The Government Accounting Office (GAO) has released a very good primer on the challenges facing the Social Security program and the difficult choices Congress and the country must make to address those challenges.

The guide, called Social Security Reform: Answers to Key Questions (GAO-05-193SP, May 2005) provides answers to questions about the most basic aspects of the Social Security and reform issues in a concise and easy-to-understand format. It provides straightforward answers to how Social Security works, why it needs reform, what the basic options are, and how to assess their implications. It also includes a glossary of terms and bibliography of related GAO products.

Bill Thomas (R-CA) and the Ways and Means Committee kicked off the first of many committee hearings on Social Security today. The Committee will hear from a number of witnesses, including senior fellow Jason Furman of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities; Eugene Steuerle, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute; Michael Tanner, director of the Cato Institute's Project on Social Security Choice; Robert Pozen, and former economic advisor to President Bush, Lawrence Lindsey. The Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security, which is chaired by Rep. Jim McCrery (R-LA), will hold the next hearing on May 17th.

House Reps remain split on how to proceed with Social Security legislation. Chairman of the House Rules Committee, Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN), said yesterday, "Let's get on with it. Let the House lead on Social Security reform. If the House goes first, we will produce a reform that is consistent with the President's vision for a 21st Century public retirement system." A number of other House members remain skeptical however, raising concerns that it may be risky to pass legislation without knowing it would have Senate support.

Thomas met last night with Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NE) one-on-one to discuss his ideas for shoring up Social Security. Nelson noted Thomas is promoting "fundamental changes that [are] broader than Social Security." Thomas discussed some specifics regarding his ideas in an April 29 press conference. A recent CBPP report discusses the details mentioned by Thomas, and highlights the fact that Thomas may be looking to use Social Security legislation as a means to push for more tax breaks for the wealthy. The report can be read here.

On May 6 the Government Accountability Office sent a letter to Ways and Means Chair Bill Thomas (R-CA) on Social Security reform options. The report provides a list of various reform options, each of which has been scored by the Social Security Administration's Office of the Chief Actuary. The list reflects all provisions that have appeared in SSA proposals in the last few years, and it includes policies that rely on modifying benefits, raising taxes, or overhauling the program to include either payroll tax-funded individual investment accounts or "add-on" accounts financed outside of payroll taxes.

The Ways and Means Committee will be further exploring Social Security reform in hearings in the near future. Although others in his party are wary, Thomas wants to push ahead with work on legislation in June.

House Republicans, it seems, are split on how to act on Social Security. Some, including Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL), want to wait for the Senate to act before moving forward with legislation proposals. Others, such as Tom DeLay (R-TX) and Bill Thomas (R-CA) have indicated that they want to move forward with hearings and legislation more quickly. Click here for more information.

There has been a lot of reaction to the news conference President Bush gave last week. This New York Times editorial discusses how Bush's plan may sound like he is trying to guard poor people from cuts, but that in reality his plan would significantly reduce benefits for millions and millons of Americans. The Center for American Progress and CBPP have also analyzed both the President's plan and Robert Pozen's Progressive Price Indexing Plan. The analyses are below.