FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Mark Gundersen (202) 225-8933
May 2, 2001

President’s Commission on Social Security Reform Announced

WASHINGTON - President Bush today announced the creation of a bipartisan, 16-member, commission to develop specific recommendations to modernize and restore fiscal soundness to Social Security.

"Preparing for a secure retirement tomorrow, starts today," said Chairman Bill Thomas (R-CA). "I commend President Bush for his leadership on this issue. We need to protect Social Security for today’s retirees and explore long-term options for future beneficiaries. This national discussion is long overdue and I look forward to working with the commission as they address this important public concern," added Chairman Thomas.

"The American people have long known that Social Security must be strengthened and modernized before the coming wave of baby boom retirements. Fortunately, President Bush has consistently shown true leadership by setting out principles for reform and creating a Presidential Commission to Strengthen Social Security. While Congress and the President will ultimately determine any changes to the law, the Commission’s efforts will be important to advance our goal of saving Social Security for our children and future generations. I urge every American, especially our young people, to pay close attention to the Commission’s work so that our nation may begin to build consensus on how best to secure Social Security’s future," stated E. Clay Shaw, Jr. (R-FL), Chairman of the Subcommittee on Social Security.

The commission is co-chaired by former Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY) and Dick Parsons (Co-Chief Operating Officer of AOL/Time Warner), and will report its findings this fall. The President developed six key principles for the commission to use as guidelines in making recommendations. The principles are as follow:

• Modernization must not change Social Security benefits for retirees or near-retirees,
• The entire Social Security surplus must be dedicated to Social Security only,
• Social Security payroll taxes must not be increased,
• Government must not invest Social Security funds in the stock market,
• Modernization must preserve Social Security’s disability and survivors components, and
• Modernization must include individually controlled, voluntary personal retirement accounts, which will augment the Social Security safety net.