Description: The book, 'Individual Accounts for Social Perspectives on the U.S. Debate' by John Turner, is reviewed in light of recent congressional failure to reform Social Security and in light of a survey of actuaries that produced divergent views on the subject [link to survey included].

Description: Article from Pension Section News, May 2007, No. 64, highlights a book by John Turner on international perspectives of individual accounts. In clear and concise language, Turner, a senior policy advisor at the AARP Public Policy Institute, explores the first-hand experience of other countries that have implemented, either partially or in full, aspects of social security reform that have been proposed for the U.S. system.

Description: Report on a panel presentation in which options to maintain the solvency of Social Security are discussed.

Description: This article discusses Social Security amendments of 1983 that include triggering devices based on trust-fund ratios that affect the funding or benefits of the system for both OASDI and Medicare.

Description: In this year’s Trustees’ Reports, recently submitted to the Congress, most attention focuses on the cash benefits program which is projected to have an actuarial deficit of about 3% of taxable payroll, over the 75-year valuation period.

Description: Article from The Actuary, May 1985 – Volume No. 19, Issue No. 5 that discusses the current financial status of Social Security.

Description: This article discusses the relative merits of investing some Social Security assets in common stocks either by 1. Adjusting the retirement benefits and taxes, and investing part of the Social Security trust funds in the stock market [the 'defined benefit,' or DB, method], or 2. Reduce the basic retirement benefits further, and have workers invest part of their future contributions in individual accounts [the 'defined contributions,' or DC, method].

Description: This article is a summary of “Reports of Consultants on Actuarial and Definitional Aspects of Social Security Disability Insurance,” U.S. Government Printing Office, 1976. These reports are concerned with the disability portion of the Social Security Act and more specifically, with certain aspects of the definition of disability and the increases in benefit utilization that are taking place under this disability program.

Description: The author suggests ways to better educate the wider technical community of users of the OASI projections about the projection methods and the sensitivity of the projections to changes in the individual variables thereby increasing the quality of the research on the system, the accuracy of the interpretations of the projections and the quality of the public debate over OASI policy. From Actuarial Research Clearing House, 1984, Volume No.1.

Description: Two letters to the editor of Pension Section News. Both letters are responses to David Langer's comments which were published in the January 2006 Pension Section News regarding Social Security and its financial projections. From Pension Section News, April 2006, No. 61.