HR0606 LRB094 13818 CSA 48688 r

1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2     WHEREAS, According to the American Association of Retired
3 Persons, almost two-thirds of Social Security beneficiaries
4 (62.8 percent) are retired workers; and
 
5     WHEREAS, The average monthly retirement benefit for a
6 retired worker is $955 and for an aged couple where both are
7 beneficiaries, the amount is $1,574; and
 
8     WHEREAS, Social Security is the dominant source of income
9 for people age 65 and older with more than two-thirds of all
10 those older than 65 dependent on Social Security for more than
11 50 percent of their income; and
 
12     WHEREAS, Close to 80 percent of African Americans and 76
13 percent of Hispanics age 65 and older depend on Social Security
14 for more than 50 percent of their income and almost 75 percent
15 of unmarried women rely on Social Security for half or more of
16 their income; and
 
17     WHEREAS, Today, of the almost 159 million people who work
18 in jobs covered by Social Security, about 90 percent are wage
19 and salaried taxpayers and 10 percent are self-employed
20 taxpayers and the FICA taxes workers paid in 2004 represented
21 more than $553 billion in Social Security revenue; and
 
22     WHEREAS, Some beneficiaries also contribute to the system
23 by paying taxes on a portion of their benefits of which $15.7
24 billion of the income to the OASDI trust funds came from
25 taxation of benefits in 2004; and
 
26     WHEREAS, According to the Social Security Administration,
27 Social Security retirement benefits are not awarded in the year
28 that the beneficiary is eligible to receive them, nor for the
29 first month following the beneficiary's birth date; and
 

 

 

HR0606 - 2 - LRB094 13818 CSA 48688 r

1     WHEREAS, This failure to provide the first month of
2 retirement benefits amounts to an average loss of $955 for a
3 retired worker; therefore, be it
 
4     RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
5 NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
6 we call upon the United States Congress to pass legislation for
7 the future award of Social Security retirement benefits to
8 begin on each beneficiary's birth date in the year that the
9 beneficiary is eligible; and be it further
 
10     RESOLVED, That a copy of this resolution be sent to each
11 member of the Illinois congressional delegation.