Yes, unfortunately this is correct. Under current law Social Security benefits are not payable for the month in which a beneficiary dies. This is so even when the beneficiary, like your husband, passes away on the last day of the month. However, according to the Social Security Administration the check that an individual receives in a given month is the payment for the preceding month. That means the check that your husband received during the month of March was his benefit for February, which you would be entitled to keep. It is the March payment that you would have received in April, and any thereafter that must be returned..Data from the Social Security Administration suggest that a substantial portion of the estimated 8.1 million undocumented immigrants who illegally work in this country already have taxes withheld. According to the most recent data, the Social Security Administration received about 7 million "mismatched" wage reports in 2012 in which the name and Social Security number don't match those on Social Security's records. This most often occurs when undocumented immigrants work under invalid Social Security numbers..President Barak Obama included a proposal in his fiscal year 2014 budget that would have reduced Social Security benefits by using the more slowly-growing chained consumer price index to calculate the Social Security cost-of-living adjustment. An estimate produced for TSCL projects that "chaining the COLA" would cut Social Security benefits by about 9% over a 30-year retirement. Although the proposal has been under discussion for several years, it has not passed, primarily due to fierce resistance from older voters..Take minimum required distributions on time. Once you turn age 70 ½, everyone with a traditional IRA must begin taking required minimum distributions. Failure to do so results in a tax penalty equal to 50% of the required distribution amount..The bills aren't paid..New Bill Would Expand Medicare Coverage.While 211 Members have signed onto the House bill, critics of the legislation worry about increasing the payroll tax rate - especially on lower income workers. Lawmakers are continuing to discuss alternatives, and TSCL continues to meet with Members of Congress. TSCL's Senior Survey has found 74% of survey participants support completely lifting the taxable maximum and applying the payroll tax to all earnings. About 61% of survey participants support increasing the payroll tax rate by 1% each for workers and employers..With 1.2 million supporters, The Senior Citizens League is one of the nation's largest nonpartisan seniors' groups. Its mission is to promote and assist members and supporters, to educate and alert senior citizens about their rights and freedoms as U.S. Citizens, and to protect and defend the benefits senior citizens have earned and paid for. The Senior Citizens League is a proud affiliate of The Retired Enlisted Association. Visit for more information..Social Security Taxation Question Pushes Action on "Boost Bill" Into 2020
