With strong support from Congressman Zach Wamp, the House has passed a bill to create a "lockbox" for Social Security and Medicare and make sure that taxes paid for those programs are used to keep them secure instead of being spent on other things.

"This bill will create a safeguard to make sure that the payroll taxes Americans contribute for Social Security and Medicare are used to keep those programs sound," Wamp said. "For years, previous Congresses 'raided' Social Security and used its funds for all kinds of other government spending. Two years ago we were able to end that terrible practice.

"The bill we passed would write into law a formal safeguard preventing future Congresses from returning to this unwise and irresponsible habit. The House passed a very similar bill last year; but unfortunately, Democrats in the Senate fought it as hard as they could and were able to stop the bill from being passed there."

The "Social Security and Medicare Lockbox Act of 2001" (H.R. 2) would put the surpluses that now exist in the Social Security Trust Fund and Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Funds into a special "lockbox."

"The Social Security payroll and Medicare taxes that Americans pay should be used to make keep those programs sound and make sure they are there for the millions of folks who will depend on them in retirement," Wamp said.

Specifically, the bill would create the "lockbox" by allowing any member of Congress to raise "a point of order" if any tax or spending bill began to dip into the Social Security or Medicare surpluses and use them for other programs. The surpluses could be used only to keep Social Security and Medicare sound and pay down the debt. In the House, such a point of order is automatically upheld unless a majority of the House votes to override it. In the Senate, it takes 60 votes to overturn a point of order. This lockbox mechanism would be set up under the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act of 1974.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the Social Security and Medicare Hospital Insurance Trust Funds will run surpluses of $2.8 trillion over the next decade.

But over the long range, both programs will face severe financial strains as millions of "baby boomers" begin to retire. "The Social Security and Medicare Lockbox Act of 2001" is designed to preserve those programs pending long-term reforms that will keep them sound.