Social Security Benefits to Increase in 2018
Reading Time: 1 MinuteLast Updated: October 13, 2017
When we announce the annual cost-of-living adjustment (COLA), there’s usually an increase in the Social Security and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefit amount people receive each month. Federal benefit rates increase when the cost of living rises, as measured by the Department of Labor’s Consumer Price Index (CPI-W).
The CPI-W rises when prices increase, making your cost of living go up. This means prices for goods and services, on average, are a little more expensive. The COLA helps to offset these costs. As a result, more than 66 million Americans will see a 2.0 percent increase in their Social Security and SSI benefits in 2018.
Other changes that will happen in January 2018 are based on the increase in the national average wage index. For example, the maximum amount of earnings subject to Social Security payroll tax will increase to $128,700. The earnings limit for workers younger than “full” retirement age will increase to $17,040 and the limit for people turning “full” retirement age in 2018 will increase to $45,360.
You can find more information about the 2018 COLA here.
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Tags: Cost of living adjustment, Social Security benefits
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Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
Jim Borland, Acting Deputy Commissioner for Communications
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terri
Got a question i get 341 on one and 394 on the other so what is my increase going to be
tony
The Medicare Advantage insurance companies can get a big bonus with our COLA now. They get bonuses every year while Medicare goes broke along with Social Security.
Ronald A.
I had just as soon not to get a raise. The last 3 years we got a little raise, each year medicare was raised more than the raise I received. In the end I wound up loosing 2 dollars each year. I don’t believe your SS should ever go down. I wonder how much I will loose this tear?
Joyce H.
I firmly believe the Senators and Congressmen should only get the increase we get. They vote themselves big increases and we gave to make due with none or be happy with a measly 2%. Also make them take the insurance coverage they want us to take.
L.MORGAN
listen all people in AMERICA we have to work and pay into social security TAXES from our jobs we held from WORKING in order to be on SOCIAL SECURITY when we need to apply for it. SOCIAL SECURITY IS A INSURANCE PAYMENT that you paided into and could use when the GOVERNMENT say you could get it because you worked and paid into it.BE PATIENT THE PROGRAM OF AN INSURANCE CHECK DOES’NT MEAN YOU ARE GOING TO GET ALL BILLS CAUGHT UP ON IT. IF YOU DID’NT HAVE THE BRAIN FROM YOUR PARENTS ON PUTTING UP FOR A RAINY DAY FUND I MEAN THEY TAUGHT YOU ON SAVINGS IN LIFE(IF NOT) YOU ARE CRAZY FOR NOT AND THINKING SOCIAL SECURITY ARE A SAVER. (KEEP LIVING PEOPLE).
Bryan
Wife is trying to get OFF disability, but you keep starting payments again, stop them, start again, and now we get a bill for medicaid. What the heck is wrong with this organization? She just spent 2 hours on the phone to have the rep “disconnect” the call. More like it’s closing time and hung up to go home. So of course we’ll have to pay for services that she hasn’t had or used in over six months, and then we’ll get the over payment letter and have to deal with that nonsense. All this after the original mistake of putting her on SSI instead of disability, sending us a “back pay check,” having us then PAY back the check to another sub-branch, and finally costing us nearly 2k in taxes because the IRS says we received money that we didn’t pay taxes on. Why can’t we get anyone to actually fix this, we’re trying to NOT GET MONEY! We shouldn’t have to take a day off work to go back into the same office that was suppose to stop payments to begin with, or take a day off work to wait on the phone for over an hour, get hung up on, and then repeat again.
Ann W.
If you are a retired teacher in the state of Texas, you NEVER get an increase in your monthly $$. When I retired 13 years ago the amount was fie, but 13 years everything has gone up except my monthly check. It never will. Meanwhile our health care is getting ready to take a huge leap. And, no, I do not get any of the $$ I paid into Social Security though I worked more than enough quarters in my entire career. I am grateful to have any assistance, but it bothers me to hear about “We need more increase.” Don’t we all!
Sandy
And is that meager increase going to be offset by an increase in medicare premium like it was last year to effectively make the COLA $0??
Hospitals &.
RE: Health and Welfare 11th Ed. http://www.title24uscode.org/hw.html
Dear Commissioner of Social Security:
Omission Obstructing Justice (g) To end benefit attrition with a 3% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) rule every year inflation continues to run about 2.7% and the Trust Fund Ratio is greater than 20% under Sec. 215(i) of the Social Security Act 42USC§415(i). To make an exception to the rule to pay $777 mo. SSI a 5.7% COLA is needed from CY17, a 2.7% COLA CY18 followed by 3% COLA to $777 SSI CY19 and 3% COLA every year for the earnings of low income beneficiaries and workers to stay ahead of 2.7% average annual inflation.
I am sorry that my accidental, but uncorrected, omission obstructing congress was victimized by the commission of obstruction of justice – >37 dead from wildfire in Northern California. I was going to correct the error right away but got distracted by my need to protect myself from the consequences of my error, and the length of time and peace of mind it takes to add the State Department budget right, maybe my only other error, in the passage of a massive budget surplus, whether or not OASDI taxes the rich.
The dishonorably (un?)discharged pyromaniac cop obstructing county commission suggests 40 counts of criminal mischief (by the Social Security Commissioner and her legal counsel, in contempt of the accidentally uninformed Congress). Nothing for me, not enough for the beneficiaries. Art. 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that states, “no arbitrary arrest, detention or exile”. Rule 96 of the Manual for Court-Martial defines in Article 134 Obstruction of justice includes wrongfully influencing, intimidating, impeding, or injuring a witness, a person acting on charges under this chapter, an investigating officer under R.C.M. 406, or a party; and by means of bribery, intimidation, misrepresentation, or force or threat of force delaying or preventing communication of information relating to a violation of any criminal statute of the United States to a person authorized by a department, agency, or armed force of the United States to conduct or engage in investigations or prosecutions of such offenses; or endeavoring to do so – maximum punishment dishonorable discharge…
This is my extremely humble request for a redetermination of the COLA amount under 20CFR416.405. There does not seem to have been any foul play by Congress. Social Security regulations might want an easy way to redetermine benefit amount based on need and/or merit, but not having enough for a roommate has been the healthiest and most enriching decision of my mentally disabled life and appealing to an administrative law judge the most deathly sickening murder attempt yet, distinctly hiring 5 illiterate administrative law judges, and subjecting everyone to $666 mo. for 3 years without COLA perhaps because I did not properly cite Reconsideration 20CFRPart 416.1407 et seq. Cost of living adjustment in benefits is supported under 20CFR416.405, ending in petty theft “If the increased annual SSI benefit amount is not a multiple of $12, it will be rounded to the next lower multiple of $12”.
Please reconsider commissioning my omission and honor the balanced federal budget, by taxing the rich to end child poverty CY 18, and deciding on the 2.1% or 2.0% + $240 billion settlement DI tax rate so we can have a 3% COLA without depleting the DI trust fund, soon to be right regarding the State Department, but not exact about HUD and ACF budget addition. The Court and Congress have been served.
(a) $55 billion state department and international assistance congressional budget authority + ~ $33 billion private aid = $55 billion – $88 billion US ODA, 0.28% – 0.46% of GDP > 0.17% OECD estimate FY 18.
(b) To provide for a voluntary 1-2% of income suggested UN contribution on tax forms quarterly and April 15.
(c) To amend the federal minimum wage from $7.25 an hour 2009-2017 to ‘$7.50 in 2018 and 3% more every year thereafter.’ under 29USC§206(a)(1)(D).
(d) To provide 14 weeks of (unemployment compensation) paid Maternity Protection under ILO Convention 183 (2000).
(e) To amend the 1.8% DI tax rate starting January 1, 2019 in Sec. 201(b)(1)(T) of the Social Security Act under 42USC§401(b)(1)(T) to either (e-1) 2.1% DI tax, or (e-2) 2.0% DI tax if OASI pays $240 billion including 2.5% interest in assets for CY09-CY15 to replicate to the extent possible revenue that would have been received if the OASDI tax had been properly adjusted by Public Law 112-96.
(f) To replace the Adjustment of the contribution and benefit base under Section 230 of the Social Security Act 42USC§430 with ‘There is created in the Treasury a Supplemental Security Income Trust Fund.’ (f-1) To tax the rich the full 12.4% Old Age Survivor and Disability Insurance (OASDI) Federal Income Contribution Act (FICA) on all their income to pay 16-24 million children growing up poor SSI benefits FY18 to End Poverty by 2020.
Omission Obstructing Congress (g) To end benefit attrition with a 3% Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) rule every year inflation continues to run about 2.7% and the Trust Fund Ratio is greater than 20% under Sec. 215(i) of the Social Security Act 42USC§415(i). To make an exception to the rule to pay $777 mo. SSI a 5.7% COLA is needed from CY17, a 2.7% COLA CY18 followed by 3% COLA to $777 SSI CY19 and 3% COLA every year for the earnings of low income beneficiaries and workers to stay ahead of 2.7% average annual inflation.
Dina P.
I HOPE SOMEONE IN THE SSA WILL LOOK AT THIS? IN ONE LETTER IT SHOWS ME ONE AMOUNT AND THE OTHER ANOTHER AMOUNT AND THE NEXT ONE ANOTHER AND SO ON IT GOES WITH SO MANY LETTERS SAYING DIFFERENT THINGS MUCH LIKE THE EMPLOYEES FOR SO MANY YEARS. I NEED HELP FROM SOMEONE IN THE SSA TO FIGURE THIS OUT THE RIGHT WAY!