Bill > HR5050

This bill, the Social Security Enhancement and Protection Act of 2021, proposes several reforms to the Social Security program. The key provisions include: - Increasing the special minimum benefit for lifetime low earners based on their years in the workforce. The applicable percentage of the minimum benefit increases from 36.7% for those with 30 years of work up to 100% for those with 30 or more years. - Establishing an increased benefit for beneficiaries based on long-term eligibility, with the increase ranging from 20% for those 20 years after becoming eligible up to 100% for those 20 or more years after becoming eligible. - Extending child's benefits for full-time post-secondary school students up to age 26, rather than cutting them off at age 19. - Gradually reducing the amount of earnings above the Social Security contribution and benefit base that is subject to payroll taxes, from 100% in 2021 down to 0% by 2031 and beyond. - Establishing a new bend point in the formula for calculating Social Security benefits, wherein earnings above the contribution base are subject to a 3% formula rather than the standard higher percentages. - Increasing the Social Security payroll tax rate for both employees and employers, as well as the self-employment tax rate, in a series of incremental steps up to 6.5% (13% for self-employment) by 2027 and beyond. The overall aim of the bill is to enhance Social Security benefits and solvency through a combination of increased minimum and long-term benefits, changes to the taxation of higher earnings, and a higher payroll tax rate.