Kaine, Colleagues Introduce Bipartisan Proposal to Encourage Congressional Action on Social Security

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA), a member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, and U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Angus King (I-ME) introduced a bipartisan proposal to encourage congressional action on Social Security. The Protecting Retirement Opportunities and Maintaining Income Security for Everyone (PROMISE) Act follows the release of the Social Security Board of Trustees' annual report, which found that the Social Security Trust Fund will only be able to cover 78 percent of benefits in 2032-meaning that Americans who rely on the program will have their benefits reduced by 22 percent if Congress does not act.

"For nearly a century, Social Security has been a lifeline that allows Americans to retire with dignity. Congress should not wait around until the last minute to shore up this critical program and prevent broad-based benefit cuts upon Trust Fund depletion," said Kaine. "That's why I'm joining a bipartisan group of my colleagues in introducing legislation that will encourage Congress to roll up its sleeves and find a path forward to ensure current and future generations of retirees and their families are able to receive the benefits they have earned and which they are owed."

"Congress has known about this challenge for more than a decade, but it has not taken up these politically challenging issues. And the longer Congress waits, the more difficult it will be to address this issue in the future," said Durbin. "Our bipartisan proposal opens Congress to debate this issue in a transparent, fair, and bipartisan way. We were elected to solve problems-and there's no greater problem than the solvency and future of Social Security. We owe it to our kids and grandkids to protect and strengthen this critical program."

"Millions of Americans rely on Social Security to live. In 6 years, those families will see a 22% cut to their benefits if Congress doesn't act. Our plan preserves promised benefits for current retirees and the next generation of Americans," said Cassidy.

"Social Security is on an unsustainable path that will lead to dramatic benefit cuts for retirees and growing skepticism among workers paying into a program on the brink of insolvency. With each passing year, the menu of options that preserve benefits and limit tax hikes narrows. The modest reforms Congress contemplated in 2010 would have put Social Security on solid footing for 75 years; today, those same reforms would add less than two years to our current runway," said Tillis. "I won't pretend there's consensus on how we solve this, but the math is unforgiving: the longer Congress waits to act, the fewer good options remain, which is why I am proud to support this legislation."

"For years, we've known that Social Security faces serious long-term financial challenges, yet Congress has repeatedly chosen to look the other way," said King. "This legislation creates a bipartisan process to ensure Congress finally does its job. Social Security is a promise millions of Americans have earned through a lifetime of work - household budgets rely on the timely arrival of these earnings to pay for mortgages, heat, and medications. We have a responsibility to preserve that promise for today's retirees and for generations to come."

More than 70 million Americans receive Social Security benefits. Social Security is a bedrock promise that hard-working Americans paying into the program will earn their retirement and not have to worry about putting food on their table, a roof over their heads, or medicine in their cabinets. However, last month's Trustees report means that seniors and people with disabilities would have their benefits reduced by $450 per month (based on the average Social Security benefit of $2,071 per month). If Congress does not act, this automatic across-the-board benefit cut could push more than three million additional seniors and people with disabilities into poverty.

The PROMISE Act would create a procedure to initiate congressional action on Social Security. Specifically, under the Senators' proposal:

• The Social Security Advisory Board (SSAB), an independent, bipartisan advisory committee established to make recommendations to Congress, would transmit a base bill (which must ensure that the Social Security Trust Funds are funded for at least the next 50 years) to Congress.
• The Majority Leaders of the Senate and House would introduce the base bill. If they do not, any Member of Congress could do so.
• The base bill would be referred to the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways & Means Committee. Both committees would have the chance to hold hearings and amend the base bill.
• The Senate Finance Committee and House Ways & Means Committee would report the base bill (as potentially amended). If the Committees do not report the base bill, it automatically would be discharged and placed on the Senate and House calendars.
• The Majority Leaders of the Senate and House would move to proceed to the base bill (as potentially amended). If the Majority Leaders do not, any Member of Congress could do so.
• Members of Congress could offer substitute amendments (which must ensure that the Social Security Trust Funds are funded for at least the next 50 years) to the base bill (as potentially amended) after the motion to proceed.
• The Senate and House would vote on passage of the base bill (as potentially amended) after 100 hours of consideration. Final passage would require a three-fifths vote in the Senate and a majority vote in the House.

According to polling from the Bipartisan Policy Center, 64 percent of Democrats and 61 percent of Republicans agree on the need for bipartisan cooperation to protect and strengthen the program. And 67 percent of those polled want Congress to take near-term action to solve Social Security's impending challenges. Specifically, 47 percent say that they want Congress to address Social Security's financial shortfall as soon as possible, with both parties working together, and an additional 20 percent say that they want a bipartisan commission created to develop a comprehensive plan-and for Congress to approve that plan.

Kaine has consistently taken action to defend Social Security. He has introduced the Keep Billionaires Out of Social Security Act, legislation that would reverse disastrous actions taken by the Trump-Vance Administration to harm the program by preventing Social Security field offices from shutting down, making it easier for seniors and people with disabilities to apply for benefits, and providing proper resources to the SSA so it can approve benefits more quickly. Kaine also co-sponsored and voted for the Social Security Fairness Act, which enhanced retirement benefits for over 50,000 Virginians whose benefits were unfairly reduced by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). The bill was signed into law in January 2025.

The following organizations support the PROMISE Act: Bipartisan Policy Center, Third Way, and Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

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