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Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73

§910 Recommendations by Board of Trustees to remedy inadequate balances in Social Security trust funds

Title 42 › Chapter CHAPTER 7— - SOCIAL SECURITY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER VII— - ADMINISTRATION › § 910

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

If the trustees find that any of the four Social Security trust funds (Old-Age and Survivors, Disability, Hospital Insurance, or Supplementary Medical Insurance) might have a balance ratio below 20 percent for a year, they must quickly send both Houses of Congress a report. The report must recommend changes to money coming in or going out of the fund that would keep the ratio at least 20 percent. The trustees must take into account the economic causes and how long a careful fix would take. The report must say exactly how much benefits would have to be cut, how much taxes under Internal Revenue Code sections 1401, 3101, or 3111 would have to rise, or what mix of cuts and tax increases would meet the goal. “Balance ratio” means the fund’s balance at the start of the year (including taxes moved in under section 401(a) on that day and minus any outstanding loans made under section 401(l) or 1395i(j)) divided by the total amount expected to be paid out that year for purposes under sections 401, 1395i, or 1395t (estimates by the Commissioner for OASI/DI and by the Secretary for HI/SMI), excluding interest or loan repayments and certain transfers between these trust funds and adjustments for Railroad Retirement transfers.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §910

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)If the Board of Trustees of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund, or the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund determines at any time that the balance ratio of any such Trust Fund for any calendar year may become less than 20 percent, the Board shall promptly submit to each House of the Congress a report setting forth its recommendations for statutory adjustments affecting the receipts and disbursements of such Trust Fund necessary to maintain the balance ratio of such Trust Fund at not less than 20 percent, with due regard to the economic conditions which created such inadequacy in the balance ratio and the amount of time necessary to alleviate such inadequacy in a prudent manner. The report shall set forth specifically the extent to which benefits would have to be reduced, taxes under section 1401, 3101, or 3111 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 would have to be increased, or a combination thereof, in order to obtain the objectives referred to in the preceding sentence.
(b)For purposes of this section, the term “balance ratio” means, with respect to any calendar year in connection with any Trust Fund referred to in subsection (a), the ratio of—
(1)the balance in such Trust Fund as of the beginning of such year, including the taxes transferred under section 401(a) of this title on the first day of such year and reduced by the outstanding amount of any loan (including interest thereon) theretofore made to such Trust Fund under section 401(l) or 1395i(j) of this title, to
(2)the total amount which (for amounts which will be paid from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, as estimated by the Commissioner, and for amounts which will be paid from the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, as estimated by the Secretary) will be paid from such Trust Fund during such calendar year for all purposes authorized by section 401, 1395i, or 1395t of this title (as applicable), other than payments of interest on, or repayments of, loans under section 401(l) or 1395i(j) of this title, but excluding any transfer payments between such Trust Fund and any other Trust Fund referred to in subsection (a) and reducing the amount of any transfers to the Railroad Retirement Account by the amount of any transfers into such Trust Fund from that Account.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

The Internal Revenue Code of 1986, referred to in subsec. (a), is classified generally to Title 26, Internal Revenue Code.

Amendments

1994—Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 103–296 substituted “(for amounts which will be paid from the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund and the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund, as estimated by the Commissioner, and for amounts which will be paid from the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust and the Federal Supplementary Medical Insurance Trust Fund, as estimated by the Secretary)” for “(as estimated by the Secretary)”. 1986—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99–514 substituted “Internal Revenue Code of 1986” for “Internal Revenue Code of 1954”. Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 99–272 amended par. (1) generally. Prior to amendment, par. (1) read as follows: “the balance in such Trust Fund, reduced by the outstanding amount of any loan (including interest thereon) theretofore made to such Trust Fund under section 401(l) or 1395i(j) of this title, as of the beginning of such year, to”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 1994 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 103–296 effective Mar. 31, 1995, see section 110(a) of Pub. L. 103–296, set out as a note under section 401 of this title.

Effective Date

of 1986 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 99–272 effective on first day of month following April 1986, see section 12115 of Pub. L. 99–272, set out as a note under section 415 of this title.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 910

Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73