America's Social Security is expected to run short on funds to pay retirement benefits by 2032, according to a new report.
Social Security relies on its trust funds, topped up through payroll taxes, to send monthly benefit checks to around 70 million Americans.
But as the population ages and birth rates fall, fewer workers are supporting more retirees. People are also living longer, collecting benefits for more years.
The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) said the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund, which pays benefits to retirees and their families, will only be able to pay out full benefits for the next six years. That is one year sooner than last year’s estimate from the Social Security trustees.
If lawmakers fail to step in before then, benefits would not disappear entirely - since payroll taxes would still flow into the system.
But they would not be nearly enough to cover promised payments, meaning monthly checks would have to be cut by hundreds of dollars a month to match incoming revenue.
As well as an aging population, Romina Boccia, director of budget policy at the Cato Institute, said the earlier depletion date reflects ‘higher cost-of-living adjustments and lower expected revenues’ - largely caused by lower tax receipts.
She said President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which cut tax bills, had made things worse. She described the expansion of senior tax breaks as a ‘blatant vote-buying effort.’
Boccia added: 'Congress should recognize that political giveaways for seniors come at the cost of younger workers, who are more likely to live in poverty and have significantly less wealth than seniors.'
The CBO's 2032 projection refers specifically to the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund - the pot of money that pays retirement benefits.
Social Security is supported by two legally separate trust funds. Alongside the retirement fund is the Disability Insurance trust fund, which covers benefits for disabled workers.