2019 Social Security Report

The new 2019 Social Security Report is out.  Key findings:

Under the Trustees’ intermediate assumptions, OASDI cost is projected to exceed total income starting in 2020, and the dollar level of the hypothetical combined trust fund reserves declines until reserves become depleted in 2035. Considered separately, the OASI Trust Fund reserves become depleted in 2034 and the DI Trust Fund reserves become depleted in 2052. In last year’s report, the projected reserve depletion years were 2034 for OASDI, 2034 for OASI, and 2032 for DI.

This is great news.  SS is now solvent until 2035, which was better than 2034 when I last reported on this in 2017.

What about the 75-year deficit?
The open-group unfunded obligation for OASDI over the 75-year period is $13.9 trillion in present value and is $0.7 trillion more than the measured level of $13.2 trillion a year ago.
In 2017, this number was $12.5 trillion and in 2016 it was $11.4 trillion.

What does the 75-year deficit number mean?  Not much, although the higher it is, the less likely that SS will be solvent in the long run.

What happens in 2035, when the trust fund runs out?
The OASI Trust Fund reserves are projected to become depleted in 2034, at which time OASI income would be sufficient to pay 77 percent of OASI scheduled benefits.