Social Security at 75: Building Economic Security, Closing the Racial Wealth Gap

Transcription

1 Social Security at 75: Building Economic Security, Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Thanks for joining! We ll be starting shortly. More

2 Your Control Panel Chat Send us questions through the chat window. Look here also for answers to some questions. Minimize To get the control panel out of your way, click on the minimize button. Click on it again to restore the controls. Presentation Title Date Page No. 2

3 Your Speakers & Topics Meizhu Lui, Director, Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative Kilolo Kijakazi, Ph.D., Program Officer, Ford Foundation Wilhelmina Leigh, Ph.D., Senior Researcher, Joint Center David J. Pate, Ph.D., Co- Director, Center for Family Policy & Practice Doua Thor, Executive Director, South East Asian Resource Action Center The Racial Wealth Gap Social Insurance and Assets Opinions from POC on Social Security Men of Color and Social Insurance Immigrants, Refugees & Social Insurance Presentation Title Date Page No. 3

4 Meizhu Lui Meizhu is the Director of the Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative, a national effort to close the gap in wealth between people of color and Whites, at the Insight Center for Community Economic Development. Presentation Title Date Page No. 4

5 Presentation Title Date Page No. 5

6 The median family of color owns 16 cents for every white family s dollar Presentation Title Date Page No. 6

7 Presentation Title Date Page No. 7

8 $95,000 $ 20,000 Presentation Title Date Page No. 8

9 Kilolo Kijakazi, Ph.D. Kilolo s work focuses on building economic security for working families. Her grant making promotes public support for the creation of universal, progressive savings accounts from birth through retirement, and Social Security reform that improves benefits for low-wage workers. This approach incorporates the expertise of people of color into all aspects of the work, including research, policy and practice. Before joining the Ford Foundation in 2003, Kilolo was a senior policy analyst for the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, where she specialized in Social Security. Presentation Title Date Page No. 9

10 Importance of Social Security Nation s most successful social program Reduces poverty by over 50 percent Not just a retirement program, but a comprehensive insurance system with disability, survivors, and retirement programs Presentation Title Date Page No. 10

11 Use of Social Security by Benefit Type and Race/Ethnicity Figure 2 - Use of Social Security by Beneficiary Type and Race/Ethnicity Whites Blacks Other Retirement Survivor Disability 15% 11% 30% 30% 43% 74% 15% 55% 27% Social Security Administration, Annual Statistical Supplement, Table 5A1, 2008 Presentation Title Date Page No. 11

12 2009 Median Weekly Earnings of Full Time Wage and Salary Workers by Race/Ethnicity and Gender Figure Median Weekly Earnings of Full-Time Wage and Salary Workers by Race/Ethnicity and Gender Current Dollars Asian White Black Hispanic Men Women Source: US Dept. of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2009, Table 6. Presentation Title Date Page No. 12

13 New Improvements Needed in Social Security Establish an effective minimum benefit Restore Student Benefits for Young Survivors Provide family care credits Address the backlog of disability claims Presentation Title Date Page No. 13

14 Wilhelmina Leigh, Ph.D. Wilhelmina is a senior research associate at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies. Dr. Leigh has analyzed a variety of housing, labor force, community development, and wealth creation issues. She has analyzed poll data about the knowledge about Social Security and wealth accumulation among African American adults and is an elected member of the National Academy of Social Insurance Presentation Title Date Page No. 14

15 About the Joint Center Poll Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies National Opinion Poll about Social Security, Retirement Savings, and the Economic Downturn (2009) is a phone survey conducted for Joint Center by Research America between May 21 and June 9. collected information from 850 African Americans and 850 members of general U.S. population (including 721 white Americans), all 18 years and older. Presentation Title Date Page No. 15

16 Figure 1 Expected Major Source of Retirement Income, African Americans and Whites, 1998 and 2009 (Percent) 60 Social Security Employer sponsored pension plan Personal retirement savings and investments African Americans Whites African Americans Whites and 2009 Joint Center Polls Presentation Title Date Page No. 16

17 Figure 2 Opinions on Obligations of Social Security, African Americans and Whites, 2009 (Percent) African Americans Whites SS should provide a minimum standard of living to all contributors even if some receive benefits exceeding the value of their contributions SS should provide long-term low-wage workers support sufficient to meet basic needs SS should provide workers who have been employed off and on support sufficient to meet basic needs Joint Center Poll Presentation Title Date Page No. 17

18 Figure 3 Opinions on Proposals to Foster Social Security Solvency, African Americans and Whites, 2009 (Percent) Apply Means Testing for Social Security Benefits Raise the cap on wages subject to Social Security taxes Reduce the annual Cost-of- Living adjustment on Social Security payments African Americans Whites African Americans Whites African Americans Whites Don't know/refused Disagree Agree 2009 Joint Center Poll Presentation Title Date Page No. 18

19 Major Findings Social Security is important to African Americans. African Americans are more likely than whites to believe that Social Security should provide basic support for persons of limited means. African Americans and whites differ somewhat in their views about solvency proposals for Social Security. Presentation Title Date Page No. 19

20 Discussion Meizhu Lui, Director, Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative Kilolo Kijakazi, Ph.D., Program Officer, Ford Foundation Wilhelmina Leigh, Ph.D., Senior Researcher, Joint Center David J. Pate, Ph.D., Co- Director, Center for Family Policy & Practice Doua Thor, Executive Director, South East Asian Resource Action Center The Racial Wealth Gap Social Insurance and Assets Opinions from POC on Social Security Men of Color and Social Insurance Immigrants, Refugees & Social Insurance Presentation Title Date Page No. 20

21 Policy Recommendations Restore the student benefit for youth survivors Institute a minimum benefit w/in SS Improve language accessibility Implement a progressive financing and funding structure Improve supplemental security income (SSI) Collect robust data Improve access to disability benefits Provide family care credits Examine the intersection of Social Security Disability and Retirement benefits with Child Support Enforcement policy. Presentation Title Date Page No. 21

22 Questions? Presentation Title Date Page No. 22

23 Respondents Meizhu Lui, Director, Closing the Racial Wealth Gap Initiative Kilolo Kijakazi, Ph.D., Program Officer, Ford Foundation Wilhelmina Leigh, Ph.D., Senior Researcher, Joint Center David J. Pate, Ph.D., Co- Director, Center for Family Policy & Practice Doua Thor, Executive Director, South East Asian Resource Action Center The Racial Wealth Gap Social Insurance and Assets Opinions from POC on Social Security Men of Color and Social Insurance Immigrants, Refugees & Social Insurance Presentation Title Date Page No. 23

24 Social Security at 75: The Legacy and the Vision June 22 the National Press Club, Washington DC Speakers will include Lisa Mensah, The Aspen Institute Dean Baker, Co Director, Center for Economic and Policy Research Douglas Holtz Eakin, President, American Action Forum Congressman Xavier Becerra. Register at Presentation Title Date Page No. 24

25 Thank You! Find us online us racialwealthgap.org Jointcenter.org Cffpp.org Searac.org Sign up for our mailing list! Meizhu: Wilhelmina: David: Doua: Find us on Twitter twitter.com/racialwealthgap Victor: Presentation Title Date Page No. 25