Nevada Senator Cortez Masto proposes major Social Security boost

(The Center Square) - More than 7 million Americans and 50,000 Nevada residents receive monthly payments from the Social Security Administration’s Supplemental Security Income program for the elderly and people with significant disabilities.

The SSI program is intended for people with little money or income. Signed into law under President Richard Nixon’s administration, the program sets the maximum finances for somebody to receive help from SSI at $2,000 – and only $3,000 for a married couple. Today, an elderly disabled person with $2,500 in total value of all of their assets is still deemed too well-off to receive any money through this program.

“A $2,000 rainy-day fund doesn’t go as far as it did in 1989, but that’s all the savings that people who rely on SSI benefits are allowed,” said U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada, who helped introduce the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act.

“We shouldn’t punish people who are working hard, saving their money and planning for the future," Cortez Masto said in a news release. "Congress must raise the SSI asset limit to help our seniors and Americans with disabilities.”

The SSI code was last adjusted for inflation in 1989, which has left the asset limits at $2,000 and $3,000 for over four decades. The maximum monthly payment for an individual this year is $967.

The SSI bill would give the asset minimums a modern update – from $2,000 to $10,000 for individuals and from $3,000 to $20,000 for couples.

“Raising the SSI asset limits is a smart, long-overdue reform that updates a critical program to reflect today’s economic realities,” said U.S. Rep. Fitzpatrick, R-Pennsylvania, who proposed a companion bill to the House of Representatives.

The increased asset limit would be expected to make over 200,000 Americans newly eligible for the program.

The bill would also guarantee regular asset limit adjustments for inflation. That would be based on the Consumer Price Index change over year, with no option for the asset limit to decrease. That means the $10,000 and $20,000 limits would be expected to rise in coming years.

But the bill will not change monthly payments. The highest monthly assistance an individual could receive is $967.

The bill has received support from lawmakers, organizations and businesses from across the country.

“The big thing is that this is a common sense fix,” said a spokesperson for Cortez Masto.

“It has bipartisan support. You’ve also got support from so many organizations and groups," the spokesperson told The Center Square.

The bill does not yet have a hearing date.