The journal. (Caldwell, Ohio) 1934-1961, 1949-10-13
BY CONGRESSMAN
Bob SecreSt

1
United States was thirty -one
million people. Less than one
million of this population was
over sixty years of age. Today
there are seventeen million
people above the age of sixty
Due chiefly to the advancement
in medicine, the population over
sixty has multiplied seventeen
times during the past ninety
years, while the population of
the country as whole has null
tiplied less than five times.
Prior to the depression in 1880,
older people without means to
retire comfortably, were cared
for by relatives or local govern
ments. When the buden became
unbearable. old age pensions
were adopted by many states
and finally by the federal gov
eminent. Such pensions were
| paid from direct taxation. The
| demand for national retirement
system grew until the Social Sc
curity law was enacted in 1887.
Today, forty-five million Amer
ican workers have insured sta
tus. One-half of the premium for
this insurance was paid by each
worker and one-half by his en-
ployer. Under the present law,
each worker pays one percent of
his wages and the employer
matches this payment with one
percent.
A picture of the present social
security system is essential to an
understanding of the major
amendments that have just pas
sed the House of Representatives
and which will most likely pass
the Senate shortly after the Con-
gress convenes in January. Old
age pensions are paid to people
who were never covered by the
Social Security law or who did
not have sufficient coverage to
! give them social security retire
ment. Today, two million, six
, hundred and rty-three thous-
and people are receiving old age
pensions in the United States.
The average monthly pension is
! $43.69, one-half of which, is. paid
by the federal government and
one-half by the state, on an av-
, erage. The lowest pension paid
by any state is paid by Mississip-
! pi with an average of $l6.38 a
month. Colorado pays an average
/ pension of $78.18 per month. I'm
der the Social Security Act
eighty-nine thousand people are
receiving pensions for the blind,
and the average blind penson is
$4500 per month. One million,
three hundred and eighty-two
thousand dependent children are
receiving aid under the social
security law. The average fam
lily expenditure is $7200.
The social security retirement
system is based on accepted in
surance tables which permits a
worker to retire at sixty-five
years of age if he has paid in the
required number of quarter
years. Today, one million, one
hundred and ninety-five thous-
and workers are drawing an
average retirement check of
$25.77 per month. In addition,
over one million wives, widows
and children are drawing ;en-
sions from this retirement fund.
A summary of the existing pro-
gram shows that two and one
half million people receive old
age pensions. Over two and one
half million more receive
monthly retirement checks un-
der the insurance program and
almost one and one-half million
blind persons and dependent
children receive monthly ben
efits. The total cost of this pro-
gram to the federal government
and the states is approximately
two hundred and ten million dol
lars per month. This is only one
percent of the amount that we
have foolishly given to Europe
since World War II.
So much for the present law
and its operation. The amend
ments which passed the House
would make eleven million more
Americans eligible to pay into
the Social Security retirement
system. The largest group to be
admitted to Social Security are
all types of small business men,
many of whom now pay a tax
for their employees, but who |
themselves are not covered. All
non-profit institutions, including |
private colleges, will be admitted
to the system.
Existing state and local retire
ment systems, by a two-third
vote of the members covered,
may also elect to participate in |
the federal Social Security re-
tirement system. The state sys-
TEN would continue while the
federal pension would be just an
added amount. Thus, the first
Al