73-574: The Social Security Act of 1935 is a law enacted by the 74th United States Congress and signed into law by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 14, 1935. The law created the Social Security program as well as insurance against unemployment . The law was part of Roosevelt's New Deal domestic program. By 1930, the United States was one of the few industrialized countries without any national social security system. Amid
146-407: A United States Supreme Court ruling in 2011. A student enrolled and regularly attending classes at a school, college, or university who performs work as a cook, waiter, butler, maid, janitor, laundress, furnaceman, handyman, gardener, housekeeper, housemother, or similar duties in or around the club rooms or house of a local college club, or in or about the club rooms or house of a local chapter of
219-555: A child is employed by a partnership in which each partner is a parent of the child. The exemption does not apply when the child is employed by a corporation or a partnership with partners who are not the child's parent. Foreign governments are exempt from FICA tax on payments to their employees. International organizations are also exempt if the organization is listed in the International Organizations Immunities Act . If an employee
292-497: A college fraternity or sorority, are exempt from FICA tax. If the location's primary purpose is to provide room or board, however, then the work is subject to FICA tax. Performing these services for an alumni club or alumni chapter also does not qualify for the exemption from FICA tax. A number of state and local employers and their employees in the states of Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Ohio, and Texas are currently exempt from paying
365-635: A faster rate than the Consumer Price Index (CPI-U). The employee's share of the Medicare portion of the tax is 1.45% of wages, with no limit on the amount of wages subject to the Medicare portion of the tax. Because some payroll compensation may be subject to federal and state income tax withholding in addition to Social Security tax withholding and Medicare tax withholding, the Social Security and Medicare taxes often account for only
438-556: A lack of trust in God, and see it as their religious duty to provide for members who are sick, disabled, or elderly. In order to apply to become exempt from paying FICA tax under this provision, the person must file Form 4029, which certifies that the person: People who claim the above exemption must agree to notify the Internal Revenue Service within 60 days of either leaving the religious group or no longer following
511-455: A major forest fire, to respond to a volcano eruption, or to help people affected by a severe earthquake or flood. Regular long-term police employees and regular long-term fire employees do not qualify under this particular exemption from FICA tax. Payments to newspaper carriers under age 18 are exempt from FICA tax. Compensation for real estate agents and salespeople is exempt from FICA tax under certain circumstances. The compensation
584-601: A member of a federally recognized Native American tribe that has recognized fishing rights or a qualified Native American entity employs another member of the same Native American tribe for a fishing rights-related activity, the wages are exempt from FICA. Some nonresident aliens are exempt from FICA tax. Members of certain religious groups, such as the Mennonites and the Amish , may apply to be exempt from paying FICA tax. These religious groups consider insurance to be
657-431: A portion of the total an employee pays. The employer is also liable for 6.2% Social Security and 1.45% Medicare taxes, making the total Social Security tax 12.4% of wages and the total Medicare tax 2.9%. (Self-employed people are responsible for the entire FICA percentage of 15.3% (= 12.4% + 2.9%), since they are in a sense both the employer and the employed; see the section on self-employed people for more details.) If
730-619: A result, 65 percent of the African American workforce was excluded from the initial Social Security program (as well as 27 percent of white workers). Many of these workers were covered only later on, when Social Security was expanded in 1950 and then in 1954. The program was funded through a newly established payroll tax, which later became known as the Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax . Social Security taxes would be collected from employers by
803-677: A retiree. Consequently, Kevin Hassett wrote that FICA is not a tax because its collection is directly tied to benefits that one is entitled to collect later in life. However, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Flemming v. Nestor (1960) that the Social Security system is neither a pension nor an insurance program and that no one has an accrued property right to benefits from the system regardless of how much that person may have contributed. FICA therefore behaves as
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#1732765318767876-535: A special message to Congress proposing legislation granting the President new powers to add additional judges to all federal courts whenever there were sitting judges age 70 or older who refused to retire. The practical effect of this proposal was that the President would get to appoint six new Justices to the Supreme Court (and 44 judges to lower federal courts), thus instantly tipping the political balance on
949-495: A state or local government's employees were hired on a temporary basis in response to a specific unforeseen fire, storm, snow, earthquake, flood, or a similar emergency, and the employee is not intended to become a permanent employee, then payments to that employee are exempt from FICA tax. In order to qualify for the exemption from FICA tax, the employee must have been hired to work temporarily in connection with an unforeseen emergency, such as an individual temporarily hired to battle
1022-464: A state-administered unemployment insurance system and the Aid to Dependent Children , which provided aid to families headed by single mothers. Roosevelt believed that social security should cover everyone, stating that “I see no reason why every child, from the day he is born, shouldn’t be a member of the social security system. When he begins to grow up, he should know he will have old-age benefits direct from
1095-408: A successor-predecessor employer transfer, in which the payments that have already been withheld can be counted toward the year-to-date total. If a worker has overpaid toward Social Security by having more than one job or by having switched jobs during the year, that worker can file a request to have that overpayment counted as a credit for tax paid when he or she files a federal income tax return . If
1168-406: A tax for all practical purposes, earmarked for particular uses by Congress but fully subject to Congressional authority, including redirection. The FICA tax applies to earned income only and is not imposed on investment income such as rental income, interest, or dividends. The Hospital Insurance (HI) portion of FICA, which funds Medicare Part A hospital benefits, applies to all earned income, while
1241-411: A worker starts a new job halfway through the year and during that year has already earned an amount exceeding the Social Security tax wage base limit with the old employer, the new employer is not allowed to stop withholding until the wage base limit has been earned with the new employer (that is, without regard to the wage base limit earned under the old employer). There are some limited cases, such as
1314-482: Is a U.S. citizen, then the employee must typically pay self-employment tax on earnings from work performed in the United States. If a state or local government pays individuals for services performed to be relieved from unemployment, the payments to the individuals are exempt from FICA tax. The services must not be performed by individuals under other types of programs. Payments are not exempt from FICA tax if
1387-532: Is a tax mechanism codified in Title 26 , Subtitle C, Chapter 21 of the United States Code . Social security benefits include old-age, survivors, and disability insurance (OASDI); Medicare provides hospital insurance benefits for the elderly. The amount that one pays in payroll taxes throughout one's working career is associated indirectly with the social security benefits annuity that one receives as
1460-489: Is exempt if substantially all compensation is directly related to sales or other output, rather than to the number of hours worked, and there is a written contract stating that the individuals will not be treated as employees for federal tax purposes. The individual must typically pay self-employment tax on the compensation. Prior to the Great Depression , the following presented difficulties for Americans: In
1533-430: Is primarily an educational one. In order to be exempt from FICA payroll taxes, a student's work must be "incident to" the pursuit of a course of study, which is rarely the case with full-time employment. However full-time college students are never exempt from FICA taxes on work performed off-campus. Medical residents working full-time are not considered students and are not exempt from FICA payroll taxes, according to
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#17327653187671606-560: The Adkins decision two days after oral arguments concluded for the Parrish case on December 19, 1936. During this time, however, the court was divided 4-4 following the initial conference call because Associate Justice Harlan Fiske Stone , one of the three liberal justices who continuously voted to uphold New Deal legislation, was absent due to an illness; with this even division on the Court,
1679-497: The Great Depression , the physician Francis Townsend galvanized support behind a proposal to issue direct payments to older people. Responding to that movement, Roosevelt organized a committee led by Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins to develop a major social welfare program proposal. Roosevelt presented the plan in early 1935 and signed the Social Security Act into law on August 14, 1935. The Supreme Court upheld
1752-498: The Morehead decision would be known as the switch in time that saved nine . In spite of widespread speculation that Roberts only agreed to join the court's majority in upholding New Deal legislation, such as the Social Security Act, during the spring of 1937 because of the court packing plan, Hughes wrote in his autobiographical notes that Roosevelt's court reform proposal "had not the slightest effect on our [the court's] decision" in
1825-514: The Parrish case and that the delayed announcement of the decision created the false impression that the Court had retreated under fire. Following the vast support that was demonstrated for the New Deal through Roosevelt's re-election in 1936 , Hughes persuaded Roberts to no longer base his decisions on political maneuvering and side with him in future cases that involved New Deal legislation Records show Roberts had indicated his desire to overturn
1898-526: The 1930s, the New Deal introduced Social Security to rectify the first three problems (retirement, injury-induced disability, or congenital disability). It introduced the FICA tax as the means to pay for Social Security. In the 1960s, Medicare was introduced to rectify the fourth problem (health care for the elderly). The FICA tax was increased in order to pay for this expense. In December 2010, as part of
1971-833: The 1930s, the Supreme Court struck down many pieces of Roosevelt's New Deal legislation, including the Railroad Retirement Act . The Court threw out a centerpiece of the New Deal, the National Industrial Recovery Act , the Agricultural Adjustment Act , and New York State's minimum-wage law. President Roosevelt responded with an attempt to pack the court via the Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937 . On February 5, 1937, he sent
2044-906: The Act was replaced by the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, administered by a Board of Trustees. The Secretary of the Treasury , Secretary of Labor , and the Chairman of the Social Security Board were all ex-officio members . The composition of the Board of Trustees has been significantly altered since. S.2051 Approved, October 3, 1944 Public Law 78-458 Title XII H.R.7037 Approved, August 10, 1946 Public Law 79-719 Title XIII H.R.6000 Approved August 28, 1950 Public Law 81-734 These amendments raised benefits for
2117-604: The Committee on Economic Security, chaired by Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins , with developing an old-age pension program, an unemployment insurance system, and a national health care program. The proposal for a national health care system was dropped, but the committee developed an unemployment insurance program that would be largely administered by the states. The committee also developed an old-age plan; at Roosevelt's insistence, it would be funded by individual contributions from workers. In January 1935, Roosevelt proposed
2190-471: The Court dramatically in his favor. The debate on this proposal lasted over six months. Beginning with a set of decisions in March, April, and May 1937 (including the Social Security Act cases), the Court would sustain a series of New Deal legislation. Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes played a leading role in defeating the court-packing by rushing these pieces of New Deal legislation through and ensuring that
2263-569: The Depression without any national system of social security, though a handful of states had poorly-funded old-age insurance programs. The federal government had provided pensions to veterans in the aftermath of the Civil War and other wars, and some states had established voluntary old-age pension systems, but otherwise, the United States had little experience with social insurance programs. For most American workers, retirement during old age
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2336-629: The Dill-Connery bill for federal funding of state pensions programs, passed the House of Representatives and came near passage in the Senate that May. According to one study, ‘Roosevelt took ‘no open stand on the bill, but called supporters to the White House and persuaded them to delay passage until the administration prepared its own, "more comprehensive version.”’ That same year Roosevelt charged
2409-545: The FICA tax is regressive . That is, the effective tax rate regresses, or decreases, as income increases beyond the compensation limit or wage base limit amount. The Social Security component is a flat tax for wage levels under the Social Security Wage Base (see "Regular" employees above). Because no tax is owed on wages above the wage base limit amount, the total tax rate declines as wages increase beyond that limit. In other words, for wage levels above
2482-563: The Fifth Amendment's due process clause and were thus unconstitutional, and upheld the constitutionality of Washington state's minimum wage law in West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish . In 1936, Roberts joined the four conservative justices in using the Adkins decision to strike down a similar minimum wage law New York state enforced in Morehead v. New York ex rel. Tipaldo and his decision to reverse his previous vote in
2555-420: The House and Senate, resulting in a supermajority in both chambers, and along with President Franklin D. Roosevelt maintained an overall federal government trifecta . Section contents: Senate : Majority (D) , Minority (R) • House : Majority (D) , Minority (R) Senators are popularly elected statewide every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding
2628-539: The Internal Revenue Code, 26 U.S.C. § 1401 through 26 U.S.C. § 1403 (the "SE Tax Act"). Under the SE Tax Act, self-employed people are responsible for the entire percentage of 15.3% (= 12.4% [Soc. Sec.] + 2.9% [Medicare]); however, the 15.3% multiplier is applied to 92.35% of the business's net earnings from self-employment , rather than 100% of the gross earnings;
2701-523: The OASDI portion of the tax is imposed on earned income only up to cap annually set by Congress ($ 160,200 in 2023). In 2004, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities stated that three-quarters of taxpayers pay more in payroll taxes than they do in income taxes. FICA is subject to neither the standard deduction nor any personal exemption and so is generally considered to be a regressive tax . Since 1990,
2774-671: The Social Security Act, which he presented as a more practical alternative to the Townsend Plan. After a series of congressional hearings, the Social Security Act became law in August 1935. During the congressional debate over Social Security, the program was expanded to provide payments to widows and dependents of Social Security recipients. Job categories that were not covered by the act included workers in agricultural labor, domestic service, government employees, and many teachers, nurses, hospital employees, librarians, and social workers. As
2847-474: The Social Security portion of FICA taxes. They provide alternative retirement and pension plans to their employees. FICA initially did not apply to state and local governments, which were later given the option of participating. Over time, most have elected to participate, but a substantial number remain outside the system. Payments to members of a federally recognized Native American tribe for services performed as council members are not subject to FICA. If
2920-574: The Social Security system. Others, including The Economist and the Congressional Budget Office , point out that the Social Security system as a whole is progressive in the lower income brackets. Individuals with lower lifetime average wages receive a larger benefit (as both a percentage of their lifetime average wage income and a percentage of Social Security taxes paid) than do individuals with higher lifetime average wages; but for some lower earners, shorter lifetimes may negate
2993-511: The Supreme Court unanimously held in United States v. Quality Stores, Inc. that severance pay is taxable wages for FICA purposes. In August 2020 , President Donald Trump signed an executive order to temporarily suspend collection of the tax from September to December 2020. Critics fear this move will lead to more underfunding of the Social Security Trust Fund and Medicare trust fund. The Social Security component of
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3066-592: The Surgeon General the power to distribute money to the States for that purpose with the approval of the Secretary of the Treasury. Title VII establishes the Social Security Board and outlines that it is to be composed of three appointees chosen by the President and approved by the Senate and serving for six years. Title VIII establishes a payroll tax used to fund Social Security. In the amendments of 1939,
3139-422: The Treasury account used to pay for Social Security benefits and gives the Secretary of the Treasury the authority to invest excess reserves from the account. Title III concerns unemployment insurance. Title IV concerns Aid to Families with Dependent Children . Title V concerns maternal and child welfare. Title VI concerns public health services (investigation of disease and problems of sanitation). It grants
3212-679: The United States on a temporary work assignment may be exempt from paying FICA tax on their earnings from working in the United States if there is a totalization agreement between the United States and the worker's home country. Countries who have such a tax treaty with the United States include Australia , Austria , Belgium , Canada , Chile , Czech Republic , Denmark , Finland , France , Germany , Greece , Hungary , Ireland , Japan , Luxembourg , Netherlands , Norway , Poland , Portugal , Slovakia , South Korea , Spain , Sweden , Switzerland , and United Kingdom . In order to claim an exemption from paying FICA tax,
3285-416: The act in two major cases decided in 1937. The law established the Social Security program. The old-age program is funded by payroll taxes , and over the ensuing decades, it contributed to a dramatic decline in poverty among older people, and spending on Social Security became a significant part of the federal budget. The Social Security Act also established an unemployment insurance program administered by
3358-443: The alien worker must be on a temporary assignment of no more than five years and the alien worker must have a certificate from the country stating that the worker will continue to be covered by the country's social security system while the worker is in the United States. When a parent employs a child under age 18 (or under age 21 for domestic service ), payments to the child are exempt from FICA tax. The exemption also applies when
3431-505: The beginning of this Congress. Lists of committees and their party leaders for members of the House and Senate committees can be found through the Official Congressional Directory at the bottom of this article. The directory after the pages of terms of service lists committees of the Senate, House (Standing with Subcommittees, Select and Special) and Joint and, after that, House/Senate committee assignments. On
3504-682: The committees section of the House and Senate in the Official Congressional Directory, the committee's members on the first row on the left side shows the chairman of the committee and on the right side shows the ranking member of the committee. Federal Insurance Contributions Act tax The Federal Insurance Contributions Act ( FICA / ˈ f aɪ k ə / ) is a United States federal payroll (or employment) tax payable by both employees and employers to fund Social Security and Medicare —federal programs that provide benefits for retirees, people with disabilities, and children of deceased workers. The Federal Insurance Contributions Act
3577-460: The court's majority would uphold it. In March 1937, Associate Justice Owen Roberts , who had previously sided with the court's four conservative justices , shocked the American public by siding with Hughes and the court's three liberal justices in striking down the court's previous decision in the 1923 case Adkins v. Children's Hospital , which held that minimum wage laws were a violation of
3650-434: The difference, 7.65%, is half of the 15.3%, and makes the calculation fair in comparison to that of regular (non-self-employed) employees. SECA requires self-employed individuals in the United States to pay Social Security and Medicare taxes. If a self-employed individual has net earnings of $ 400 or more in a tax year, they are generally required to pay SECA taxes. Self-employed individuals are responsible for paying both
3723-480: The employee's share of the Social Security portion of the FICA tax has been 6.2% of gross compensation up to a limit that adjusts with inflation. The taxation limit in 2020 was $ 137,700 of gross compensation, resulting in a maximum Social Security tax for 2020 of $ 8,537.40. This limit, known as the Social Security Wage Base , goes up each year based on average national wages and, in general, at
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#17327653187673796-409: The employer and employee portions of these taxes. However, exceptions and specific rules may apply based on the nature of self-employment and individual circumstances. Some student workers are exempt from FICA tax. Students enrolled at least half-time in a university and working part-time for the same university are exempted from FICA payroll taxes if and only if their relationship with the university
3869-419: The established teachings of the religious group. When a person temporarily works outside their country of origin, the person may be covered under two different countries' social security programs for the same work. In order to relieve a person of double-taxation, the certain countries and the United States have entered into tax treaties, known as totalization agreements . Aliens whose employer sends them to
3942-484: The federal government took responsibility for the economic security of the aged, the temporarily unemployed, dependent children, and the handicapped. The Social Security Act has been amended significantly over time. The initial act had ten major titles, with Title XI outlining definitions and regulations. More titles were added as the Social Security Act was amended. Title I is designed to give money to states to provide assistance to aged individuals. Title II establishes
4015-583: The first federal unemployment insurance program in the United States. Title X concerns support for blind people. Title XVI establishes and concerns Supplemental Security Income (SSI) . Title XVIII establishes and concerns Medicare . Title XIX establishes and concerns Medicaid . Title XX establishes the rules for state-specific shares of the according to a formula. Title XXI establishes and concerns CHIP . H.R.6635 Approved, August 10, 1939, Public Law 76-379 The original Act provided for only one Federally-administered benefit: Old-Age Insurance, which
4088-428: The government should function together because of them. As industry expanded, cities grew quickly to keep up with demand for labor. Tenement houses were built quickly and poorly, cramming new migrants from farms and Southern and Eastern European immigrants into tight and unhealthy spaces. Work spaces were even more unsafe. By the 1930s, the United States was one of the few modern industrial countries in which people faced
4161-575: The holding of the Washington Supreme Court , finding the minimum wage statute constitutional, would stand. As Hughes desired a clear and strong 5–4 affirmation of the Washington Supreme Court judgment, rather than a 4–4 default affirmation, he convinced the other justices to wait until Stone's return before both deciding and announcing the case. 74th United States Congress The 74th United States Congress
4234-451: The individuals are not considered employees under common law, such as when the individual has control over what work is done and how the work it is done. Payments to patients of an institution for services performed for the state of local government that operates the institution are exempt from FICA tax. Services performed by patients as part of an institution's rehabilitative program or therapeutic program are exempt from FICA tax. If
4307-481: The insurance system to which he will belong all his life. If he is out of work, he gets a benefit. If he is sick or crippled, he gets a benefit….I don’t see why not. Cradle to the grave-from the cradle to the grave they ought to be in a social insurance system.” Compared with the social security systems in Western Europe, the Social Security Act of 1935 was rather conservative. However, it was the first time that
4380-427: The insured worker for income, and mustn't have married since the death of the insured worker. Furthermore, the parent(s) are not eligible if the deceased insured worker leaves a widow or unmarried surviving child under the age of 18. The 1939 Amendments also increased benefit amounts and accelerated the start of monthly benefit payments from 1940 to 1942. The Old-Age Reserve Account previously established under §201 of
4453-511: The legislation that extended the Bush tax cuts (called the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 ), the government negotiated a temporary, one-year reduction in the FICA payroll tax. In February 2012, the tax cut was extended for another year. Under FICA, the payroll tax applies to "wages" (defined by the act as "remuneration for employment"). In 2014,
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#17327653187674526-508: The limit, the absolute dollar amount of tax owed remains constant. The earnings above the wage base limit amount are not, however, taken into account in the Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) to determine benefits payable under the various insurance programs of social security. The FICA tax also is not imposed on unearned income , including interest on savings deposits, stock dividends, and capital gains such as profits from
4599-477: The names in the list below are Senate class numbers , which indicate the cycle of their election, In this Congress, Class 2 meant their term ended with this Congress, facing re-election in 1936; Class 3 meant their term began in the last Congress, facing re-election in 1938; and Class 1 meant their term began in this Congress, facing re-election in 1940. The names of members are preceded by their district numbers. The count below reflects changes from
4672-425: The program's primary purpose is to increase an individual's chances of employment by providing training and work experience. Payments to inmates of a prison for services performed for the state or local government that operates the prison are exempt from FICA tax, regardless of the location where the services are performed. Services performed as part of a work-release program are exempt from FICA tax if and only if
4745-442: The sale of stock or real estate. The proportion of total income that is exempt from FICA tax as "unearned income" tends to rise with higher income brackets. Some, including Third Way , argue that since Social Security taxes are eventually returned to taxpayers, with interest, in the form of Social Security benefits, the regressiveness of the tax is effectively negated. That is, the taxpayer gets back (more or less) what they put into
4818-486: The states and the Aid to Dependent Children program, which provided aid to families headed by single mothers. The law was later amended by acts such as the Social Security Amendments of 1965 , which established two major healthcare programs: Medicare and Medicaid . Industrialization and the urbanization in the 20th century created many new social problems and transformed ideas of how society and
4891-415: The states, with employers and employees contributing equally to the tax. Because the Social Security tax was regressive , and Social Security benefits were based on how much each individual had paid into the system, the program would not contribute to income redistribution in the way that some reformers, including Perkins, had hoped. In addition to creating the program, the Social Security Act also established
4964-405: The tax was removed from the Social Security Act, placed in the Internal Revenue Code, and renamed the Federal Insurance Contributions Act . When Medicare was established in 1966, the FICA tax was increased to fund that program as well. Title IX establishes an excise tax to be paid on the first day of every year by employers proportional to the total wages of their employees. It also establishes
5037-597: The taxpayer is due a refund , then the FICA tax overpayment is refunded. A tax similar to the FICA tax is imposed on the earnings of self-employed individuals, such as independent contractors and members of a partnership . This tax is imposed not by the Federal Insurance Contributions Act but instead by the Self-Employment Contributions Act of 1954 (SECA), which is codified as Chapter 2 of Subtitle A of
5110-541: The very first time and placed the program on the road to the virtually universal coverage it has today. Specifically it is the introduction of the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA). Approved June 28, 1952 Public Law 82-420 H.R.7800 Approved, July 18, 1952 Public Law 82-590 H.R.9366 Approved September 1, 1954 Public Law 83-761 Approved September 1, 1954 Public Law 83-767 Title XV H.R.7544 Approved, October 24, 1963 Public Law 88-156 Title XVII H.R.6675 Approved, July 30, 1965 Public Law 89-97 Title XVIII Title XIX In
5183-726: Was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives . It met in Washington, D.C. , from January 3, 1935, to January 3, 1937, during the third and fourth years of Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency . The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1930 United States census . The Democrats increased their majorities in both
5256-425: Was not a realistic option. In the 1930s, the physician Francis Townsend galvanized support for his pension proposal, which called for the federal government to issue direct $ 200-a-month payments to the elderly. Roosevelt was attracted to the general thinking behind Townsend's plan because it would provide for those no longer capable of working, stimulate demand in the economy, and decrease the supply of labor. In 1934,
5329-680: Was paid only to the insured worker. The 1939 Amendments transformed the very nature of the Social Security program. The Amendments created two new benefit categories under §202 of the Act: Retirement-aged wives, children under 16 (under 18 if attending school), widowed mothers caring for eligible children, and aged widows were all made eligible for dependents and survivors benefits. Under select circumstances, parents of deceased insured workers were also made eligible for Survivors Insurance. To be eligible parents must be at least age 65, not entitled to Old-Age Insurance, wholly dependent upon
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