WASHINGTON, D.C., May 8, 2002—Social Security reform must find ways to create more system savings and improve the way it serves the changing needs of American families, according to Social Security and the Family, Addressing Unmet Needs in an Underfunded System, a new book from the Urban Institute Press.
The book, edited by Melissa Favreault, Frank Sammartino, and Eugene Steuerle, tracks the evolution of family benefits in Social Security and shows how changes in the retired population have affected these benefits and their ability to serve the elderly. The edited volume offers the research and insights of national experts on Social Security and retirement issues.
History of Family Benefits: Edward Berkowitz of George Washington University explains how family benefits structure has taken a backseat to larger financial issues in Social Security. Modifying the basic structure of Social Security's family benefits will require significant legislative change—but political concerns have made it difficult to remove benefit inequities.
Changes in the Retiring Population. Urban Institute researcher Karen Smith reports that recent societal trends are reshaping the profile of the retiree population and the distribution of benefits, with disproportionate impacts on low-income women. Sheila Zedlewski of the Urban Institute and Rumki Saha, formerly of the Urban Institute, examine how work trends will affect single mothers' retirement options.
Comparisons with Other Developed Countries. Lawrence Thompson and Adam Carasso, both of the Urban Institute, compare the pension systems of 15 other industrialized countries with the U.S. Social Security system, and consider how countries calculate benefits for different kinds of households, comparing their benefit coverage with that of the United States.
Current U.S. Law and Some Alternatives. Book editors Favreault of the Urban Institute, Sammartino of the Joint Economic Committee, and Steuerle of the Urban Institute suggest a variety of ways to rigorously quantify and compare the effects of different Social Security reform proposals, and highlight specific tools and evaluation methods. Their chapter considers how different proposals could be combined to offset the potentially negative effects of any single proposal.
Women's Benefits and Individual Accounts. Rudolph Penner and Elizabeth Cove of the Urban Institute focus on the potential impact of individual accounts on women's benefit levels, looking specifically at proposals that would keep the Social Security benefit structure largely in tact, but would replace a portion of the trust holdings with individual accounts.
Timing of the Retirement Decision. Favreault and her colleague Richard Johnson examine the factors that contribute to a married individual's decision to retire and consider how Social Security reform may influence retirement timing.
To order the Urban Institute Press book, Social Security and the Family, edited by Melissa Favreault, Frank Sammartino, and Gene Steuerle (April 2002, paper, ISBN 0-87766-708-X, $25.00), visit www.uipress.org or call toll-free, 1-877-UIPRESS. The Urban Institute is a nonprofit, nonpartisan policy research and education organization that examines the social, economic, and governance challenges facing the nation.
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