Donald Trump has said he will stop taxing seniors’ Social Security benefits if he wins a second term in the White House.
The cut is the latest in a series of tax relief policies that Democrats say will jeopardize federal benefits and cause U.S. debt to soar. Others say Congress is the plans would be unlikely to be approved.
But this latest proposal on Fox and Friends is the most significant and expensive yet, costing the government $1.8 trillion over the next decade, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
They say the cuts would cause federal benefits to run out sooner than expected.
“They are killing people on Social Security,” Trump said.
‘One of the things I’m doing is not taxing seniors who receive Social Security, and I’m going to do that quickly.
‘There are no taxes for seniors in Social Security.’
Former President Donald Trump has proposed eliminating taxes on Social Security benefits for seniors if he is re-elected, but the move could increase the deficit by as much as $1.8 trillion and deplete funds used to pay benefits sooner than projected.
According to the Social Security Administration, about 40 percent of people who receive Social Security have to pay federal income taxes on their benefits.
Social Security taxes apply to individuals with household incomes over $25,000 and married couples with incomes over $32,000. They pay a 50 percent tax on that income.
Single people with incomes of more than $34,000 – $44,000 for couples – also pay taxes on an additional 35 percent of their income.
All of that revenue goes to pay for Medicare.
Taxes help fund the Social Security and Medicare Hospital Insurance trust funds.
Experts fear that eliminating Social Security taxes could increase the deficit and lead to the insolvency of the funds used to pay those benefits.
Trump’s proposal to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits for seniors would increase the insolvency of funds used to pay the benefits, analysis finds
The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget estimates that by eliminating Social Security taxes, the trust fund would become insolvent a year earlier than previously estimated.
The fund is currently projected to face insolvency in 2033, so the plan would extend that date to 2032. Medicare’s insolvency would be moved up six years to 2030.
At the same time, any proposal to end Social Security taxes would have to go through Congress, where lawmakers have been divided on the issue.
There have been proposals in recent years to end taxes on seniors’ benefits, but there have been differing suggestions on how to make up the revenue shortfall.
Asked about the cost of the proposal in a recent interview on Fox Business, Trump dismissed concerns and said the urgent deadline to address Social Security would force Congress to act.
“Well, you know, one of the good things about that is that it’s when people come to an agreement, you know, but we’re going to take care of Social Security,” the former president said.
DailyMail.com has reached out to the Trump campaign for details on how the former president would like to replace lost revenue and ensure trust funds are not depleted.