FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, Contact: (202) 225-9263
September 8, 1997
No. SS-10
Congressman Jim Bunning (R-KY), Chairman, Subcommittee on Social Security of the Committee on Ways and Means, today announced that the Subcommittee will hold the sixth in a series of hearings on "The Future of Social Security for this Generation and the Next." At this hearing, the Subcommittee will examine the views of experts on the Social Security reform experiences of other countries. The hearing will take place on Thursday, September 18, 1997, in the main Committee hearing room, 1100 Longworth House Office Building, beginning at 11:00 a.m.
In view of the limited time available to hear witnesses, oral testimony will be from invited witnesses only. However, any individual or organization may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
BACKGROUND:
The Subcommittee's first five hearings in the series have focused on the recommendations of the Advisory Council on Social Security, the fundamental issues to consider when evaluating options for Social Security reform, the findings of the 1997 Social Security Board of Trustees, and the views of policy experts, organizations with different generational perspectives, business and labor representatives, and Members of Congress on Social Security reform.
Forecasts of future insolvency of the Social Security program are largely due to the aging of the population, particularly the coming retirement of the post World War II baby boom. Most industrialized countries are experiencing problems similar to the United States. The effects on each country's retirement system, however, differ, depending on each country's stage of economic development, societal behavior, and cultural attitudes. Many of these countries have implemented reforms of their Social Security systems.
Social Security systems in other countries can be broadly categorized by distinguishing the method of financing between pay-as-you-go, financed mostly from current revenue and run by the government, and those that are funded in advance, which may be run by the government or the private sector. Other variations include degrees of income redistribution, government and private-sector responsibilities, benefits payable based on need or as a matter of right, and choice of alternative plans.
Remedies being enacted by other countries include raising the retirement age, making certain benefit reductions, mandating participation of workers who have remained outside the system, raising contribution rates, and establishing compulsory contributions paid to individual accounts in a national account managed by a public agency. In 1981, Chile fully replaced its public pay-as-you-go plan with privately and competitively managed mandatory personal savings plans. Recently, other Latin American countries have begun replacing or supplementing their public pension schemes with mandatory or voluntary competitive private savings plans.
In announcing the hearing, Chairman Bunning stated: "The United States is not alone in facing the challenges of an aging population. We can learn a great deal from the experiences of other countries who have tackled needed changes in their Social Security systems."
FOCUS OF THE HEARING:
The Subcommittee will receive the views of experts on the Social Security reform experiences of other countries. Specifically, Members of the Subcommittee would like to hear the views of each individual regarding: (1) prevailing factors contributing to Social Security reform, (2) national budget and macro-economic effects of the reforms, (3) problems faced during the transition to the new Social Security system, including transition costs and how such costs were paid for, (4) the degree of individual risk and reward assumed, (5) the degree to which protections against inflation are contained in the new Social Security system, and (6) the degree to which features of the Social Security system are applicable to the United States situation.
DETAILS FOR SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN COMMENTS:
Any person or organization wishing to submit a written statement for the printed record of the hearing should submit at least six (6) single-space legal-size copies of their statement, along with an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format only, with their name, address, and hearing date noted on a label, by the close of business, Thursday, October 2, 1997, to A.L. Singleton, Chief of Staff, Committee on Ways and Means, U.S. House of Representatives, 1102 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. If those filing written statements wish to have their statements distributed to the press and interested public at the hearing, they may deliver 200 additional copies for this purpose to the Subcommittee on Social Security office, room B-316 Rayburn House Office Building, at least one hour before the hearing begins.
FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS:
Each statement presented for printing to the Committee by a witness, any written statement or exhibit submitted for the printed record or any written comments in response to a request for written comments must conform to the guidelines listed below. Any statement or exhibit not in compliance with these guidelines will not be printed, but will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
1. All statements and any accompanying exhibits for printing must be typed in single space on legal-size paper and may not exceed a total of 10 pages including attachments. At the same time written statements are submitted to the Committee, witnesses are now requested to submit their statements on an IBM compatible 3.5-inch diskette in ASCII DOS Text or WordPerfect 5.1 format. Witnesses are advised that the Committee will rely on electronic submissions for printing the official hearing record.
2. Copies of whole documents submitted as exhibit material will not be accepted for printing. Instead, exhibit material should be referenced and quoted or paraphrased. All exhibit material not meeting these specifications will be maintained in the Committee files for review and use by the Committee.
3. A witness appearing at a public hearing, or submitting a statement for the record of a public hearing, or submitting written comments in response to a published request for comments by the Committee, must include on his statement or submission a list of all clients, persons, or organizations on whose behalf the witness appears.
4. A supplemental sheet must accompany each statement listing the name, full address, a telephone number where the witness or the designated representative may be reached and a topical outline or summary of the comments and recommendations in the full statement. This supplemental sheet will not be included in the printed record.
The above restrictions and limitations apply only to material being submitted for printing. Statements and exhibits or supplementary material submitted solely for distribution to the Members, the press and the public during the course of a public hearing may be submitted in other forms.
The
Committee seeks to make its facilities accessible to persons with
disabilities. If you are in need of special accommodations, please
call 202-225-1721 or 202-226-3411 TTD/TTY in advance of the event
(four business days notice is requested). Questions with regard to
special accommodation needs in general (including availability of
Committee materials in alternative formats) may be directed to the
Committee as noted above.