Strengthening Social Security

The following is from Congressman Rush Holt's newsletter:

On a warm August day in the middle of the Great Depression, President Roosevelt signed into law bold legislation that would create one of the most popular and reliable federal programs in American history: Social Security. Since 1935, Social Security has provided financial security, independence, and dignity for seniors in their retirement years. It has also assisted millions of people with disabilities and children who lost a parent, as I did. In Central New Jersey 16.6 percent of all residents, including 83,923 retirees, receive on Social Security benefits every month.

Some in Congress want you to believe the program is in dire straits and we must dramatically cut benefits or raise the retirement age. I disagree. I will soon introduce the Strengthening Social Security Act with Representative Linda T. Sánchez (D-CA) to keep the program sound for generations while increasing benefits for those most in need.

Our bill would finally remove the wage cap on payroll taxes so that wealthier Americans would contribute to Social Security at the same rate as teachers and police officers. The legislation would also establish an updated formula for cost-of-living adjustments that actually keeps pace with seniors’ daily expenses and would make modest changes to the monthly benefit formula resulting in additional $70 a month for beneficiaries. We do all this as well as actually extending the solvency of Social Security through 2049.

As we prepare to celebrate Social Security’s 78th Anniversary this month, we must ensure that Social Security can continue to live up to its obligation to, in the words of President Roosevelt “take care of the human needs and at the same time provide for the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.”

A Bad Deal for Students

On President Obama’s desk is a bill to address the uncertainty about student loan interest rates. However, the legislation fails to lower interest rates on college loans as much as it could or should and it allows the rates to grow to as high as 10.5 percent. Student loan debt now stands at over $1 trillion and graduatesstrapped with debt cannot make strides to further improve their quality of life.

Senator Elizabeth Warren has it right. Her plan would allow students to borrow at the same rate, that banks do, 0.75 percent. Why should Wall Street be allowed to borrow money at the lowest interest rate while college students pay more? They shouldn't.

Mail Bag on Postal Reform

I continue to hear from constituents who are worried about the future of their mail delivery and the United States Postal Service. Recently, a House committee recently approved — on a party line vote — the so-called “Postal Reform Act of 2013”, H. R. 2748. I strongly oppose this flawed bill, and will vote against it should it be considered on the floor of the full House. While this bill claims to restore fiscal solvency to the USPS, I am deeply concerned that the bill would actually just dismantle the USPS. It would end six-day delivery and phase out to-the-door delivery which would negatively affect our nation’s seniors.

Instead, I am a cosponsor of H.R. 630, the Postal Service Protection Act, which would strengthen the USPS’s finances by – among other measures – ending a Congressional mandate that currently requires the USPS to prepay its pension obligations at a much higher rate than other public and private organizations.

Cutting Red Tape

I was recently contacted by a constituent from South River whose home was damaged by Hurricane Sandy. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) initially provided her rental assistance to help her get back on her feet, but she continued to struggle financially. After I contacted FEMA on her behalf, she was awarded an additional $4,260 in rental assistance.

If you need help to resolve a problem with a government agency please let me know so I can do everything possible to help. You can call me toll-free at 1-87-RUSH-HOLT (1-877-874-4658) or send me an e-mail at http://holt.house.gov/contact.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress

Elections We Can Trust

From the E-Newsletter of Congressman Rush Holt:

I’ve written before about problems that could result in many eligible voters being denied the right to vote.  Last month, a coalition of election experts, including a group from the Rutgers Law School, released a new report examining the technological preparedness of each state to count votes in the 2012 election.  Their findings are troubling.

Congressman Rush Holt

The report, Counting Votes 2012: A State by State Look at Voting Technology Preparedness, seeks to answer one essential question: In the event of voting system failures, how prepared is each state to ensure that every voter can vote and that every vote cast is counted?

Each state was assessed based on how its laws and procedures matched up to best practices developed in consultation with leading election officials and security experts.  The report found that all but a handful of states were missing key procedures or systems that would adequately protect voters.  Sixteen states, for example, use paperless machines that provide no independent record of vote count.  Twenty-five states conduct no audits whatsoever of their vote counts. 

The report found several flaws in New Jersey’s election practices, leading to an overall rating of “needs improvement” for the state.  In particular, New Jersey still uses unauditable, paperless electronic voting systems statewide, and our post-election audit requirement has not yet been implemented.

I hope this report will encourage needed reforms to ensure that every eligible voter can successfully vote and that every vote is counted as cast.  Legislation that I helped write, the Voter Empowerment Act, would implement many of the report’s best practices at the federal level.

Cutting through Red Tape for a Local Veteran

Many veterans are experiencing delays in the awarding for the benefits they have earned.  In numerous cases, I have been able to help expedite claims.

Recently, I was contacted by the West Windsor widow of a Vietnam-era veteran who had applied for Agent Orange benefits a year prior to his death in March 2011.

His widow approached me in February 2012 because funds for these and other claims – including burial benefits – had not yet been awarded.  I helped expedite her claim with the Department of Veterans Affairs, and she received retroactive benefits in excess of $75,000, as well as a monthly award in excess of $1,000 per month.

If you are a veteran who has not received the benefits you have earned, please contact me so I can do everything I can to help.  You can reach me at 1-87-RUSH-HOLT (1-877-874-4658) or at holt.house.gov/contact.

From the Mail Bag

Recently, I have heard from a number of constituents about the future of the United States Postal Service (USPS).   Just last week, we learned that the USPS could not make a required payment for the health benefits of future retirees.

I am a strong and unequivocal supporter of the USPS and of the women and men across the country who make sure ourmail gets delivered on time. Universal public mail delivery is an important American institution that has served this country well for more than200 years.  It helps to build communities and tie the United States together.  

Congress must help the USPS weather the current economic crisis and the downturn in mail volume.  We must also act to prevent mass layoffs and services disruptions.  I am a cosponsor of legislation to change onerous requirements that have led to historic overpayments into the USPS's pension fund and allow USPS to redirect that funding to avoid defaulting on their health benefits obligations.  Further, I oppose reducing mail delivery to five days a week, which could turn even more customers away, exacerbating the already fragile financial condition of the USPS.

However, the House has failed to act on needed postal reforms. I will continue to call on the House to act and keep you updated in a future eGenda.

Sincerely,

Rush Holt
Member of Congress