Social Security Scenario Puts Payroll Tax at 17.3% if Action Waits Until 2034

A Social Security solvency scenario would raise the combined payroll tax rate to 17.3% starting in 2034 if substantial action is deferred until then, a modeled change rather than enacted policy. The calculation covers Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI), combining retirement, survivor and disability benefits for the projection. The current combined payroll tax rate is 12.4%. Raising it to 17.3% would add 4.9 percentage points, a 39.5% increase in the rate. It is one modeled path to keeping the combined program solvent through 2100. Employees now pay 6.2% on covered earnings, and employers pay another 6.2%.

Source: TokenPost