Children who have suffered the devastating loss of a parent or guardian face another loss as they age - survivor's benefits. Typically, these children qualify for survivor’s benefits until they are 18 years of age. However, that is when the financial support of their lost parent often stops. (Note: Some children collect social security benefits for disability or retirement situations.)

U.S. Senate Bill 2397 seeks to change the law by allowing qualified dependent college students to continue collecting social security benefits until they are 26 years of age. 

According to the Social Security Administration, “. . . more than twice as many child beneficiaries (approximately 750,000 children) would be living below the poverty level. . .” without social security benefits in 2009. The department goes on to state that, “Social Security is a major source of income for children whose insured parents die, become disabled, or retire.”

Students who attend college while depending on the financial support of their parent(s) or guardian(s) do not suddenly need less financial support when they leave for their studies. In fact, statistics show otherwise. According to the Pew Research Center, 20% of dependent college students were dealing with poverty in 2016 while 18% of children under the age of 18 were dealing with poverty in the same year, according to the United States Census Bureau. 

While many dependent college students continue to receive financial support from their parents and guardians in their most vulnerable young adult years, students who have lost a parent are dependent on only the help of their surviving parent or guardian – and that’s only if that person can financially support themselves, a household and possibly other children, as well as the college student. Supporting Senate Bill 2397 could ensure that those students continue to receive financial support from survivor’s benefits while attending college at least part-time until they are 26 years of age.  

Stand with us and support the next generation. These students who rely on survivor’s benefits have been through enough. Help us help them find a better future for themselves and our country!

REFERENCES

Fry, R., & Cilluffo, A. (2020, May 30). A Rising Share of Undergraduates Are From Poor Families, Especially at Less Selective Colleges. Pew Research Center’s Social & Demographic Trends Project. https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2019/05/22/a-rising-share-of-undergraduates-are-from-poor-families-especially-at-less-selective-colleges/

Social Security Administration. (n.d.). Population Profile: Child Beneficiaries & Poverty. https://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/population-profiles/children-poverty.html

US Census Bureau. (2021, October 8). Income and Poverty in the United States: 2016. Census.Gov. https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2017/demo/p60-259.html

U.S. Congress. (n.d.). S.2397 - 117th Congress (2021–2022): Helping Students SOAR with Social Security Act. Congress.Gov | Library of Congress. https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-congress/senate-bill/2397