(Washington, DC) – The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) is pleased to review the draft plan of the 2020 Democratic Party Platform. The draft platform plan for retirement security is a scant five paragraphs in an 80-page document and does not offer any specific ideas for protecting the long-term financial viability of the program. However, “Thankfully, it rejects any effort to cut Social Security benefits, or the COLAs of our nation’s retirees,” says Mary Johnson, a Social Security policy analyst for The Senior Citizens League.
The Senior Citizens League, which works to protect the earned benefits of older Americans, is petitioning the Democratic Party Platform committee to include two proposals that would further protect Social Security benefits that were not included in the draft platform plan. The Senior Citizens League is proposing that:
- Congress appropriate funds to the Social Security Trust Fund to replenish payroll tax deposits lost due to the impact of COVID-19.
- Congress provide a minimum guaranteed COLA.
According to Doug Osborne, the Legislative Liaison to the Board of Trustees of TSCL, “Our petition is a far cry from everything the Senior Citizens League would like to see on the Democratic Party Platform but, if our recommendations are accepted, it would go a long way to helping America’s seniors who are currently drawing on the program and the next generation who are relying on Social Security still being solvent for them.”
The Republican Platform Committee has announced that their 2020 platform will be similar to the 2016 platform, but there will be updates made. TSCL will be submitting its proposals to the Republican Platform Committee as well.
A recent online survey by The Senior Citizens League found that 83 percent of survey participants support strengthening Social Security benefits by providing a boost in benefits and providing a more adequate COLA.
To learn more about efforts to strengthen Social Security benefits, visit www.SeniorsLeague.org.
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With 1.2 million supporters, The Senior Citizens League is one of the nation’s largest nonpartisan seniors’ groups. Its mission is to promote and assist members and supporters, to educate and alert senior citizens about their rights and freedoms as U.S. Citizens, and to protect and defend the benefits senior citizens have earned and paid for. The Senior Citizens League is a proud affiliate of The Retired Enlisted Association. Visit www.SeniorsLeague.org for more information.
Attention Journalists: A copy of The Senior Citizen Leagues Petition for Platform Plank Protecting Social Security Benefits for Seniors can be found here.
