Social Security Tax

Reducing the Social Security tax rate, which would benefit the lowest-income people and the middle class, is what's needed to "balance" President Bush's income tax rate reduction, which primarily benefits the highest-income people. Instead of having all of the revenue needed to support Social Security raised by a tax imposed only on incomes of up to $80,400--a tax "break" for the high-income people--make the tax payable on all income of whatever amount. This would make it possible to substantially reduce the rate, providing significant tax relief to those who need it most, and who will spend it promptly, thereby stimulating the economy now, not 10 years from now. ALAN R. GORDON Camarillo

Call them the 900: The Americans who will meet their 2014 payroll tax obligations for Social Security as of today, Day 2 of the New Year. They're an impressive group and very elite, bless their hearts: To have earned the maximum taxable wage for Social Security in 2014 ($117,000) in two days, one's annual income has to exceed about $21.3 million. The Social Security Administration says that in 2012, the latest year for which it has figures, 894 wage-earners collected more than $20 million, which is as narrowly as it slices the data.

President Bush today denounced as "a charade" a Democratic proposal to cut the Social Security payroll tax and said it is really an attempt to force him to raise other taxes. Bush also promised that he will not acquiesce in any move that would raise taxes or lead to lower Social Security benefits for older Americans. Reporters asked the President about the proposal by Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) at the start of a meeting between Bush and visiting Turkish President Turgut Ozal.

Re “One tiny step for budget reform,” Opinion, Dec. 17 Erskine Bowles and Alan Simpson represent today's bipartisanship. They represent the political donor class, the only constituency that both parties rush to serve. Sure, they may talk about closing tax loopholes for the wealthy in the abstract, but they speak in specifics when it comes to cutting benefits for you and me. The top marginal tax rates were more than 50% when we did not have huge deficits. They were cut to the mid-30% in the 1980s, when the deficits ballooned.

The Social Security payroll tax rate is going up on New Year's Day for the 13th time in the past quarter-century as workers pay a price for the 1983 bailout of the retirement program. This latest rate increase will boost the tax to 7.51% from 7.15%. It means employees will pay an extra $36 to Social Security from each $10,000 they earn.

Fearing widespread defections, the White House and Democratic leaders Wednesday urged House members to hold the line against a Republican plan that would repeal a portion of the tax on Social Security benefits. The bill--scheduled for floor action today--would repeal a tax increase on wealthier elderly Americans approved by Congress in 1993 as part of President Clinton's budget plan for combating a deficit.

A partisan standoff in Congress over President Obama's payroll tax cut for 160 million working Americans threatens to shut down the federal government as early as this weekend, leaving lawmakers to finish the year careening toward yet another budget crisis. A must-pass bill to keep the government running has become tangled in the politics of continuing the payroll tax break, which shaves workers' Social Security tax from 6.2% to 4.2%. If the tax cut is allowed to lapse after Dec. 31, workers would have to pay an extra $1,000 a year, on average.

America's mayors Sunday gave initial approval to a broad and costly domestic agenda that asks Congress to repeal the Gramm-Rudman deficit-reduction law and to cut Social Security taxes for nearly 120 million workers. The more than 70 resolutions approved by the U.S. Conference of Mayors' key policy committee contain repeated pleas for a multibillion-dollar infusion of federal funds for anti-drug, housing, education and anti-poverty programs.

Q: Can you explain Medicare deduction on my paycheck? I can't figure out what it is.--F. C. A: Many employers are separately itemizing payroll deductions for Social Security and Medicare, rather than lumping them together as a single Social Security deduction. Why? Because beginning this year, Medicare taxes will be assessed on earnings up to $125,000 per year, nearly twice the $53,400 subject to Social Security taxes.

After reading Richard Reeves' column (Op-Ed Page, Jan. 24) on the Bush Administration's misuse of the Social Security tax, I finally understand what conservatives are talking about when they say that they want a "meaner, leaner" government: They want the rich to get meaner so the poor can get leaner. LUCIA K.B. HALL San Diego

In a departure from most medical privacy cases, Anthem Blue Cross said it accidentally posted online Social Security or tax identification numbers for about 24,500 California doctors. [Updated 1:03 p.m. PST Nov. 25: An Anthem spokesman said Monday that 24,500 doctors were affected, up from the previous 5,900 figure issued by the company. ] Anthem, a unit of insurance giant WellPoint Inc., said the private information was mistakenly included with its online provider directory for about 24 hours late last month.

You might not realize this if you've been listening to all the warnings about "entitlements" emanating from Congress, but Social Security remains the nation's most popular government program -- and the vast majority of Americans want lawmakers to protect it, without cutting benefits. In fact, a sizable majority want Congress to raise benefits. Those conclusions, drawn from a recent opinion poll conducted for the National Academy of Social Insurance, an organization of social insurance experts, are worth keeping in mind as President Obama addresses the state of the union tonight and as budget battles continue in Washington.

Whatever the ultimate shape of the "fiscal cliff" solution that has preoccupied all Washington, and a fair swath of the rest of country, in the final days of 2012 and into the new year, Americans of all walks of life should be asking themselves this question: How do we like being conned? The deal, passed by the Senate on New Year's morning, was made final late Tuesday when the House of Representatives signed on. Its essential elements include expiration of the President George W. Bush-era income and capital gains tax cuts on couples' incomes over $450,000, and a modest increase in the estate tax. Unemployment benefits and tax credits for lower-income families will be extended.

Democrats have seized on a looming increase in the interest rate on certain federal student loans as their latest wedge issue, hoping to portray Republicans as caring more about the wealthy than they do about working-class and middle-income college students. Those students might want to spend a few moments studying how Senate Democrats planned to come up with the money to pay for one more year of cheaper loans. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) tried to start debate on his student loan interest rate proposal Tuesday, knowing full well that he didn't have the 60 votes needed to stop a GOP filibuster.

After calling lawmakers back to Washington, the GOP-led House postponed votes Monday intended to reject a compromise measure to extend President Obama's payroll tax break for 160 million working Americans. Republican leaders were rethinking strategy after a lengthy closed-door meeting with rank-and-file Republicans who oppose the Senate-passed bill that would continue for two months the tax break, which expires Dec. 31. Votes are now expected Tuesday, but Republican resistance has put the fate of the tax cut on an uncertain course.

A partisan standoff in Congress over President Obama's payroll tax cut for 160 million working Americans threatens to shut down the federal government as early as this weekend, leaving lawmakers to finish the year careening toward yet another budget crisis. A must-pass bill to keep the government running has become tangled in the politics of continuing the payroll tax break, which shaves workers' Social Security tax from 6.2% to 4.2%. If the tax cut is allowed to lapse after Dec. 31, workers would have to pay an extra $1,000 a year, on average.

Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-N.Y.) accused the Bush Administration Monday of using scare tactics in an effort to whip up opposition to his proposal to cut the Social Security tax. But White House spokesman Marlin Fitzwater said Moynihan's proposal, which the Senate begins debating today when it takes up the 1992 budget, would cause real problems by driving up the federal deficit. Moynihan has proposed slightly cutting the 6.2% Social Security tax that is deducted from workers' paychecks.

Treasury Secretary Nicholas F. Brady dismissed as "goofy" today a Democratic proposal to cut Social Security taxes, but agreed it has raised a valid point about the true size of the federal budget deficit. Selling the tax and savings provisions of President Bush's day-old fiscal 1991 budget during an interview on the CBS "This Morning" show, Brady suggested that the Social Security tax cut would mark a retreat from earlier work to ensure the long-term solvency of the retirement system.

If President Obama really wants to see the "Buffett Rule" in action, he should look at California's tax system. The state has been plagued by it for years. The revenue stream is unstable and the state budget has been a deficit disaster. Soaking the rich — relying heavily on them for income taxes — has resulted in a precarious revenue roller coaster ride. It's either boom or bust in Sacramento, depending on how the wealthy are faring in the stock market and their other investments.

Dear Karen: How do I get customers for my new security business? Answer: Attracting early clients is tough for any business without a track record, particularly one in the security industry. You must persuade customers to trust your integrity and your ability to deliver on the contract you sign with them. Look for early customers within your business and social circles, where people already know and presumably trust you. Offer discounts to your first customers and ask them to write testimonials for you and send referrals your way. "Target your marketing to customers that you feel would have the greatest interest in your new approach based upon the research you should have done before launching your business," said Robert M. Donnelly, an entrepreneurship professor at St. Peter's College in New Jersey.