What is ‘Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund’
One of the two trust funds managed by the Social Security Administration, the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund is used to pay retirement and survivor’s benefits to workers and dependents. OASI receives deposits from FICA considered to be over and above the amount needed for day-to-day operations of Old-Age and Survivors Insurance under Social Security. These funds are held in trust, and any funds not required for current expenses are invested in interest-bearing federal securities.
Explaining ‘Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) Trust Fund’
The Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund was created in 1939 as a part of the Social Security Act amendments of 1939. The fund’s board of trustees consists of six members – two are appointed by the President and the remaining four are automatically selected due to their positions in the federal government. These four positions are: the Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of Labor, Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Commissioner of Social Security.
Further Reading
- Financial aspects of the social security “problem” – www.tandfonline.com [PDF]
- Uncertain demographic futures and Social Security finances – www.jstor.org [PDF]
- Shortfalls in the long run: predictions about the social security trust fund – www.aeaweb.org [PDF]
- The role of the global economy in financing old age: the case of Singapore – think-asia.org [PDF]
- Economic policy, intergenerational equity, and the social security trust fund buildup – heinonline.org [PDF]
- The economics of social security reform – www.nber.org [PDF]
- Ageing populations: economic effects and implications for public finance – www.oecd-ilibrary.org [PDF]
- Economic Forecasting: Effect of Errors on OASDI Fund Ratios – heinonline.org [PDF]
