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Social Security funds aren't allowed to be invested in the stock market, and are held in the form of US Treasuries [0]. There was talk of changing that under B
by bpt3 7y ago
Social Security funds aren't allowed to be invested in the stock market, and are held in the form of US Treasuries [0]. There was talk of changing that under Bush 44, but his reform plans never gained any serious traction.
[0] https://www.cbpp.org/research/social-security/policy-basics-understanding-the-social-security-trust-funds https://www.cbpp.org/research/social-security/policy-basics-...
- seanmcdirmid 7y agoBush 44 wanted to turn SS into a 401K. SS is mostly invested in the federal government (ie congress spent the surplus).
- MuffinFlavored 7y ago> Social Security funds aren't allowed to be invested in the stock market I know, but based on my calculations above, don't you agree that the end user (citizens) are not getting the best bang for their buck?
- bpt3 7y agoIt depends on your definition of "best bang for your buck". Social Security doesn't exist to maximize returns, it exists to protect the elderly from extreme poverty once they are no longer able to work. Because of that, the funds are invested in a very risk averse manner. I'd certainly be open to the idea of a US sovereign wealth fund in some sense, but I don't think privatization or anything else where individuals are making decisions about their own Social Security account is a good idea, since we'll have to create another Social Security-like program to support the people who invested poorly and are unable to support themselves.
- jdhn 7y ago>There was talk of changing that under Bush 44 I wish it had, I'd love to dedicate X% of my SS check to investing in the stock market.