SocSec Plan & Rural Women

and farming communities would suffer under the Bush/Santorum privatization plan.

Because Social Security plays a more significant role in the overall
income of rural communities than it does in non-rural communities, the
$205,632 reduction in retirement benefits facing a typical Pennsylvanian
under the Bush/Santorum plan would hit rural families harder.

"Rural families work hard to earn a secure retirement, and the
Bush/Santorum plan puts their retirement security in jeopardy," said
Lauren Townsend, Executive Director of Citizens for Consumer Justice.
"Social Security is a crucial guaranteed benefit for rural communities
and it should not be gambled on the stock market. This report shows how
important it is that we take privatization off the table."

According to the report by the Institute for America's Future, there are
23 counties in Pennsylvania that are considered to be rural. Among
those counties, total personal income was fully $18,151,376,000 in 2003,
the most recent county-specific information available. Individuals with
Social Security income in these counties cumulatively received
$1,594,581,000 in Social Security benefits - or 8.8 percent of total
personal income.

While non-rural communities rely on Social Security income, their
reliance on the program is not as great. There are 44 non-rural
counties in Pennsylvania with a total personal income of
$376,609,395,000 (again, as of 2003, the most recent year such data was
available). Individuals in these counties received $23,342,259,000 in
Social Security benefits in 2003 - or 6.2 percent of total personal income.

Clearly, rural communities are relying on Social Security benefits more
heavily than non-rural communities. Rural Pennsylvanians tend to be
older and tend to use survivor or disability benefits more frequently as
a result of the risks associated with farming.

The Institute for America's Future further investigated the impact of
the Bush/Santorum plan on rural women, specifically.

According to the report, as a group, senior women in rural communities
have a more difficult time making ends meet than most other Americans.
Nationally, 15 percent of rural women over the age of 60 are poor. By
comparison, 11 percent of rural men over the age of 60 are poor. In
addition, among rural seniors over the age of 85 with an income of less
than $10,000 per year, 80 percent are women. As a result, rural women
are less likely to be able to afford the Bush/Santorum benefit cuts.

"A greater number of rural women rely on Social Security benefits to
survive than just about any other group," said Joanne Tosti-Vasey,
Treasurer of Pennsylvania NOW and a member of Pennsylvanians United.
"Privatizing Social Security and cutting retirement, survivor, and
disability benefits would be a devastating blow to these women. It's
not fair and it's not right. We're standing up today to say NO to
privatization and benefit cuts."

Speaking at the press conference today was Centre County resident Mary
Angert who comes from a rural, working family. Angert spoke of the
challenges facing rural, farming families.

"When I was growing up, my family wasn't any different than the other
rural working families we knew," said Angert. "We worked hard every day
to put food on the table and make ends meet. But eventually there came
a time when it just wasn't enough. Thanks to the Social Security safety
net, we were able to make it through. For my family, like so many rural
families, Social Security was and continues to be an insurance policy
against poverty and desperation. We have to do everything in our power
to protect it and defeat any effort to privatize it."

Pennsylvanians United to Protect Social Security is a non-partisan
coalition of organizations committed to opposing Social Security benefit
cuts for the middle class and any effort to privatize Social Security.

Note: The National Report can be found at: