2022 OASDI Trustees Report

III. FINANCIAL OPERATIONS OF THE TRUST FUNDS AND
LEGISLATIVE CHANGES IN THE LAST YEAR

A. OPERATIONS OF THE OLD‑AGE AND SURVIVORS INSURANCE (OASI) AND DISABILITY INSURANCE (DI) TRUST FUNDS, IN CALENDAR YEAR 2021

This section presents detailed information on the operations of the OASI and DI Trust Funds¹ during calendar year 2021. Chapter IV provides projections for calendar years 2022 through 2100.

1. OASI Trust Fund

Table III.A1 presents a statement of the income and cost of the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund in calendar year 2021, and of the asset reserves in the fund at the beginning and end of the calendar year. As shown in this table, total trust fund income in 2021 amounted to $942.9 billion, while cost totaled $1,001.9 billion, a decrease in trust fund reserves during 2021 of $59.1 billion.²

Total income during calendar year 2021 included $841.4 billion in payroll tax contributions. These contributions include initial appropriations of payroll taxes, made on an estimated basis, and adjustments to appropriations for prior years to reflect actual tax income. In June 2021, an unusually large negative adjustment in the amount of $30.4 billion was made because payroll tax revenue credited to the trust fund in 2020 was based on estimates that did not anticipate effects of the pandemic and recession. The OASI fund paid the General Fund $3.1 billion for the estimated amount of employee payroll-tax refunds, partially offsetting these gross contributions. Employees who work for more than one employer during a year and pay contributions on total earnings in excess of the contribution and benefit base are eligible for such refunds. Net payroll tax contributions were therefore $838.2 billion in 2021.

Net reimbursements from the General Fund of the Treasury amounted to $1 million in 2021. As shown in the table, almost all of that amount came from adjustments to prior year reimbursements based on Public Law 111-312, the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, Public Law 112-78, the Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011, and Public Law 112‑96, the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012. These acts specified General Fund reimbursement for temporary reductions in employee and self-employment payroll taxes for earnings in 2011 and 2012.

Income to the OASI Trust Fund based on the taxation of OASI benefits amounted to $37.2 billion in 2021. As first required by the 1983 Social Security Amendments, this income comes from two separate sources: (1) Federal income taxation on up to 50 percent of an individual’s or couple’s OASI benefits under certain circumstances, and (2) a tax withheld from the benefits paid to certain nonresident alien beneficiaries. For the direct Federal income tax portion, Treasury transfers estimated amounts to the OASI Trust Fund in advance at the beginning of each calendar quarter. Treasury makes subsequent adjustments based on the actual amounts shown on annual income tax records. There were two such adjustments made in 2021 totaling $5.1 billion. The amount of income from direct Federal income taxation on OASI benefits constituted approximately 99 percent of income from benefit taxation. The remaining one percent of the income from benefit taxation is the amounts withheld from the benefits paid to nonresident aliens.

In 2021, the OASI Trust Fund earned $67.5 billion in net interest, which consisted of: (1) interest earned on the investments held by the trust fund, (2) interest on adjustments in the allocation of administrative expenses between the trust fund and the General Fund account for the Supplemental Security Income program, (3) interest arising from the revised allocation of administrative expenses among the trust funds, and (4) interest on certain reimbursements to the trust fund.

The remaining income, about $90 thousand, consisted of gifts received under the provisions authorizing the deposit of monetary gifts or bequests in the trust funds.

Table III.A1.—Operations of the OASI Trust Fund, Calendar Year 2021 

[In millions]

Total asset reserves, December 31, 2020a					$2,811,716
Income:
	Net payroll tax contributions:
		Payroll tax contributionsb		$841,383
		Payments from the General Fund of the Treasury for payroll tax contributions subject to refundb		-3,148
			Net payroll tax contributionsb		838,235
	Reimbursements from the General Fund:
		Reduction in payroll tax contributions due to P.L. 111-312, P.L. 112-78, and P.L. 112-96b		1
		Payroll tax credits due to P.L. 98-21b		c
			Net General Fund reimbursementsb		1
	Income based on taxation of benefit payments:
		Withheld from benefit payments to nonresident aliens		244
		All other, not subject to withholdingb		36,907
			Total income from taxation of benefitsb		37,151
	Investment income and interest adjustments:
		Interest on investments		67,469
		Interest adjustmentsd		1
			Total investment income and interest adjustments		67,470
	Gifts				c
Total income					942,856
Cost:
	Benefit payments:
		Monthly benefits and lump-sum death paymentsa e		993,167
		Reimbursement from the General Fund for unnegotiated checks		-49
		Payment for costs of vocational rehabilitation services for disabled beneficiaries		14
			Net benefit paymentsa e		993,133
	Financial interchange with the Railroad Retirement “Social Security Equivalent Benefit Account”				4,792
	Administrative expenses:
		Costs incurred by:
			Social Security Administration	3,320
			Department of the Treasury	697
		Offsetting miscellaneous receipts		-2
		Miscellaneous reimbursements from the General Fund f		-5
			Net administrative expenses		4,011
Total costa					1,001,936
Net increase in asset reservesa					-59,080
	Total invested assets			2,752,688
	Undisbursed balancesg			-53
Total asset reserves, December 31, 2021					2,752,636

---

a

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $18.7 billion. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

b

Includes adjustments for prior calendar years. In June 2021, an unusually large negative adjustment to payroll tax contributions in the amount of $30,380 million was made because payroll tax revenue credited to the trust fund in 2020 was based on estimates that did not anticipate effects of the pandemic and recession.

c

Between -$0.5 and $0.5 million.

d

Includes: (1) interest on adjustments in the allocation of administrative expenses between the trust fund and the General Fund account for the Supplemental Security Income program, (2) interest arising from the revised allocation of administrative expenses among the trust funds, and (3) interest on certain reimbursements to the trust fund.

e

Includes net reductions for the recovery of overpayments.

f

Reimbursements for costs incurred in performing certain legislatively mandated activities not directly related to administering the OASI program.

g

A negative balance represents a situation where the actual cash payments exceeded the amount of invested securities of the OASI Trust Fund that were redeemed to make such payments. In this situation, future redemption of additional invested securities will be required to pay for this shortfall.

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

Of the $1,001.9 billion in total OASI cost in 2020, $993.1 billion was for net benefit payments, including recovered overpayments,³ reimbursements from the General Fund for unnegotiated checks, and the reimbursable costs of vocational rehabilitation services.⁴ Net benefit payments increased by 4.3 percent from calendar year 2020 to calendar year 2021. This increase is due primarily to: (1) an increase in the average number of beneficiaries during the year and (2) an increase in the average monthly benefit amount. The increase in the average benefit amount in 2021 was due in part to the automatic cost-of-living benefit increase of 1.3 percent which became effective for December 2020 under the automatic-adjustment provisions in section 215(i) of the Social Security Act. In addition, new beneficiaries tend to have higher monthly benefit amounts than previous beneficiary cohorts, because their initial benefits are based on average wages, which tend to rise faster than the cost of living.

The Railroad Retirement Act requires an annual financial interchange between the Railroad Retirement program and the OASDI program. The purpose of the interchange is to put the OASI and DI Trust Funds in the same financial position in which they would have been had railroad employment always been covered directly by Social Security. The Railroad Retirement Board and the Social Security Administration calculated an interchange of $4.8 billion from the OASI Trust Fund to the Social Security Equivalent Benefit Account for June 2021.

The remaining $4.0 billion of cost for the OASI Trust Fund was for net administrative expenses. The Social Security Administration charges administrative expenses incurred to administer the OASI program directly to the trust fund on an estimated basis. Periodically, as actual expenses are recorded, adjustments are made to the allocations of administrative expenses for prior periods. These adjustments affect the OASI Trust Fund, the DI Trust Fund, the Hospital Insurance (HI) Trust Fund, the Supplementary Medical Insurance (SMI) Trust Fund, and the General Fund account for the Supplemental Security Income program, and include appropriate interest adjustments. As described earlier, the trust fund accounting records such interest adjustments under investment income.

For 2021, the cost incurred by the Social Security Administration to administer the OASI program was 83 percent of OASI net administrative expenses. The Social Security Administration charged such costs to the trust fund in the amount of $3.3 billion in 2021. In addition, the Department of the Treasury charged the trust fund $0.7 billion in 2021 for services provided in administering the OASI program. A relatively small offset to administrative expenses of $2 million in 2021 represents income from miscellaneous receipts due to the trust fund, which may include refunds, penalties, fees, and other receipts.

Finally, the General Fund of the Treasury makes net reimbursements for administrative costs incurred by the Social Security Administration in performing certain legislatively mandated activities that are not directly related to paying OASI benefits. These reimbursements include $2 million in costs associated with union activities related to administering the OASI program and $2 million in costs of providing information to participants in certain pension plans in 2021. These miscellaneous reimbursements totaled $5 million in 2021.

The asset reserves shown for the OASI Trust Fund at the end of calendar year 2021 totaled $2,752.6 billion, consisting of $2,752.7 billion in U.S. Government obligations and, as an offset, an extension of credit totaling $53 million against securities to be redeemed in the first few days of the following year. The effective annual rate of interest earned by the reserves in the OASI Trust Fund during calendar year 2021 was 2.4 percent, somewhat lower than the 2.6 percent earned during calendar year 2020. Table VI.A4, presented in appendix A, shows a detailed listing of OASI Trust Fund holdings by type of security, interest rate, and year of maturity at the end of calendar years 2020 and 2021.

By law, the Department of the Treasury must invest trust fund reserves in interest-bearing securities backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. The securities currently held by the OASI Trust Fund are entirely special issue securities sold by the Treasury only to the trust funds. These special issues are of two types: short-term certificates of indebtedness and longer-term bonds. Daily trust fund tax income is invested in the short-term certificates of indebtedness which mature on the next June 30 following the date of issue. The trust fund normally acquires long-term special-issue bonds when special issue securities of either type mature on June 30 and must be reinvested. The amount of long-term bonds acquired on June 30 is equal to the amount of special issue securities maturing (including accrued interest earnings), plus tax income for that day, less amounts required to meet cost on that day.

Section 201(d) of the Social Security Act provides that the obligations issued for purchase by the OASI and DI Trust Funds shall have maturities fixed with due regard for the needs of the funds. The usual practice has been to reinvest the maturing special issue securities, as of each June 30, so that the value of the total portfolio of special issue securities maturing in each of the next 15 years are approximately equal. However, as of June 2021, the Chief Actuary’s updated baseline of November 2020, which modified the Trustees most recent projections in the 2020 Trustees Report⁵, indicated that the reserves in the OASI Trust Fund would become depleted within 15 years. Therefore, the Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, selected the amounts and maturity dates of the OASI special-issue bonds purchased on June 30, 2021, so that the maturity dates of the total portfolio of special issue securities would be spread evenly to the extent possible over the 12‑year period 2022 through 2033. The bonds purchased on that date have an interest rate of 1.500 percent, reflecting the average market yield, as of the last business day of the prior month, on all of the outstanding marketable U.S. obligations that are due or callable more than 4 years in the future. Table III.A7 shows additional details on the investment transactions during 2021, including the amounts of bonds purchased on June 30, 2021.

2. DI Trust Fund

Table III.A2 presents a statement of the income and cost of the Federal Disability Insurance Trust Fund in calendar year 2021, and of the asset reserves in the fund at the beginning and end of the calendar year.

Line entries in the DI statement are similar to those in the OASI statement. The explanations of the OASI entries generally apply to DI as well.

Of the $145.5 billion in total income, $142.4 billion was net payroll tax contributions.

Of the $142.6 billion of total cost, $140.1 billion was net benefit payments.⁶ The total level of net benefit payments in 2021 decreased by 2.4 percent from total net benefit payments paid in 2020, largely due to a decrease in the total amount of retroactive payments paid to newly awarded beneficiaries, as well as a decrease in the average number of total current beneficiaries, partially offset by an increase in average benefit levels. DI non-interest income, and total income, exceeded total cost in 2021.

Table III.A2.—Operations of the DI Trust Fund, Calendar Year 2021

[In millions]

Total asset reserves, December 31, 2020a					$96,570
Income:
	Net payroll tax contributions:
		Payroll tax contributionsb		142,900
		Payments from the General Fund of the Treasury for payroll tax contributions subject to refundb		-533
			Net payroll tax contributionsb		142,367
	Reimbursements from the General Fund:
		Reduction in payroll tax contributions due to P.L. 111-312, P.L. 112-78, and P.L. 112-96b		c
		Payroll tax credits due to P.L. 98-21b		c
			Net General Fund reimbursementsb		c
	Income based on taxation of benefit payments:
		Withheld from benefit payments to nonresident aliens		4
		All other, not subject to withholdingb		455
			Total income from taxation of benefitsb		459
	Investment income and interest adjustments:
		Interest on investments		2,642
		Interest adjustments d		2
			Total investment income and interest adjustments		2,644
	Gifts				—
Total income					145,470
Cost:
	Benefit payments:
		Monthly benefitsa e		139,996
		Reimbursement from the General Fund for unnegotiated checks		-27
		Payment for costs of vocational rehabilitation services for disabled beneficiaries		89
			Net benefit paymentsa e		140,058
	Financial interchange with the Railroad Retirement “Social Security Equivalent Benefit Account”				107
	Administrative expenses:
		Costs incurred by:
			Social Security Administration	2,349
			Department of the Treasury	122
		Demonstration projects		12
		Miscellaneous reimbursements from the General Fund f		-2
			Net administrative expenses		2,481
Total costa					142,646
Net increase in asset reservesa					2,824
	Total invested assets			99,438
	Undisbursed balancesg			-44
Total asset reserves, December 31, 2021					99,394

---

a

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $6.1 billion. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

b

Includes adjustments for prior calendar years. In June 2021, an unusually large negative adjustment to payroll tax contributions in the amount of $5,155 million was made because payroll tax revenue credited to the trust fund in 2020 was based on estimates that did not anticipate effects of the pandemic and recession.

c

Between -$0.5 and $0.5 million.

d

Includes: (1) interest on adjustments in the allocation of administrative expenses between the trust fund and the General Fund account for the Supplemental Security Income program, (2) interest arising from the revised allocation of administrative expenses among the trust funds, and (3) interest on certain reimbursements to the trust fund.

e

Includes net reductions for the recovery of overpayments.

f

Reimbursements for costs incurred in performing legislatively mandated activities not directly related to administering the DI program.

g

A negative balance represents a situation where the actual cash payments exceeded the amount of invested securities of the DI Trust Fund that were redeemed to make such payments. In this situation, future redemption of additional invested securities will be required to pay for this shortfall.

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

During 2021, the reserves in the DI Trust Fund increased by $2.8 billion, from $96.6 billion at the end of 2020 to $99.4 billion at the end of 2021. This $99.4 billion consisted of $99.4 billion in U.S. Government obligations and, as an offset, an extension of credit totaling $44 million against securities to be redeemed in the first few days of the following year.⁷ The effective annual rate of interest earned by the asset reserves in the DI Trust Fund during calendar year 2021 was 2.8 percent, slightly lower than the 2.9 percent earned during calendar year 2020. Table VI.A5 shows a detailed listing of DI Trust Fund holdings by type of security, interest rate, and year of maturity at the end of calendar years 2020 and 2021.

Section 201(d) of the Social Security Act provides that the Treasury securities issued for purchase by the OASI and DI Trust Funds shall have maturities fixed with due regard for the needs of the funds. Each year, bond purchases for each trust fund are made on June 30, taking into account the projected reserve depletion date in the most recently issued Trustees Report. The usual practice has been to reinvest the maturing special issue securities, as of each June 30, so that the values of the securities maturing in each of the next 15 years are approximately equal. Accordingly, the Department of the Treasury, in consultation with the Chief Actuary of the Social Security Administration, selected the amounts and maturity dates of the DI special-issue bonds purchased on June 30, 2021, so that the maturity dates of the total portfolio of special issue securities would be evenly spread to the extent possible over the 15‑year period 2022-36. The bonds purchased have an interest rate of 1.500 percent, reflecting the average market yield, as of the last business day of the prior month, on the outstanding marketable U.S. obligations that are due or callable more than 4 years in the future. Table III.A7 shows details on investment transactions during 2021.

3. OASI and DI Trust Funds, Combined

Table III.A3 presents a statement of the operations of the OASI and DI Trust Funds on a hypothetical combined basis.⁸ The entries in this table represent the sums of the corresponding values from tables III.A1 and III.A2. The two preceding subsections that cover OASI and DI provide a description of the nature of these income and cost transactions.

Table III.A3.—Operations of the Combined OASI and DI Trust Funds,
Calendar Year 2021 

[In millions]

Total asset reserves, December 31, 2020a					$2,908,286
Income:
	Net payroll tax contributions:
		Payroll tax contributionsb		$984,284
		Payments from the General Fund of the Treasury for payroll tax contributions subject to refundb		-3,681
			Net payroll tax contributionsb		980,602
	Reimbursements from the General Fund:
		Reduction in payroll tax contributions due to P.L. 111-312, P.L. 112-78, and P.L. 112-96b		1
		Payroll tax credits due to P.L. 98-21b		c
			Net General Fund reimbursementsb		1
	Income based on taxation of benefit payments:
		Withheld from benefit payments to nonresident aliens		248
		All other, not subject to withholdingb		37,362
			Total income from taxation of benefitsb		37,610
	Investment income and interest adjustments:
		Interest on investments		70,110
		Interest adjustments d		3
			Total investment income and interest adjustments		70,113
	Gifts				c
Total income					1,088,326
Cost:
	Benefit payments:
		Monthly benefits and lump-sum death paymentsa e		1,133,164
		Reimbursement from the General Fund for unnegotiated checks		-76
		Payment for costs of vocational rehabilitation services for disabled beneficiaries		103
			Net benefit paymentsa e		1,133,191
	Financial interchange with the Railroad Retirement “Social Security Equivalent Benefit Account”				4,900
	Administrative expenses:
		Costs incurred by:
			Social Security Administration	5,669
			Department of the Treasury	819
		Offsetting miscellaneous receipts		-2
		Demonstration projects		12
		Miscellaneous reimbursements from the General Fund f		-6
			Net administrative expenses		6,492
Total costa					1,144,582
Net increase in asset reservesa					-56,256
	Total invested assets			2,852,126
	Undisbursed balancesg			-96
Total asset reserves, December 31, 2021					2,852,030

---

a

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $24.8 billion. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

b

Includes adjustments for prior calendar years. In June 2021, unusually large negative adjustments to payroll tax contributions in the amount of $35,536 million were made because payroll tax revenue credited to the trust funds in 2020 was based on estimates that did not anticipate effects of the pandemic and recession.

c

Between -$0.5 and $0.5 million.

d

Includes: (1) interest on adjustments in the allocation of administrative expenses between the trust funds and the General Fund account for the Supplemental Security Income program, (2) interest arising from the revised allocation of administrative expenses among the trust funds, and (3) interest on certain reimbursements to the trust funds.

e

Includes net reductions for the recovery of overpayments.

f

Reimbursements for costs incurred in performing certain legislatively mandated activities not directly related to administering the OASI and DI programs.

g

A negative balance represents a situation where the actual cash payments exceeded the amount of invested securities of the DI Trust Fund that were redeemed to make such payments. In this situation, future redemption of additional invested securities will be required to pay for this shortfall.

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

Table III.A4 compares estimates of total income and total cost for calendar year 2021 from the intermediate projections in the 2017 through 2021 Trustees Reports to the corresponding actual amounts for 2021.

Table III.A4.—Comparison of Actual Calendar Year 2021 Trust Fund Operations
With Estimates Made in Prior Reports, Based on Intermediate Assumptions ^a 

[Amounts in billions]

		Total income  b			Total cost c
		Amount	Difference from actual (percent)		Amount	Difference from actual (percent)
OASI Trust Fund:
	Estimate in 2017 report	$1,065.2	13.0		$1,053.2	5.1
	Estimate in 2018 report	1,011.6	7.3		1,036.9	3.5
	Estimate in 2019 report	1,005.2	6.6		1,025.7	2.4
	Estimate in 2020 report	995.6	5.6		1,019.2	1.7
	Estimate in 2021 report	930.1	-1.4		1,005.4	.3
	Actual amount	942.9	—		1,001.9	—
DI Trust Fund:
	Estimate in 2017 report	162.5	11.7		171.3	20.1
	Estimate in 2018 report	155.4	6.8		163.0	14.3
	Estimate in 2019 report	155.2	6.7		154.6	8.4
	Estimate in 2020 report	154.3	6.0		151.8	6.4
	Estimate in 2021 report	143.7	-1.2		145.7	2.1
	Actual amount	145.5	—		142.6	—
OASI and DI Trust Funds, combined:
	Estimate in 2017 report	1,227.7	12.8		1,224.5	7.0
	Estimate in 2018 report	1,167.0	7.2		1,199.9	4.8
	Estimate in 2019 report	1,160.4	6.6		1,180.3	3.1
	Estimate in 2020 report	1,149.8	5.7		1,170.9	2.3
	Estimate in 2021 report	1,073.8	-1.3		1,151.0	.6
	Actual amount	1,088.3	—		1,144.6	—

---

a

Percentage differences are calculated prior to rounding.

b

“Actual” income for 2021 reflects adjustments to payroll tax contributions for prior calendar years (see appendix A for description of these adjustments). “Estimated” income also includes such adjustments, but on an estimated basis.

c

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $18.7 billion for the OASI Trust Fund and $6.1 billion for the DI Trust Fund. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

Note: Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

A number of factors contribute to differences between estimates and subsequent actual amounts, including: (1) actual values for key demographic, economic, and other variables that differ from earlier assumed levels; and (2) legislation that was enacted or other administrative initiatives that were finalized after the Trustees completed their estimates. In addition, estimates for the 2017 through 2020 Trustees Reports did not anticipate the pandemic and recession, while the actual income and cost for 2021 do reflect the pandemic, contributing to these differences as well.

At the end of calendar year 2021, the OASDI program was providing monthly benefits to about 65.2 million people. The OASI Trust Fund was providing benefits to about 56.0 million people and the DI Trust Fund was providing benefits to about 9.2 million people. The number of people receiving benefits from the OASI Trust Fund grew by 1.4 percent while the number of people receiving DI benefits fell by 4.2 percent during calendar year 2021. These changes are in large part due to the gradual aging of the population, with the earliest cohorts of the baby-boom generation now moving above normal retirement age, where DI benefits are no longer applicable. Table III.A5 shows the estimated distributions of benefit payments in calendar years 2020 and 2021, by type of beneficiary, for each trust fund separately.

 

Table III.A5.—Distribution of Benefit Payments^a by Type of Beneficiary or Payment, Calendar Years 2020 and 2021 

[Amounts in millions]

				Calendar year 2020			Calendar year 2021
				Amount	Percentage of total		Amount	Percentage of total
Total OASDI benefit payments				$1,095,875	100.0		$1,133,164	100.0
	OASI benefit payments			952,388	86.9		993,167	87.6
	DI benefit payments			143,487	13.1		139,996	12.4
OASI benefit payments, total				952,388	100.0		993,167	100.0
	Monthly benefits:
		Retired workers and auxiliaries		823,868	86.5		861,873	86.8
			Retired workers	783,504	82.3		822,440	82.8
			Spouses	34,023	3.6		33,050	3.3
			Children	6,341	.7		6,384	.6
		Survivors of deceased workers		128,294	13.5		131,057	13.2
			Aged widows and widowers	102,669	10.8		104,868	10.6
			Disabled widows and widowers	2,330	.2		2,233	.2
			Parents	19	b		19	b
			Children	21,795	2.3		22,445	2.3
			Widowed mothers and fathers caring for child beneficiaries	1,480	.2		1,492	.2
	Lump-sum death payments			226	b		237	b
DI benefit payments, total				143,487	100.0		139,996	100.0
		Disabled workers		135,204	94.2		132,401	94.6
		Spouses		509	.4		465	.3
		Children		7,774	5.4		7,131	5.1

---

a

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $18.7 billion for the OASI Trust Fund and $6.1 billion for the DI Trust Fund. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

b

Less than 0.05 percent.

Note: Benefits are monthly benefits and lump-sum death payments. Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

Net administrative expenses of the OASI and DI Trust Funds in calendar year 2021 totaled $6.5 billion, equal to 0.6 percent each of total cost and total income. Table III.A6 shows corresponding percentages for each trust fund separately and for OASDI as a whole for the last 5 years.

Table III.A6.—Administrative Expenses as a Percentage of Total Income and
of Total Cost, Calendar Years 2017-2021

Calendar year	OASI Trust Fund			DI Trust Fund			OASI and DI Trust Funds, combined
	Total income	Total cost		Total income	Total cost		Total income	Total cost
2017	0.4	0.5		1.6	1.9		0.6	0.7
2018	.5	.4		1.7	1.9		.7	.7
2019	.4	.4		1.9	1.8		.6	.6
2020	.4	.4		1.7	1.7		.6	.6
2021	.4	.4		1.7	1.7		.6	.6

The acquisition and redemption of securities during calendar year 2021 changed the invested reserves of the OASI and DI Trust Funds. Table III.A7 presents investment transactions for each fund separately and combined.

 

Table III.A7.—Trust Fund Investment Transactions, Calendar Year 2021

[In millions]

			OASI Trust Fund	DI Trust Fund	OASI and DI Trust Funds, combined
Invested asset reserves, December 31, 2020a			$2,793,146	$90,703	$2,883,849
Acquisitions:
	Special issue securities:
		Certificates of indebtedness	940,507	150,277	1,090,784
		Bonds b	152,354	7,180	159,534
		Total acquisitions	1,092,861	157,456	1,250,318
Redemptions:
	Special issue securities:
		Certificates of indebtednessc	917,972	142,383	1,060,355
		Bondsc	215,347	6,339	221,686
		Total redemptionsc	1,133,319	148,722	1,282,041
Net increase in invested asset reserves			-40,458	8,734	-31,723
Invested asset reserves, December 31, 2021a			2,752,688	99,438	2,852,126

---

a

Invested asset reserves differ from total asset reserves by the amount of undisbursed balances. See tables VI.A4 and VI.A5 for details.

b

Purchased on June 30, 2021. The interest rate on these purchases was 1.500 percent.

c

Benefit payments which were scheduled to be paid on January 3, 2021 were actually paid on December 31, 2020 as required by the statutory provision for early delivery of benefit payments when the normal payment delivery date is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal public holiday. The amount of these payments made on an accelerated basis was approximately $18.7 billion for the OASI Trust Fund and $6.1 billion for the DI Trust Fund. For comparability with the values for historical years and the projections in this report, all trust fund operations and asset reserves reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in each year.

Note: Investments are shown at par value. Components may not sum to totals because of rounding.

---

1

See www.ssa.gov/oact/ProgData/fundsQuery.html.

2

In order to provide values that are comparable with other years, the cost and change in asset reserves shown for 2021 reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in 2021 and thus include the benefits scheduled for payments on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020, as required by the law.

3

As noted in footnote a of table III.A1 and elsewhere in this report, benefit payments shown for 2021 reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in 2021 and thus include the benefits scheduled for payment on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020, as required by the law.

4

Vocational rehabilitation services under the OASI program are furnished to disabled widow(er) beneficiaries and to those children of retired or deceased workers who receive benefits based on disabilities that began before age 22. The trust funds reimburse the providers of such services only in those cases where the services contributed to the successful rehabilitation of the beneficiary.

5

This updated baseline reflects the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the recession on the intermediate projections of the 2020 Social Security Trustees Report. For more information on this updated baseline, see https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/solvency/UpdatedBaseline_20201124.pdf.

6

As noted in footnote a of table III.A2 and elsewhere in this report, benefit payments shown for 2021 reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in 2021 and thus include the benefits scheduled for payment on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020, as required by the law.

7

As noted in footnote a of table III.A2 and elsewhere in this report, benefit payments and asset reserves shown for 2021 reflect the 12 months of benefits scheduled for payment in 2021 and thus include the benefits scheduled for payment on January 3, 2021, which were actually paid on December 31, 2020, as required by the law.

8

The OASI and DI Trust Funds are distinct legal entities which operate independently. To illustrate the actuarial status of the program as a whole, the fund operations are often combined on a hypothetical basis.