Summary: The Social Security Administration (SSA) in 1995 began sending statements--called Personal Earnings and Benefit Estimate Statements--automatically to workers who had reached age 60. By fiscal year 2000, these statements will reach an estimated 123 million people annually--almost every U.S. worker aged 25 and older. These six-page statements provide workers with information on their yearly earnings on record at SSA, information on their eligibility for social security retirement and other benefits, and estimates of these benefits. Experts agree that SSA's approach is generally reasonable, and feedback suggests that the public generally finds the statements to be helpful in retirement planning. However, GAO believes that the statements could benefit from extensive revisions. Specifically, the statements need a better layout and design and simpler explanations. SSA will need to start now to complete these changes by its 1999 redesign target date because the agency will require time to collect data and test alternatives.
