Former Social Security commissioner featured as part of UNHM Sidore Lecture on Social Security reform

UNHM will host William Halter, former acting commissioner of the Social Security Administration, and Corey Davison, regional director for the nonpartisan organization Concord Coalition, as part of a discussion, “Social Security Reform and the Future of Entitlement Spending in the USA,” Thursday, March 31, 2005, at 7 p.m.

The discussion will be moderated by Michael Contarino, associate professor of political science at UNHM. The discussion is part of the Saul O Sidore Series and is free and open to the public.

President George W. Bush has said Social Security will go broke by 2042, and needs radical restructuring. Others maintain Social Security is sound and needs only minor adjustments to continue to pay promised benefits indefinitely.

Bush supports private accounts that he says would enable seniors to reap better returns from stock and bond market investments than they currently get from their Social Security taxes. Opponents say such privatization would undermine guaranteed retirement and disability benefits, place citizens’ retirement security at risk, and run up the national debt by trillions of dollars.

Is Social Security really headed for crisis? Are private accounts a good idea? How does Social Security reform relate to broader issues facing an aging population in a time of large federal government deficits?

Halter and Davison are experts on the Social Security system and on broader trends in government entitlement spending. Halter, who ran the Social Security Administration during the 1990s, will explain why he believes privatization is a bad idea. Davison will explain why the Concord Coalition believes that Social Security is only a part of a much bigger problem – that entitlement commitments far outstretch future revenue projections, and that hard choices will be necessary in the years ahead, irrespective of whether or not private Social Security accounts are introduced.

The Saul O Sidore Foundation is named in memory of Saul O Sidore. In 1940 he moved his knitting business, which would be known as Pandora, from New York to Manchester. He died in 1964 after leading the company in a major growth effort that brought employment in Manchester to more than 600 people. His success was based on the theory that following ethical principles is the only sure way to build a business and provide security for its employees. He was also active in the community and a driving force for the ideals of humanity and brotherhood. The Foundation and the Series’ have been established to carry on his interests and ideals.

For more information contact Paula Galvin at 603-641-4306 or paula.galvin@unh.edu.