Social Security Works
for Guam
www.StrengthenSocialSecurity.org
2013
Our Social Security Works for America series of over 50 state reports includes much information that public officials, members of the
press, and advocates will find useful. In addition to providing information about the program’s history, character and vitality, each report
includes statistics about the number of people who receive benefits, the types of benefits they receive and the total amount of funds
flowing from these programs into every state, the District of Columbia, and the United States’ Island Areas.
Please note that a one-page fact sheet summarizing the data in this report can be found at the end of the report, directly following the
endnotes.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Like our Social Security system, this report is the product of the foresight and hard work of many people. Social Security Works partnered closely
with the Alliance for Retired Americans which is coordinating the release of this report in Guam.
We are grateful to the following people for writing, designing and producing this report: Daniel Marans, Policy Director of Social Security Works
(SSW), is the principal author and lead researcher, whose commitment to excellence, along with that of Stephanie Connolly, SSW’s Legislative and
Policy Associate, drove the project to its successful conclusion. Stephanie played a crucial role in the reports’ completion, drafting the appendices,
and editing and verifying the data in the report. Benjamin Veghte, SSW’s Research Director, contributed valuable guidance on research and
editorial decisions. Michael Phelan, SSW’s Deputy Director, and Alex Lawson, SSW’s Executive Director, managed the actual production of the
report. We would like to thank Don Owens and Lacy Crawford, respectively, SSW’s Communications Director and Communications Associate for
assembling, sometimes writing and editing the personal stories included in all 50 state reports. Lacy also helped proofread the data.
Graphic design was provided by Deepika Mehta.
Social Security Works also benefited from the work and commitment of several persons who provided original research and analysis for this
report. We would like to thank Dr. Roberto Gallardo of the Mississippi State University Extension Service for calculating Social Security data on
the metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties in each state and sharing the results of his unpublished work, as well as the Center for Rural
Strategies for commissioning Dr. Gallardo’s research. Arloc Sherman, Senior Researcher, and Danilo Trisi, Research Associate, at the Center on
Budget and Policy Priorities generously provided access to unpublished poverty data analyzed by the Center, including the numbers of African
American and Latino seniors Social Security lifted out of poverty in 2011. The Center for Economic and Policy Research provided and updated the
invaluable analysis and graph showing the causes of the recent run-up in federal deficits. Alice Wade, Deputy Chief Actuary of the Social Security
Administration, with the help of Virginia Reno, Vice President for Income Security at the National Academy of Social Insurance, graciously provided
data on the value of Social Security’s survivors and disability insurance.
The data presented in this report speaks volumes about the importance of Social Security to families, communities and state and local economies.
We hope the report is useful to you as you work to strengthen Social Security in this 78th anniversary year. Please contact the Social Security
Works Communications Director, Don Owens, if you have questions about this report: [email protected].
Nancy Altman and Eric Kingson
Founding Co-directors, Social Security Works
Co-chairs, Strengthen Social Security Coalition
The Alliance for Retired Americans is a grassroots organization representing more than 4 million retirees and seniors
nationwide. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Alliance’s mission is to advance public policy that protects the health
and economic security of older Americans by teaching seniors how to make a difference through activism. Learn more
about The Alliance and its work at www.retiredamericans.org
The mission of Social Security Works is to protect and improve the economic status of all Americans, especially
disadvantaged and at-risk populations, and, in so doing, to promote social justice for current and future generations of
children as well as young, middle-aged and older adults. www.socialsecurityworks.org
The Strengthen Social Security Coalition is made up of more than 320 national organizations and many state
organizations, representing more than 50 million Americans. The Coalition is united around core principles, which include
that Social Security benefits should not be cut and, instead, should be increased for those who are most disadvantaged,
and the belief that our nation’s Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid systems are fundamental to the well-being of
America’s families and to the type of nation we are. www.strengthensocialsecurity.org
Introduction
“We can never insure one-hundred percent of the population against one-hundred percent of the hazards and
vicissitudes of life. But we have tried to frame a law which will give some measure of protection to the average
citizen and to his family against the loss of a job and against poverty-ridden old age. This law, too, represents a
cornerstone in a structure which is being built but is by no means complete. It is a structure intended to lessen the
force of possible future depressions. It will act as a protection to future Administrations against the necessity of
going deeply into debt to furnish relief to the needy. The law will flatten out the peaks and valleys of deflation and
of inflation. It is, in short, a law that will take care of human needs and at the same time provide for the United
States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.”
—Franklin D. Roosevelt, August 14, 1935
In 1935, when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed
the Social Security Act into law he called it a cornerstone,
the foundation of a structure to be maintained and built
upon by and for future generations. Social Security could
not protect all Americans against every risk, but, as the
President said, it could lessen the consequences of lost
earnings in old age for workers and their families.
Since then, we have built our Social Security structure
carefully and deliberately. In 1939, we added Survivors
Insurance benefits for widows and dependent children,
eventually extending it to widowers as well. Disability
Insurance benefits were added in 1956, followed by
Medicare and Medicaid in 1965. The automatic cost-ofliving adjustment (COLA) was added in 1972, designed
to maintain the purchasing power of benefits no matter
how long someone lives. We built, maintained and
strengthened these institutions for a reason: to enable
working men and women to protect themselves and
their families. We built them because we, as a nation,
value hard work, personal responsibility, and human
dignity; we care for our parents, our children, our
spouses, our neighbors and ourselves.
As you read through this report, think of the people you
know. Family members who live in dignity in old age
because they can count on a monthly Social Security
check that they or another family member have earned.
Think of that older person who has outlived his modest
savings, but who, thanks to Social Security, can continue
to live independently. Think of a friend’s mother, who
relied on Social Security to provide for her family after
she was severely disabled in a workplace accident. Think
of neighbors, whose widowed father needed Social
Security to pay the bills when their mother passed away
suddenly.
Think, too, of how the institution of Social Security, like
the nation’s highway system, is part of a rich legacy
built by those who came before, a legacy that keeps
working in good times and bad. Throughout the past
few difficult years, Social Security has been even more
vital than before for Guam residents, and the lifeblood of
many small businesses. Virtually all of the jobs our Social
Security, Medicare, and Medicaid systems support stay
in America.
This report highlights the remarkable success of Social
Security for Guam and the nation. The numbers tell part
of the story: how many people receive benefits in Guam;
how many dollars flow into these jurisdictions in a year;
the types of benefits and the types of people who receive
benefits. Perhaps more importantly, the report presents
the story of hard-working Guam residents and their
families whose lives are immeasurably better because of
the protections they have earned.
Social Security Works for Guam 1
Social Security Works
We built our Social Security system because it is the most
efficient, secure, universal and fair way for Americans
to replace wages in the event of death, disability, or old
age. For 78 years, even as our nation has endured wars,
political crises and severe economic recessions, Social
Security has never missed a payment; it has paid every
dollar of earned benefits, on time and in full.
The importance of Social Security—the nation’s family
insurance against lost wages due to old age, disability,
or death—cannot be overstated. Nationwide, Social
Security provided $774.6 billion in benefits to nearly 57
million beneficiaries in 2012—nearly 1 in 5 (18.1 percent)
Americans.1 Social Security is not just a retirement
program for seniors, however. Over 17 million people
under age 65 received Social Security benefits in 2012—
nearly one-third (30.2 percent) of all beneficiaries.2
In fact, Social Security is the nation’s largest and, despite
its modest benefits, most generous children’s program.
There were about 9.2 million children receiving Social
Security benefits in 2012.3 These include over 4.4
million children who received Social Security benefits
directly,4 and an additional 4.8 million children, who
lived in households where all or part of the income of the
household comes from Social Security.5
For the vast majority of beneficiaries—young and old
alike—Social Security’s benefits are modest, but vital.
The average Social Security benefit was $13,648 a year
in 2012, and $15,139 for retired workers.6 Almost twothirds (65.3 percent) of elderly couples and unmarried
people relied on Social Security for half of their income or
more in 2010.7 The program lifted 21 million Americans
out of poverty in 2011, including one million children.8
Social Security benefits are particularly important for
disabled workers. Social Security Disability Insurance
(DI) benefits provide 90 percent of the income or more
for nearly half of non-institutionalized beneficiaries.9
Nonetheless, 1 in 4 DI beneficiaries remains in poverty.10
Through their hard work and payroll tax contributions,
nearly all American workers earn Social Security’s
retirement, disability and survivorship protections for
themselves and their families. Social Security is the
primary disability and life insurance protection for most
Guam workers. A 30‐-year‐-old worker with a spouse
and two young children, earning around $32,000,
receives Social Security insurance protection equivalent
to disability and life insurance protections worth over
$465,000 and $476,000, respectively.11 Today, over
208 million working Americans have earned these
protections for themselves and their families.12
There is a significant chance that a worker will need
these protections before she retires. Nationwide, nearly
3 in 10 (27 percent) people who turned 20 in 2012
are projected to become severely disabled during their
working years.13 An estimated 1 out of 11 (9 percent)
working‐-aged men and 1 out of 20 (4.8 percent) workingaged women will die before reaching retirement age.14
Social Security Works for Guam’s Residents
and Economy
• Social Security provided benefits to 15,280 Guam
residents in 2012, 1 in 10 (9.6 percent) residents.15
• Guam residents received Social Security benefits
totaling $139 million in 2012.16
• The average Social Security benefit in Guam was
$9,097 in 2012.17
Social Security Works for Guam 2
Social Security Works for Guam’s Widow(er)s
Figure 1
Guam’s Social Security Beneficiaries,
2012
10%
Disabled
Workers
9%
Widow(er)s
GU
56%
Retired Workers
7%
Spouses
• Social Security provided Survivors benefits to 1,416
Guam widow(er)s in 2012, 1 in 10 (9.3 percent)
Guam beneficiaries [Figure 1].23
• The typical benefit received by a widow(er) in Guam
was $8,975 in 2012.24
“Money was very tight after my dad passed away. Getting
the support from Social Security was extremely important—
it allowed us to stay in our house and keep me in the school
I was attending. I’m not sure I would have made it to college
if we had to move and go to a different school.”
Maureen Sullivan, age 27, reflecting on the importance of
Social Security when her Dad died, leaving her mother with two teenagers
17%
Children
Social Security Works for Guam’s Workers
with Disabilities25
Source: Social Security Administration, 2013
Social Security Works for Guam’s Seniors18
• Social Security provided benefits to 8,592 Guam
retired workers in 2012, half (56.2 percent) of
beneficiaries [Figure 1].19
• The typical benefit received by a retired worker in
Guam was $8,819 in 2012.20
MP
“I don’t know where I’d be without the benefits I’ve earned,
probably depressed and homeless. It’s my only source of
income and I’m glad I earned it.”
Mary Stitt, 77 years old, who retired after 5 decades in the workforce
Social Security Works for Guam’s Women
• Social Security provided benefits to 6,508 Guam
women in 2012, 1 in 12 (8.3 percent) Guam
women.21
• Social Security provided benefits to 1,098 Guam
spouses in 2012, 1 in 13 (7.2 percent) beneficiaries
[Figure 1].22
Social Security Works for Guam • Social Security provided disability benefits to 1,584
Guam workers in 2012, 1 in 10 (10.4 percent) Guam
beneficiaries [Figure 1].26
• The typical benefit received by a disabled worker
beneficiary in Guam was $11,064 in 2012.27
“Instead of eating fast food, I could afford a food delivery
service to provide me with balanced meals to rebuild my
health. Instead of risking bed sores by transferring into
taxis, I could afford to hire a wheelchair service, which
greatly reduced the chance of injury… Instead of dropping
out of the workforce permanently—Social Security helped
me go back to school to make myself more competitive in
the job market.”
Disabled Veteran Sherman Gillums, age 40, today an Appellate
Representative for Paralyzed Veterans of America, talking about how five
years of Social Security disability benefits served as “the bridge to quality of
life for me and my children that ultimately saved the government money.”
Social Security Works for Guam’s Children
• Social Security is the primary life and disability
insurance protection for 98 percent of Guam’s
51,245 children.28
• Social Security provided benefits to 2,590 Guam
children in 2012, 1 in 6 (17 percent) Guam
beneficiaries [Figure 1].29
3
still assessing how the ruling will affect the eligibility
of same-sex couples and their children for spousal
and related family benefits. It is not clear, for example,
whether legally-married same-sex couples residing in
states or territories that do not recognize such marriages,
or partners in civil unions, are eligible for benefits. SSA
advises people who are uncertain about whether they
are eligible to apply in any case.36
Social Security Works for Immigrants
• Social Security is critical for Latino and Asian Americans,
who together made up more than three-quarters (81
percent) of foreign-born Americans in 2010.30
• New immigrants tend to have lower career earnings,
so Social Security is likely to be a larger source of
retirement income for them. Nationwide, the median
household income of foreign-born Americans
was $45,821 in 2011, 10.4 percent lower than
the median for native-born Americans, which was
$51,147.31
• Social Security is a lifeline for older workers who
have health problems or difficult jobs, among whom
immigrants are disproportionately represented.32
Nearly half (46 percent) of non-citizen immigrants
and 1 in 4 (23 percent) naturalized citizens were
uninsured in 2011, compared with 1 in 6 (15 percent)
native-born American citizens.33 In addition, nearly 6
in 10 (55.7 percent) immigrant workers aged 58 or
older work in physically demanding jobs or difficult
conditions, compared with 4 in 10 (43.8 percent)
native-born workers.34
• An analysis by the non-partisan Congressional
Budget Office (CBO) shows that providing a path to
citizenship for the country’s 11 million unauthorized
immigrants would net Social Security $284 billion by
2024, extending Social Security’s solvency by two
years.35
Social Security’s Promise for Same-Sex
Couples and Their Families
As a result of the June 26, 2013 Supreme Court decision
regarding the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), the
federal government now recognizes the rights of legally
married same-sex couples to many federal benefits,
including Social Security. Since it is so soon after the
ruling, however, the Social Security Administration is
Social Security Works for Guam Just as Social Security’s protections are critical for
persons in traditional marriages, the availability of Social
Security’s spousal and children protections are similarly
crucial for:
• The 50,000 same-sex couples who are married under
state or territorial law,37
· The 90,000 couples in civil unions,38
• Others who are in long-term committed relationships
but living in states that do not permit same-sex
marriages or civil unions; and
• The estimated 250,000 children being raised by
same-sex couples.39
Although not all of these same-sex couples and their
families have become eligible for Social Security,
Social Security now works for many of our fellow
Americans who are part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender (LGBT) community. As the population ages
and as more states recognize the civil rights of these
fellow Americans, Social Security will become ever more
important to them.
Social Security Works Financially
A public trust, Social Security is the nation’s most
conservatively financed and carefully monitored
institution. Social Security does not, and, by law, cannot
add a penny to the federal deficit or debt (which is simply
the accumulation of annual deficits).40 While the federal
budget has run a deficit in every year but five over the
last half century, Social Security is not allowed to pay
benefits unless it has the funds to cover every penny of
the cost; it simply does not have borrowing authority.41
This is why Social Security has nothing to do with
reducing the federal budget deficit, and should not be
part of any deficit reduction legislation considered by our
nation’s leaders.
To reduce the federal debt, Congress should be looking
at its causes. It should not cut Social Security, which
has not and cannot contribute a single penny to the
4
federal budget deficit. The large run-up in federal
deficits in recent years resulted primarily from huge
tax cuts in 2001 and 2003; the unpaid costs of the
Iraq and Afghanistan wars; the Great Recession, which
dramatically reduced tax collections and increased
unemployment compensation and other spending; the
economic stimulus and recovery spending; and the Wall
Street bank bailout [Figure 2].42
Not only is Social Security independent of the budget
and self-funded; it is also among the most transparent
pension programs in the world. Each year since 1941,
Social Security’s Trustees issue a report about the
program’s financial health. The annual Trustees Report
projects income and outgo 75 years into the future—
further than private pension programs and the Social
Security programs of nearly every other nation. It is
intended to provide Congress an extremely long lead
time to make adjustments that are needed from time to
time. Except for Medicare, no other federal programs are
subject to this type of scrutiny.
Figure 2
1,600
1,400
1,200
1,000
U.S. Budget Deficits, 2001–2013
It is only because Social Security is required to project
its finances 75 years into the future that we would even
know about its modest long-term shortfall, still decades
away. This year’s report, signed by Social Security’s
trustees—the secretaries of the Treasury, Health and
Human Services and Labor, the Commissioner of
Social Security and two Public Trustees appointed by
the President—projects that Social Security can pay all
benefits in full and on time for the next 20 years.43 After
that, if Congress were not to act, it could still pay 77
cents on every dollar of earned benefits.44
Social Security’s projected shortfall is incredibly modest
as a share of the economy. Even with the retirement of
the baby boomers, Social Security’s costs are projected
to go from their current levels of 5.1 percent of gross
domestic product (GDP) to a peak of 6.2 percent in
2037, remaining at or near that level thereafter.45 The
cost of bringing Social Security into actuarial balance
is equal to 1 percent of GDP.46 This increase in Social
Security spending is smaller than the increase in
spending on public education that occurred
when the boomers were children.47
n Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan
n Bush-era tax cuts
n Recocvery measures
n TARP, Fannie and Freddie
n Economic and technical changes
Billions of dollars
800
600
400
Our Social Security system can and should
keep all its commitments without cutting
benefits. For example, one approach would
have everyone make the same payroll
contribution rate (6.2 percent) as about 94
percent of all American workers do.48 While
the vast majority of Americans must make
contributions on all of their wages, millionaires
and billionaires only do so on the first
$113,700 of their earnings this year.49 Asking
all Americans to pay the same rate would
come very close to closing Social Security’s
entire projected 75-year funding gap.50
200
0
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
-200
-400
Source: Center for Economic and Policy Research analysis of
Congressional Budget Office data, 2013.
Social Security Works for Guam 5
Conclusion: Maintaining a Legacy
for All Generations
Our Social Security system has withstood the test
of time. It represents the best of American values—
rewarding hard work, honoring our parents, caring for
our neighbors, and taking responsibility for ourselves and
our families. It is based on a promise that if you pay in,
then you earn the right to guaranteed benefits.
Like our interstate highway system, however, Social
Security requires periodic maintenance to remain
strong. Now it is our turn to maintain and build upon that
structure, as those who came before have done. It is our
turn to preserve and improve these valuable systems for
ourselves and for those who follow. It is our turn to build
a legacy for our nation’s children and grandchildren so
when they become workers, they will have the economic
security that Social Security provides.
Maintaining our Social Security system must not be
reduced to a matter of simple arithmetic. Any changes
we make to Social Security must help advance the
program’s mission of providing economic security and
dignity for America’s working families. Closing the
program’s modest funding gap is a means to achieve
this mission, not an end in itself. Cutting benefits now
merely to avoid cutting them later would solve the
arithmetic problem at the expense of Social Security’s
Social Security Works for Guam fundamental promise. Basing Social Security’s costof-living adjustments on the stingier chained CPI
(Consumer Price Index), for example, a cut proposed by
many in Washington, would undermine the adequacy
of Social Security’s modest benefits. It would hit longtime beneficiaries, such as people with disabilities and
the oldest old, the hardest, at a time in their lives when
most have little else on which to live. Under the chained
CPI, the average earner retiring at age 65 would see a
cumulative benefit cut of $4,642 at age 75, $13,921 at
age 85, and $28,015 at age 95.51
As important as Social Security is today, the need for it
will only increase in coming years. Our nation faces an
impending retirement income crisis. More than half (53
percent) of today’s working Americans are not expected
to have sufficient resources to maintain their standard
of living in old age.52 The crisis is the result of changes
in the economy that have diminished private sources
of retirement income. Employers are increasingly
terminating traditional pension plans and either not
replacing them, or replacing them with far more risky
and inadequate 401(k) savings accounts. Just over half
(52.5 percent) of all working heads of households are
eligible for an employer-sponsored retirement plan; less
than half (44.6 percent) actually participate.53 Among
6
those households nearing retirement (aged 55-64) with
a 401(k) plan, IRA, or both, the median balance was
$100,000.54
Were it not for Social Security, the retirement income
crisis would inevitably be much worse. Social Security
continues to prove steady, stable, and reliable. In a world
of stagnant wages and risky or inadequate 401(k) plans,
Social Security is a fortress of security and reliability. In
this uncertain world, where no one is invulnerable to the
tragedy of premature death or serious and permanent
disability, Social Security is there to cushion the
economic blow of such tragedies.
Further, Social Security benefits, while growing in
importance, are already modest and declining. For a
lifetime average earner retiring at age 65 in 2013, Social
Security benefits replace 41 percent of pre-retirement
earnings.55 That replacement rate alone ranks 30th out
of 34 among members of the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development.56 Social Security’s
replacement rate will drop to 36 percent of preretirement earnings by 2025, mostly due to the ongoing
increase in the full retirement age to 67.57 If health care
costs continue to rise faster than inflation, Medicare
Part B and Part D premiums will further reduce Social
Security benefits’ value.58
Social Security Works for Guam The solution is clear. It is time to double down on what
works. It is time to expand Social Security, not cut
it. Social Security Works and the Strengthen Social
Security coalition, which includes over 300 national and
state groups representing over 50 million Americans,
support legislation in Congress that would do just that.
Specifically, bills introduced by Senator Tom Harkin
(D-IA) and Senator Mark Begich (D-AK), respectively,
would increase benefits across the board by asking
millionaires and billionaires to pay the same rate that
average Americans pay into the program.59 Among their
proposals is the adoption of the Consumer Price Index
for the Elderly (CPI-E), a formula for determining the
annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) that reflects the
higher inflation experienced by seniors.
Expanding Social Security is not only affordable; it is a
wise public investment. We are the wealthiest nation
in the world. Our nation is much wealthier than it was
in 1935, 1939, 1956, 1965, or 1972, when Social
Security’s key structures were built and improved. The
consequences of not expanding Social Security are
far worse—a deeper retirement income crisis; greater
income inequality; a more sluggish consumer economy—
than the cost of doing what is right.
7
Endnotes
1 Total annual benefits from Social Security Administration (SSA), Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J1—Estimated total annual benefits paid, by state or other
area and program, 2012 (in millions of dollars),” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j1. Total beneficiaries from
SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.
gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2. Total US population from U.S. Census Bureau, “Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Selected
Age Groups by Sex for the United States, States, Counties and Puerto Rico Commonwealth and Municipios: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2012,” 2012 Population Estimates, 2013.
http://factfinder2.census.gov/
2 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J3—Number and total monthly benefits for beneficiaries aged 65 or older, by state or other area and sex,
December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j3
3 There are exactly 9,196,404 children receiving benefits, including 4,419,404 children receiving benefits directly and 4,777,000 children supported by a parent or other
relative receiving benefits. The number of children supported by a parent or other relative receiving benefits dates to 2010, so it likely understates the total for 2012. Unless
otherwise specified as children under 18 to the exclusion of all others, the term “children” used in this section is consistent with the Social Security Administration’s use of the
term to include three groups: “children under age 18,” receiving benefits through a parent receiving retirement or disability benefits, or a deceased parent; “students aged 1819,” which refers to children receiving benefits at ages 18 and 19 who are matriculated in an institution of secondary education; and “disabled adult children,” which refers
to those adults with a severe disability that began before age 22, at a time when a parent was receiving retirement or disability benefits or was deceased. Children receiving
benefits: SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J10—Number of children, by state or other area and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013.
http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j10. Definition and eligibility of disabled adult children: SSA, Benefits for Children with
Disabilities, 2013, 2013, p. 11. http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10026.pdf. Children dependent on a parent or relative receiving benefits: Congressional Research Service
(CRS), Thomas Gabe, Social Security’s Effect on Child Poverty, December 22, 2011, Figure 1, pp. 3-4. http://socialsecurity-works.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/
CRS_Children-Social-Security_2011.pdf
4 Of the 4,419,404 million children who received benefits in 2012, 3,258,000 were under age 18; 154,302 were students aged 18-19; and 1,006,676 were disabled adult
children. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J10—Number of children, by state or other area and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://
www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j10
5 The estimated 4,777,000 children not receiving benefits directly, but living in households that do, include 1.816 million children under age 18 with a parent or guardian
receiving benefits, and 2.961 million children under age 18 in families where a relative other than a parent is receiving benefits. Figure is from 2010, the most recent year it
was available, so it likely understates the total for 2012. Congressional Research Service (CRS), Thomas Gabe, Social Security’s Effect on Child Poverty, December 22, 2011,
Figure 1, pp. 3-4. http://socialsecurity-works.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/CRS_Children-Social-Security_2011.pdf
6 Average benefit found by dividing total spending by total beneficiaries. Total annual benefits from Social Security Administration (SSA), Annual Statistical Supplement,
2013, “Table 5.J1—Estimated total annual benefits paid, by state or other area and program, 2012 (in millions of dollars),” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/
statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j1. Total beneficiaries from SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program,
and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2. Average retired worker benefit
found by multiplying average monthly retired worker benefit by 12. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J6—Percentage distribution of monthly benefit
for retired workers, by state or other area and monthly benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.
html#table5.j6
7 SSA, Income of the Population 55 or Older, 2010, Table 9.A1, March 2012. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/income_pop55/2010/sect09.html#table9.a1
8 Center on Budget & Policy Priorities (CBPP), Social Security Keeps 21 Million People Out of Poverty: a State-by-State Analysis, October 16, 2012. http://www.cbpp.org/
cms/?fa=view&id=3851. The state-level data reflect an average from 2009-2011, and therefore do not add up to the national totals, which date to 2011.
9 Center on Budget & Policy Priorities (CBPP), Social Security Disability Insurance is Vital to Workers with Severe Impairments, August 9, 2012, p. 11. http://www.cbpp.
org/files/8-9-12ss.pdf
10 CBPP, Ibid.
11 $465,000 value of disability benefits includes $329,000 of Disability Insurance benefits, and $136,000 of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance benefits once the disabled
worker reaches the full retirement age. Estimates of illustrative worker’s career earnings and corresponding value of disability and life insurance benefits understate current
amounts, since they are in wage-indexed 2007 dollars for a worker beginning to receive benefits in 2008, the most recent year for which data was available. SSA, The
Insurance Value of Potential Survivor and Disability Benefits for an Illustrative Worker, Memorandum from Orlo R. Nichols, Actuary, to Alice H. Wade, Deputy Chief Actuary,
August 15, 2008. http://socialsecurity-works.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Illustrative_Survivor_and_Disabilitycase_2008.pdf
12 Social Security Administration (SSA), Annual Statistical Supplement, 2012, “Table 4.C1—Estimated number of insured workers, by insured status, December 31, 1940–
2012 (in millions),” February 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2012/4c.html#table4.c1
13 Social Security Administration (SSA), Office of the Chief Actuary, Actuarial Note 2012.6, A Death and Disability Life Table for Insured Workers Born in 1982, February
2013. http://www.socialsecurity.gov/OACT/NOTES/ran6/an2012-6.pdf
14 SSA, Office of the Chief Actuary, Actuarial Note 2012.6, Ibid.
15 Total beneficiaries from SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June
28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2. State population data from U.S. Census Bureau, International Data Base.
http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php.
16 Total annual benefits from SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J1—Estimated total annual benefits paid, by state or other area and program, 2012
(in millions of dollars),” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j1. Total personal income data not available for
American Samoa.
17 Average benefit found by dividing total spending by total beneficiaries. Total annual benefits from Social Security Administration (SSA), Annual Statistical Supplement,
2013, “Table 5.J1—Estimated total annual benefits paid, by state or other area and program, 2012 (in millions of dollars),” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/
statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j1. Total beneficiaries from SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program,
and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2
18 For the purposes of this analysis, “seniors” describes individuals aged 65 or older. Herein, all references to “seniors” will reflect this definition.
19 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.
ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2
20 For the purposes of this analysis, “typical” is used to describe the “median” benefit. Herein, all references to “typical” will reflect this description. Monthly median benefit
multiplied by 12 to calculate annual figure. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J6—Percentage distribution of monthly benefit for retired workers, by state or
other area and monthly benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j6
21 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J5.1—Number, by state or other area, and sex, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/
statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j5.1 Percentage of women receiving benefits calculated using total female population from U.S. Census Bureau, International
Data Base. http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php
22 Total spouses receiving benefits calculated by adding number of spouses of retired workers to number of spouses of disabled workers. SSA, Annual Statistical
Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/
statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2
Social Security Works for Guam 8
23 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.
ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2
24 Monthly median benefit multiplied by 12 to calculate annual figure. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J9—Percentage distribution of
nondisabled widow(er)s, by state or other area and monthly benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.
html#table5.j9
25 The number of Social Security disability beneficiaries cited here includes only those disabled workers receiving disability benefits. It does not include those disabled
workers and “disabled adult children” who receive Old-Age (retirement) and Survivors benefits. Herein, any use of the term “disabled worker” will refer only to those disabled
workers receiving disability benefits.
26 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J2—Number, by state or other area, program, and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.
ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j2
27 Monthly median benefit multiplied by 12 to calculate annual figure. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J8—Percentage distribution of disabled workers,
by state or other area and monthly benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j8
28 In this case, “children” refers to individuals under age 18, and includes neither disabled adult children, nor individuals aged 18-19. When discussing Social Security’s
insurance protections for children, children under age 18 was considered the most appropriate group to reference in this analysis, since even students aged 18-19 receiving
benefits as dependents of a disabled or deceased parent must have qualified for benefits before age 18. While disabled adult children may receive benefits for a severe
disability sustained at age 18 or later, it must occur before age 22, meaning that a large proportion of beneficiaries will likely have begun receiving benefits before age 18 as
well. Population under age 18: US Census Bureau, International Data Base. http://www.census.gov/population/international/data/idb/informationGateway.php Data on
percentage of children insured from SSA, Survivors Benefits, June 2013, p. 4. http://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10084.pdf
29 SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2013, “Table 5.J10—Number of children, by state or other area and type of benefit, December 2012,” June 28, 2013. http://www.
ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/supplement/2013/5j.html#table5.j10
30 US Census Bureau, “America’s Foreign-Born in the Last 50 Years,” June 2013. http://www.census.gov/how/pdf//Foreign-Born--50-Years-Growth.pdf. Social Security
provided all or nearly all of the income for over half (55.1 percent) of Latino senior households, and 4 out of 10 (41.7 percent) Asian senior households in 2010, compared
with one-third (34.7 percent) of white senior households. SSA, Income of the Population 55 or Older, 2010, Table 9.A3, March 2012. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/
statcomps/income_pop55/2010/sect09.html#table9.a3
31 US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2011, 1-Year Estimates, “Selected Population Profile in the United States,” 2012. http://factfinder2.census.gov/
32 More than half (51 percent) of workers who retired earlier than expected in 2012 cited a health problem or disability as the cause. Employee Benefit Research Institute
(EBRI), “2012 Retirement Confidence Survey Fact Sheet #2: Changing Expectations About Retirement,” March 2012, p. 1. http://www.ebri.org/pdf/surveys/rcs/2012/fs02-rcs-12-fs2-expect.pdf
33 Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), “Key Facts on Health Coverage for Low-Income Immigrants Today and Under the Affordable Care Act,” March 2013, p. 4. http://
kaiserfamilyfoundation.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/8279-02.pdf
34 Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), Hye Jin Rho, Hard Work? Patterns in Physically Demanding Labor Among Older Workers, Table 8, August 2010, p. 14.
http://www.cepr.net/documents/publications/older-workers-2010-08.pdf
35 SSA, Office of the Chief Actuary, Estimated Long-Range Financial Effects on Social Security of the “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration
Modernization Act,” legislation introduced as S. 744 (113th Congress) by Senator Marco Rubio and passed by the Senate on June 27, 2013, June 28, 2013. http://ssa.
gov/oact/solvency/MRubio_20130627.pdf. At the time of the publication of this report, the US House of Representatives had yet to vote on the Senate’s immigration bill—
or any other, for that matter.
36 SSA, “Update on the Supreme Court Decision Regarding the Defense of Marriage Act and Its Implications for Social Security Benefits,” July 12, 2013. http://ssa.gov/
pressoffice/pr/doma-pr-alt.pdf. More on the financial loss experienced by same-sex couples and their children who are denied Social Security benefits here: National
Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM) and Human Rights Campaign (HRC), Living Outside the Safety Net: LGBT Families and Social Security,
February 2013. http://www.ncpssmfoundation.org/Portals/0/lgbt-report.pdf
37 The Williams Institute, Marriage for Same-Sex Couples. http://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/headlines/marriage-for-same-sex-couples/
38 The Williams Institute, Ibid.
39 The Williams Institute, Ibid.
40 Social Security does not contribute to the deficit, because benefits can only be paid from revenue collected by the Social Security trust funds—the Old-Age and Survivors
Insurance (OASI) trust fund and Disability Insurance (DI) trust fund—which are completely separate from the general budget. Social Security Trustees, Table II.B1, 2012
Social Security Trustees Report, April 25, 2012, p. 6. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2012/tr2012.pdf. In 2010 and 2011, the General Fund transferred money to the Social
Security trust funds in order to replace revenue lost due to a temporary two-percentage-point payroll tax reduction. The payroll tax cut, and the General Fund transfer that
resulted, was a temporary stimulus measure that will expire at the end of the year. It never fundamentally changed Social Security’s self-sustaining funding structure. The
trust funds do not have borrowing authority, and therefore, cannot deficit-spend. In the event that trust fund revenues fall short of what is needed to pay 100 percent of
benefits, then, by law, benefits could not be paid in full and on time. That is why, if Congress does nothing to shore up the program’s finances by 2033, Social Security will
only have sufficient revenue to pay about three-quarters of scheduled benefits through 2086. Social Security Trustees, Table II.B1, 2012 Social Security Trustees Report,
April 25, 2012, p. 11. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2012/tr2012.pdf. This modest funding shortfall is often cited as evidence that the program is financially unsustainable,
or “in deficit.” In fact, it is just the opposite: it attests to Social Security’s self-sustaining funding structure that bars it from deficit-spending or borrowing from the general
budget in any way.
41 White House, Office of Management and Budget, Table 1.1 Summary of Receipts, Outlays and Surpluses or Deficits: 1789-2018, 2013. http://www.whitehouse.gov/
omb/budget/Historicals
42 Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), “U.S. Budget Deficits 2001-2013,” Analysis of Congressional Budget Office data, unpublished.
43 Social Security Trustees, 2013 Social Security Trustees Report, May 31, 2013, p. 4. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2013/tr2013.pdf
44 Social Security Trustees, Ibid.
45 Social Security Trustees, 2013 Social Security Trustees Report, May 31, 2013, p. 4. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2013/tr2013.pdf
46 Social Security Trustees, Ibid, “Table VI.F4.—OASDI and HI Annual and Summarized Income, Cost, and Balance
as a Percentage of GDP, Calendar Years 2013-90,” p. 200.
47 National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI), Janice M. Gregory, Thomas N. Bethell, Virginia P. Reno and Benjamin W. Veghte, Strengthening Social Security for the
Long Run, November 2010, p. 7. http://www.nasi.org/sites/default/files/research/SS_Brief_035.pdf
48 The most recent data on the percentage of workers with earnings below the taxable maximum are from 2010. SSA, Annual Statistical Supplement, 2012, “Table 4.B4—
Percentage of workers with earnings below annual maximum taxable, by sex, selected years 1937–2010,” February 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/
supplement/2012/4b.html#table4.b4
49 SSA, “Benefits Planner: Maximum Taxable Earnings (1937-2013),” May 13, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/planners/maxtax.htm
50 SSA, Provisions Affecting Payroll Taxes, “E2.1 Eliminate the taxable maximum in years 2013 and later, and apply full 12.4 percent payroll tax rate to all earnings. Do not
provide benefit credit for earnings above the current-law taxable maximum,” January 4, 2013. http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/solvency/provisions/charts/chart_run362.pdf
51 Social Security Works analysis of SSA data. Social Security Works, Social Security COLA Cut: A Benefit Cut Affecting Everyone, 2013. http://www.
strengthensocialsecurity.org/sites/default/files/Chained_CPI_Fact_Sheet_FINAL_Feb-2013_0.pdf
Social Security Works for Guam 9
52 Center for Retirement Research at Boston College (CRR), Alicia H. Munnell, Anthony Webb, and Francesca Golub-Sass, The National Retirement Risk Index: An Update,
October 2012, p. 3. http://crr.bc.edu/briefs/the-national-retirement-risk-index-an-update/
53 Just over half (52.9 percent) of all working heads of households are eligible for an employer-sponsored retirement plan; of that half, 4 in 5 (83.8 percent) elect to
participate. The resulting total of all working heads of households who participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plans is 3 in 7 (44.6 percent). Federal Reserve,
Changes in U.S. Family Finances from 2007 to 2010: Evidence from the Survey of Consumer Finances, June 2012, p. 38. http://www.federalreserve.gov/pubs/
bulletin/2012/PDF/scf12.pdf
54 Federal Reserve, Ibid, p. 30.
55 Social Security Trustees, 2013 Social Security Trustees Report, “Table V.C7—Annual Scheduled Benefit Amounts for Retired Workers With Various Pre-Retirement
Earnings Patterns Based on Intermediate Assumptions, Calendar Years 2013-90,” May 31, 2013, p. 145. http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2013/tr2013.pdf
56 CBPP analysis of OECD data, “Social Security: We’re Number…30!” May 11, 2011. http://www.offthechartsblog.org/social-security-we%E2%80%99renumber%E2%80%A6-30/
57 CBPP, Policy Basics: Top Ten Facts About Social Security, November 6, 2012. http://www.cbpp.org/files/PolicyBasics_SocSec-TopTen.pdf
58 CBPP, Ibid.
59 Strengthen Social Security Coalition, “Bills Introduced in the 113th Congress to Expand Social Security,” May 2013. http://www.strengthensocialsecurity.org/sites/
default/files/113thBillFactSheet.pdf
Social Security Works for Guam 10
Key Facts About Social Security
in GUAM
Social Security Works for Guam’s Residents and Economy
• Social Security provided benefits to 15,280 Guam residents in 2012, 1 in 10 (9.6 percent) residents.
• Guam residents received Social Security benefits totaling $139 million in 2012.
• The average Social Security benefit in Guam was $9,097 in 2012.
Social Security Works for Guam’s Seniors
• Social Security provided benefits to 8,592 Guam retired workers in 2012, half (56.2 percent) of beneficiaries
[Figure 1 in full report].
Social Security Works for Guam’s Workers with Disabilities
• Social Security provided disability benefits to 1,584 workers in 2012, 1 in 10 (10.4 percent) Guam beneficiaries
[Figure 1 in full report].
Social Security Works for Guam’s Women
• Social Security provided benefits to 6,508 Guam women in 2012, 1 in 12 (8.3 percent) Guam women.
Social Security Works for Guam’s Children
• Social Security provided benefits to 2,590 Guam children in 2012, 1 in 6 (17 percent) Guam beneficiaries
[Figure 1 in full report].
The full report is available at http://strengthensocialsecurity.org/statereports2013. For further information email [email protected], or contact Social Security
Works, 815 16th Street, Fourth Floor, Washington, DC 20006.