The 2026 Social Security Trustees Report was just released, and it shows that the Social Security retirement trust fund will be depleted by 2032, one quarter earlier than last year’s estimate. If Congress does not act, incoming revenue would only be sufficient to pay 78 percent of scheduled retirement and survivor benefits, meaning a potential across-the-board reduction of up to 22 percent.
That does not mean Social Security is “going broke.” It means policymakers have a choice. They can do nothing and allow benefits to be reduced, or they can act to protect the benefits workers and families have earned.
Fortunately, Americans are united about what Congress should do. Strong majorities oppose benefit cuts and support revenue solutions. One of the most popular solutions is simple: ask the wealthy to pay their fair share into Social Security. Many people do not realize that high-income earners pay no Social Security payroll tax on wages above $184,500.
With economic insecurity rising and wealth increasingly concentrated at the top, it makes sense to ask the highest earners to contribute more to preserve benefits for workers, people with disabilities, survivors, and families. The public does not just support maintaining Social Security benefits. There is also strong bipartisan support for improving the program to reflect the realities of modern life.
Popular ideas include providing caregiver credits for people who spend time out of the workforce caring for family members, strengthening protections for people with disabilities, and modernizing Supplemental Security Income so that low-income older adults and people with disabilities can meet their basic needs when Social Security, retirement savings, or other income is not enough to keep them out of poverty.
Social Security helps people remain in their homes, pay for groceries and prescription drugs, and maintain economic security as they age. If we want the program to continue meeting the needs of workers and families, Congress must make the changes necessary to secure and strengthen it.
If the new depletion date falls in 2032, the next President and Congress will have to confront this choice directly. Saying “no cuts to Social Security” is not enough. If policymakers refuse to raise the revenue needed to protect the program and simply allow the depletion date to arrive, that is a choice to let benefits be reduced. Instead, Congress should do what Americans want: keep Social Security strong, require the wealthy to pay their fair share, and reject benefit cuts.
