I am pleased that the Social Security Subcommittee will today have the chance to hear our community's thoughts and ideas on the long-term challenges facing Social Security. This is a great opportunity, and I thank everyone who took time out of their busy schedule to be here today. In particular, I would like to thank the University of Missouri for hosting this event and express my appreciation of Skip Walther for agreeing to moderate today's program.

Social Security is the most successful program ever administered by the federal government. Prior to its inception, old age was not a person's golden years. Most of our nation's seniors lived in poverty. The dramatic improvement in the quality of life for older Americans since the creation of Social Security is a testament to the effectiveness of the program.

Social Security's trustees recently issued their report to Congress on the financial status of the program. The news in the short-term was good. Recent economic growth increased payroll tax collections, which improved the actuarial status of the program.

The trustees also noted, however, that this is not a trend that will continue forever. Demographic changes in our nation - the retirement of the baby-boomers and the blessing of longer life expectancies - combined with fewer workers paying Social Security payroll taxes per retiree will begin to strain the program. It is projected that beginning in 2016, the Social Security Trust Fund will begin to post deficits. By the year 2038, Social Security will be unable to meet the obligations it has made to workers who are currently paying taxes into the system.

Social Security is not a pre-funded system, like a private pension plan. It is a pay as you go system where the payroll taxes of current workers are used to finance the benefits of current retirees. Since the Administration of President Lyndon Johnson, revenues from Social Security payroll taxes have been included in the overall federal budget. The Social Security Trust Fund is essentially an accounting device, filled with special government IOU's that track income and distributions from the program. Under this structure, future funding shortfalls threaten not only the Social Security benefits upon which seniors depend, but other federal programs that are vital to our nation's interests.

In other words, failure to begin the process of reforming the most successful social program in the history of our nation would be akin to burying one's head in the sand.

Under the guidance of Chairman Shaw, the Social Security Subcommittee has held numerous hearings on the challenges facing Social Security. We have heard from respected experts representing all points on the political and ideological spectrum. The one point upon which I would say there is consensus is that Congress and the President should act sooner rather than later to address Social Security's long-term solvency problems. The longer we wait, the more difficult it will be to ensure that our children and grandchildren share in Social Security.

As many of you have probably seen on the news, President Bush fulfilled a campaign pledge and appointed a bipartisan commission to formulate a comprehensive Social Security reform plan. The commission is not starting from scratch. They have been given six guiding principles to abide by while formulating their plan. The commission is expected to make its recommendations to the President and Congress by fall.

But ultimately, it will be Congress and specifically, the Social Security Subcommittee that will weigh the options and formulate the legislation that will reform the program and make it viable for future generations. While the commission's deliberations are welcome, its recommendations are not going to be rubber-stamped by the legislature. That is why we are here. It is imperative that the subcommittee tasked with crafting Social Security reform legislation hears the thoughts and concerns of the public. It will take a true bipartisan effort and the support of every generation to make this undertaking a success.

Again, it is my pleasure to welcome you to this hearing, and I look forward to listening to your ideas on Social Security reform.