Social Security is in worse shape than you think

Here’s what the CBO says about Social Security: “CBO projects that, under current law, the balance of the [old-age retirement] trust fund would be exhausted in 2033 … benefits would need to be reduced … by an amount that rises from 24 percent that year to 28 percent in 2055.”

A brief explanation: Social Security is already spending more every year than it takes in — about $1.35 trillion in revenues in 2024 compared to $1.39 trillion in expenditures. That excess spending is covered, in effect, by the federal government’s borrowing. However, in government books, the annual deficit is covered by money from the Social Security Trust Fund.

The Social Security Trust Fund has been “filled” by decades of surplus. That surplus, which could be considered a figment

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