‘It’s Not Too Soon…’ Former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew Has a Warning for Future Presidential and Senate Candidates on Social Security

Several Social Security cards are fanned out in front of a blurred American flag, symbolizing retirement planning. (Credit: Image via Shutterstock)

Tanya Rawat

Mon, September 21, 2026 at 1:00 PM GMT+3 5 min read

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Former Treasury Secretary Jack Lew said lawmakers should begin addressing Social Security's funding challenges before the program reaches its projected exhaustion date.

Lew made the comments during an interview on CNBC's "The Exchange" on Thursday, saying Social Security will run out of enough current income to fully pay current benefits during the term of the next president.

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Social Security Reform

"There are solutions, but the solutions get harder and harder as you get closer to the exhaustion date. So it's not too soon to start thinking and talking about it," Lew said.

"I would certainly caution anyone running for president the next time or running for the Senate to keep their options open, because it's going to take something along the lines of a 1983 approach where you do something serious to address solvency."

A 1983-Style Approach

Lew said the 1983 effort was bipartisan and involved an indirect negotiation between the "president and the Congress," with Congress controlled by a different party.

Lew Urges Openness for Ideas

"There's going to have to be some process is going to have to be an openness to ideas," Lew said. "It doesn't seem like now is the moment that that's likely to happen. But reality kind of imposes," Lew added.

Recent debate has focused on that taxable wage cap, with some lawmakers considering higher Social Security taxes or changes to the amount of income subject to the payroll tax. Proposals to raise or eliminate the cap have also prompted discussion of potential economic effects, including estimates of job and GDP impacts from certain changes.

The retirement trust fund is projected to run out in the fourth quarter of 2032, when 78% of scheduled benefits would be payable, according to the 2026 Social Security trustees report.

Image via Shutterstock

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