“To reform and protect Social Security, let’s start by appointing public trustees,” co-authored by University Professor and Dean Emeritus John Palmer, was published in The Hill. Following is an excerpt:

It has been widely reported that the Social Security and Medicare Part A trust funds face insolvency in about seven years, yet little to no action is being taken by the Congress or the president. For example, based on the 2025 Annual Trustees Report, the Social Security Old Age and Survivors’ Insurance Trust Fund is projected to be exhausted in 2033. If reforms are not enacted, Social Security old age and survivor benefits will be cut by 23 percent across-the-board at that time. 

It is also widely acknowledged that the federal government is on an imprudent and unsustainable fiscal path that must be addressed. Common sense and the power of compounding dictates that these challenges should be addressed sooner versus later. Doing so will reduce the magnitude of needed changes and will increase the ability of individuals to effectively plan for their retirement years.

Given the above, we urge President Trump and the Congress to work together to appoint two qualified and respected Public Trustees. We also support the need to form a bipartisan statutory commission(s) to assure the long-term solvency of Social Security, and to restore overall fiscal sanity and sustainability. In our view, Social Security reform recommendations should be made and addressed separately from the broader fiscal reforms. We recognize that Medicare is also in need of reform, but we are only addressing Social Security reform principles at the present time.