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Since it was created in 1935, Social Security has grown from covering about half of the work force to covering nearly all workers. The largest remaining exempted group is a subset of state and local government workers (SLGWs). As of 2008, Social Security did not cover about 27 percent of the 23.8 million SLGWs (Congressional Research Service 2011). Non-coverage of SLGWs is concentrated in certain states scattered around the country and includes workers in a diverse set of jobs, ranging from administrators to custodial staff. Some police and fire department employees are not covered. About 40 percent of public school teachers are not covered by Social Security (Kan and Alderman 2014). Under current law, state and local governments that do not offer their own retirement plan must enroll their employees in Social Security. But if it does offer a retirement plan, the state or local government can choose whether to enroll its workers in Social Security. This paper reviews and extends discussion on whether state and local government workers should face mandatory coverage in Social Security. Relative to earlier work, we focus on links between this issue and recent developments in state and local pensions. Although some of the issues apply equally to both existing and newly hired SLGWs, it is most natural to focus on whether newly hired employees should be brought into Social Security.
In the wake of the financial crisis and Great Recession, the health of state and local pension plans has emerged as a front burner policy issue. Elected officials, academic experts, and the media alike have pointed to funding shortfalls with alarm, expressing concern that pension promises are unsustainable or will squeeze out other pressing government priorities. A few local governments have even filed for bankruptcy, with pensions cited as a major cause. Alicia H. Munnell draws on both her practical experience and her research to provide a broad perspective on the challenge of state and local pensions. She shows that the story is big and complicated and cannot be viewed through a narrow prism such as accounting methods or the role of unions. By examining the diversity of the public plan universe, Munnell debunks the notion that all plans are in trouble. In fact, she finds that while a few plans are basket cases, many are functioning reasonably well. Munnell's analysis concludes that the plans in serious trouble need a major overhaul. But even the relatively healthy plans face three challenges ahead: an excessive concentration of plan assets in equities; the risk that steep benefit cuts for new hires will harm workforce quality; and the constraints plans face in adjusting future benefits for current employees. Here, Munnell proposes solutions that preserve the main strengths of state and local pensions while promoting needed reforms.
Working paper on the termination of social security coverage for certain groups of state and local government employees and public servants in the USA - finds that the decision to rely on alternative pension schemes is often made in a haphazard manner. Statistical tables.
This is a print on demand edition of a hard to find publication. In 2007, 73% of state and local gov¿t. employees were covered by Social Security (SS). Unlike the private sector where most employees are covered by SS, federal law generally permits each public employer to decide which employees to cover. The Social Security Admin. (SSA) is responsible for facilitating SS coverage for these employers through agreements with states. SSA is also responsible for maintaining accurate earnings records, while the IRS ensures SS taxes are paid. Because of the need to ensure that SS coverage is administered accurately, this report reviewed: (1) how SSA works with states to approve SS coverage and ensure accurate coverage of public employees; and (2) how IRS identifies incorrect SS taxes for public employees. Illustrations.