Reps. Sak, O'Neil, Plakas, Spade, Wojno, Vagnozzi, Dennis, Bieda, Law, Woronchak, Meisner, Condino, Anderson, Accavitti, Adamini, Brandenburg, DeRossett, Farrah, Garfield, Gieleghem, Gillard, Hood, Lipsey, Minore, Murphy, Rivet, Sheltrown, Taub, Waters, Woodward, Zelenko, Brown, Gleason, Hardman, Hopgood, Rocca and Stallworth offered the following resolution:

            House Resolution No. 217.

            A resolution to memorialize the President and the Congress of the United States to make no cuts to Social Security retirement benefits and to refrain from raising the age for eligibility.

            Whereas, Born in the darkest hours of the Great Depression, Social Security has been a key factor in saving millions of elderly Americans from poverty.  Seven decades later, Social Security remains the cornerstone of our nation's commitment to our older citizens; and

            Whereas, Over the years, Social Security has evolved with our society, with several key changes designed to contribute to the program's long-term viability.  As the program operates today, Social Security is expected to begin to face insolvency as we approach the midpoint of this century, at which time the fund will begin to pay out more in benefits than it takes in.  To achieve the goal of assuring the financial strength of the system for future generations, some steps will have to be taken.  These steps include a wide range of options; and

            Whereas, A recent proposal by the Federal Reserve Board Chairman called for some combination of cuts in benefits and an increase in eligibility age to assure the financial stability of Social Security for the remainder of the 21^st century.  The context of these remarks was in discussions about the growing federal budget deficit, the overall health of the economy, and tax policies; and

            Whereas, Addressing Social Security solvency issues through benefit cuts and higher eligibility ages would reflect inappropriate priorities for our country.  Many seniors already worry that they will have to go back to work to meet their basic needs.  Approaching this issue from the perspective of benefit cuts and delayed eligibility would be breaking a promise to the American people.  There are far more suitable, effective, and fairer approaches to take to address this situation, and cutting Social Security is not the way to address federal deficits; now, therefore, be it

            Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we memorialize the President and the Congress of the United States to make no cuts to Social Security retirement benefits and to refrain from raising the age for eligibility; and be it further

            Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Office of  the President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, and the members of the Michigan congressional delegation.