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How can we make sure that after a lifetime of hard work, we all will enjoy a stable and secure retirement?

Social Security in the United States refers to the Federal Old Age and Disability Insurance program or OASDI for short. The program was created under President Roosevelt in 1935 in order to aid the nation’s retired, disabled, unemployed, and to families in the event of death. Forecasters believe that the program is becoming less solvent, and we are moving closer to a pivotal point in which the amount paid out in benefits will surpass the amount collected through taxes.

In an attempt to personalize this data, I mapped the number of recipients of Social Security by their home zip code. So by looking at this map you can see how many of your neighbors received benefits in 2006. Who knows, you might live in an area with many recipients of Social Security benefits that depend on their benefits as their main source of income.

All of us East of the Mississippi are cashing in more Social Security checks than our Midwestern counterparts. This can be seen in this map which displays the amount of benefits received in the thousands of dollars.

When looking at these maps I discovered that a number of condensed areas in the suburbs of Baltimore around my hometown housed a surprising high number of Social Security Beneficiaries. For example, the downtown and Northeast Baltimore, Lochearn, and Elkridge areas show this condensed pattern.

As expected the cities and surrounding areas with higher populations had more beneficiaries. In an attempt to curb the bias that population played in mapping, I created a ratio by dividing the total number of beneficiaries, by the population of the area in 2001. An odd result of mapping this ratio is West Virginia has a very high ratio of beneficiaries to its population. This can be seen here:

Also of note: the numbers of disabled, widowed, children, and retired persons is also included in this dataset/map. When looking at this data you can see that certain areas seemed to attract the retired. Here is a picture showing the southern half of the lower 48 states that shows the locations of the United State’s retired population that collects Social Security.

After zooming in you can see in this map that Utah and Texas showed a high Retired/Population ratio compared to Colorado and Arizona. The Salt Lake City, Dallas, and the San Antonio cities seem to be the hot spots for the retired.

Social Security is a very real and large problem that must be mended, especially for the future generations. By looking at these maps we can see where the money is going, and what areas depend on a social security check to support themselves. So please visualize this data on Social Security, and feel free to explore the interactive map .

Look at your hometown, or any area of interest.

*Data is also available for Alaska and Hawaii*

With the coming election, our next president will have a huge influence in the fate of the program. Who will take the wheel of this sinking ship and steer it away from danger?

So, what will our next president elect to do in order to aid the faltering system? In an effort to present the facts here is what a few of the front runners in the election believe to be the answer.

Barack Obama

• The wealthy should pay a bit more on the payroll tax. (Oct 2007)
• Privatization puts retirement at whim of stock market. (Sep 2007)
• Stop any efforts to privatize Social Security. (Aug 2007)
• No privatization; but consider earning cap over $97,500. (Jul 2007)
• Voted NO on establishing reserve funds & pre-funding for Social Security. (Mar 2007)

Hillary Clinton

• Have a bipartisan commission on Social Security and its tax. (Oct 2007)
• $1000 matching tax credit for first $1000 in 401(k) deposit. (Oct 2007)
• Solvent until 2055 under Bill Clinton; now has lost 14 years. (Sep 2007)
• Nothing else on table until fiscal responsibility returns. (Sep 2007)
• Make sure nobody ever tries to privatize Social Security. (Aug 2007)
• Voted NO on establishing reserve funds & pre-funding for Social Security. (Mar 2007)

Mike Huckabee

• Personalization of retirement funds, not privatization. (Oct 2007)
• Personal retirement accounts allow investing in one’s future. (Sep 2007)
• Replace payroll tax & fund Social Security with FairTax. (Sep 2007)

Mitt Romney

• Favors private accounts; prepared to be entirely bold. (Oct 2007)
• Private accounts work better than extending retirement age. (Oct 2007)
• Reform entitlements by negotiating behind closed doors. (Aug 2006)
• Honor expectations of recipients, but take action for future. (Aug 2006)

Candidate’s Stances were obtained at: link .

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