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When Congress passed the Government Pension Offset/Windfall Elimination Provision in 1977, they plunged a financial dagger into the retirement plan of every PUBLIC employee. The main concern of Congress has been the cost to repeal the law. “From 1964 to 2001 Congress borrowed $700 Billion from the Social Security surplus”. Congress borrows when a) the government has run a budget deficit, b) Social Security has run a surplus, and c) funds have been “borrowed” from Social Security to help make up all or part of the budget deficit”. Congressional Budget Office 12-11-02.
“The General Accounting Office has removed the Supplemental Security Income program from its list of government programs that show the greatest risk for waste, fraud, and abuse, known as the high-risk list.” The PUBLIC Worker paid Social Security for years and their husbands paid their entire lives. Conclusion no new monies are needed when the law is repealed BECAUSE the paid Social Security taxes should be in the fund waiting for the PUBLIC worker to claim upon retirement.
THE MORAL OF THE ABOVE COMMENTS Congress Needs to Leave the Social Security Surplus Alone and the GAO needs to investigate more waste in government agencies.
The loss of revenue in every state is substantial because of the “offset/windfall” The state of Ohio in 2002 lost $341.8 million. That amount was returned to Social Security then to Congress to spend.
The GPO/WEP cannot be repealed because of the cost yet Billions are found for pet pork projects. January 2003 spending bill “$1 million for untangling North Dakota’s traffic snarls, $15 million for
a pumping system to drain water from cotton cropland in the Mississippi Delta, $100,000 for the Alaska Sea Otter Commission, $200,000 to study sea food waste at the University of Alaska, $500,000 for an aquarium in Ketchilcan, $1 million for the Noxious Weed Management program at Montana State University, $1 million for a DNA grizzly bear sampling study in Montana.”
“July 2001 lawmakers found money to allow the Senate to spend $28.5 million on favorite projects and the House received $25.5 million for their favorite pork projects.”
October 2000 “$600 million for the desert turtle, $1.1 million to build an exhibit for “Sue” the Tyrannosaurus rex fossil at the Chicago Field Museum. The money flowed so freely that Derek Smith was able to win two water and a land project totaling $5 million for the Salt Lake City area –even though Mr. Smith is not yet in Congress.” “Federal payment errors wasted $19 billion, GAO report finds. More than half was Medicare mistakes.” Information from articles in the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Conclusion the billions in Pork disbursements made each year means other programs will be short changed. Do we conclude our politicians care more for the “desert turtle” or “Sue” or the Alaskan sea Otter or perhaps the DNA of the grizzly bear?
How can a legislator who takes the oath to represent his voters and protect their general welfare allow the SENIORS in his district to experience the financial nightmare of losing their “earned” Social Security? Where is the conscience of our elected officials? Why do they play games with the lives of a retired public worker? Where did they find the right to pass a law taking away the retirement money from a senior who earned that money during their lifetime? It’s just not right/////
PLEASE NO SENIOR LEFT BEHIND Repeal GPO/WEP VOTE FOR McKeon H R 594
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