Social Security represents a foundation of the nation's retirement income system & provides millions of Americans with disability insurance & survivors' benefits. Over the long term, Social Security's financing shortfall presents a major solvency & sustainability challenge. In Dec. 2001 a commission appointed by the President presented 3 reform models. In this report, the GAO evaluated the Commission's models in this framework which consists of 3 criteria: the extent to which a proposal achieves sustainable solvency & how it would affect the economy & the Fed. budget; the balance struck between the goals of income adequacy & individual equity; & how readily such changes could be implemented & administered. Charts, tables & graphs.
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