,000 in 2022.

While I always enjoyed having that extra ~6.25% in my paycheck after I hit the limit every year, it didn't make any material difference in my spending/saving or quality of life.

I expect that's the case for most (if not all) folks who exceed that limit.

And since removing those limits would keep the US social security and medicare chugging along nicely for the next 50 years or so, while not doing so will require cuts in benefits within a decade or so.

While it's not a certainty, it's more likely that we'll come up with better ways to fund healthcare in 50 years rather than in ten.

As such, it makes sense to remove those wage limits on FICA[0] payroll taxes.

[0] https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/fica.asp

link
dahfizz 1703 days ago
Social security has never made sense to me. Not only do wealthy people get to collect social security, but they actually get paid more than less wealthy people, by design. All the money is going to the people who don't need it. Why would the left support something so unequal, and why would the right support a forced savings plan with such bad ROI?

It seems so wasteful. Its a terrible deal for everyone involved, really. Those who made a lot of money and had to pay a lot into SS made terrible returns and would have been better off investing the money. Those who only made a little, and only paid in a little, do not get paid enough to live off of anyway and would have been better off seeing that money in their paycheck.

The only people who benefited from SS were the people retiring soon after is was implemented. Everyone else is worse off, but nobody wants to get rid of it because then they won't get to collect.

link