• The Social Security Disability Insurance trust fund will exhaust its reserves in 2016 – two years earlier than projected last year.
• The Social Security trust fund will be exhausted in 2036 – two years earlier than projected last year.
• In 2011, 48.7 million people were covered by Medicare, up from 47.5 million in 2010.
• Medicare’s Part A Trust Fund will reach insolvency in 2024. Absent reform, correcting Medicare’s financial imbalance would require an immediate 26 percent benefit cut for current seniors or a 47 percent tax increase on workers.

The trustees report underscores the Administration and Congressional Democrats’ failure to address our nation’s fiscal challenges which have pushed these programs closer to insolvency.  According to the trustees, the Social Security trust funds worsening picture is due to “updated economic data and assumptions.”  To make matters worse, Democrats took $500 billion from Medicare to pay for their massive government takeover of health care law.

To address this looming crisis, House Republicans have proposed principled reforms to ensure that we preserve these benefits for those at or near retirement, while also protecting the ability for future generations to plan for their own retirement. Earlier this year, we passed a responsible budget plan, called “The Path to Prosperity,” which strengthens health and retirement security by taking power away from government bureaucrats and empowering patients by giving them control over their own health care. I remain committed to finding solutions to the serious challenges facing our nation and will continue to fight for our nation’s seniors.

Student Loan Interest Rates
Today the House passed H.R. 4628, the Interest Rate Reduction Act, which would prevent interest rates on loans made to undergraduate students from doubling – from 3.4% to 6.8% – on July 1st. To pay for the lower rate, our bill repealed the unobligated balance of the “Prevention and Public Health Fund,” a slush fund included in ObamaCare. The remaining savings generated from repealing the $11.9 billion slush fund would be put toward reducing our nation’s ever-growing budget deficit.

According to recent studies, 1 in 2 college grads are now jobless or underemployed, and 3 in 10 young adults are living with their parents at the highest rate since 1950. I am proud to support this legislation to assist students and young adults that have been hit hard in the Obama economy, and will continue to promote policies that assist future generations of Americans.

Dallas Assembly
Also today, I was delighted to address The Dallas Assembly with my North Texas colleague, Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson, during their 2012 Seminar in DC.  The Dallas Assembly is comprised of a diverse group of leaders from the greater Dallas area who have demonstrated leadership in various arenas – civic life, business, education, government, law, medicine, religion, science or the arts.

Congressman Pete Sessions addressing The Dallas Assembly in the US Capitol.

In my remarks to the group, I discussed the importance of leadership, mentorship and working together to make the Dallas community stronger. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak with them on these topics and am very appreciative of their contributions to our community.  To learn more about the mission and membership of The Dallas Assembly, visit their website at http://www.thedallasassembly.com/.