WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), and Susan Collins (R-Maine) reintroduced legislation to enhance Americans’ retirement security by ensuring they have the information they need to make more informed decisions about when to begin claiming Social Security benefits. 

“Social Security is the foundation of most older Americans’ retirement plans, but many of them don’t have the information they need to maximize the social security benefits that they’ve earned,” said Senator Coons. “This is a commonsense solution that makes it easier for every American to make an informed decision about when to claim benefits at the best time and get the most out of their retirement income.”

“Americans have earned their benefits. When planning for retirement, let’s make sure they have the best information available and receive what they deserve,” said Senator Cassidy.

One of the key financial decisions facing older Americans is when to claim Social Security retirement benefits. Social Security benefits are available to Americans who are as young as age 62, but those who choose to claim their benefits later receive higher monthly payments, with maximum benefits available to those who claim at age 70 or older. Most people do not claim benefits at the age that would maximize their income in retirement. By doing so, they forgo a significant amount of retirement income. To provide additional clarity for Americans deciding when to claim their benefits, this legislation changes the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) terminology from “early eligibility age,” “full retirement age,” and “delayed retirement credits” to “minimum monthly benefit age,” “standard monthly benefit age,” and “maximum monthly benefit age” to better reflect how the program works.

The legislation would also help Americans better plan for retirement by requiring the SSA to mail Social Security statements about how much a person has paid into Social Security and Medicare every five years to individuals with Social Security accounts between the ages of 25 and 54, every two years for those between the ages of 55 and 59, and annually for those 60 and above.

You can read the bill text on nomenclature here. You can read the bill text on regular statements for beneficiaries here.