Kaine Applauds Senate Passage of His Legislation to Improve Financial Security for Americans

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Today, U.S. Senator Tim Kaine (D-VA) celebrated Senate passage of the Claiming Age Clarity Act, bipartisan legislation he introduced with U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy (R-LA), Chris Coons (D-DE), and Susan Collins (R-ME), to help Americans make better-informed decisions that help them live a more financially-secure retirement. Specifically, it would change language to make it clearer to Americans about the impact that claiming Social Security benefits at different ages would have on their benefit amounts.

"Americans pay into Social Security their entire working lives, and it's important that they understand what benefits they're entitled to so they can make informed decisions about their retirement," said Kaine. "This bipartisan legislation will make that vital information clearer. I'm glad that both chambers have now passed this bill, and I urge the President to sign it."

Social Security benefits are available to Americans starting at age 62, but those who choose to receive their benefits later receive greater monthly payments, with the highest payments available to those who wait until age 70 to begin claiming benefits. Many Americans do not begin claiming benefits at the age that will maximize their total income in retirement, and research has shown that the terminology the Social Security Administration (SSA) uses often leads to confusion. To take steps toward alleviating this problem, this legislation would clarify the Social Security Administration's (SSA) terminology, ending the use of the confusing terms "early eligibility age," "full retirement age," and "delayed retirement credits," and replacing them with "minimum monthly benefit age," "standard monthly benefit age," and "maximum monthly benefit age," respectively.

Full text of the legislation is available here.

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