The last graph shown (Figure 167), is a combination of Figures 165 and 166. In this graph it is clear why generalizations about the value of Social Security benefits are meaningless. At the $95,000 wage level, a married person could be a big winner, getting net benefits of about $165,000. On the other hand, he could lose an estimated $152,000 in net benefits if he remains single. Altogether, there is a "swing" of over $300,000 based upon the marriage decision (and the division of earnings between the spouses). In addition, there is a large disparity between the high net benefits of the married person earning $95,000 ($165,152) versus the relatively low net benefits of the man or woman earning $5,000 ($30,025 or $41,890, depending on gender). In other words, the high earner, in this scenario, gets a far greater return on his FICA tax investment than does the low earner.Fried, Joseph, Democrats and RepublicansRhetoric and Reality (New York: Algora Publishing, 2008), 208.
The last graph shown (Figure 167), is a combination of Figures 165 and 166. In this graph it is clear why generalizations about the value of Social Security benefits are meaningless. At the $95,000 wage level, a married person could be a big winner, getting net benefits of about $165,000. On the other hand, he could lose an estimated $152,000 in net benefits if he remains single. Altogether, there is a "swing" of over $300,000 based upon the marriage decision (and the division of earnings between the spouses). In addition there is a large disparity between the high net benefits of the married person earning $95,000 ($165,152) versus the relatively low net benefits of the man or woman earning $5,000 ($30,025 or $41,890, depending on gender). In other words, the high earner, in this scenario, gets a far greater return on his FICA tax investment than does the low earner.Fried, Joseph Democrats and RepublicansRhetoric and Reality (New York: Algora Publishing, 2008), 208.