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| 25 Ideas for 25 Years in the FutureThe Challenge: Ensure a thriving America when today’s college students are our nation’s leaders Important Progressive: accomplishing this challenge will contribute directly and specifically to the progressive values embodied by Roosevelt's Statement of Principles As entitlement costs continue to increase faster than the other sectors of the federal budget, many of our progressive ideals may be impossible to realize when we reach our 40s and 50s. According to the Government Accountability Office, by 2026, Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid will consume all federal tax receipts if revenues remain constant (http://www.concordcoalition.org/events/fiscal-wake-up/fiscal-wake-up-call.htm). The picture continues to deteriorate as more baby boomers retire. Money would then lack for other domestic and international programs progressives hold dear – or the government would have to face a tremendous amount of debt that the same study projects would reach 10% of GDP in 2027 and over 20% in 2039. (The worst debts of this administration were only about 4% of GDP in 2003.) Intelligent changes now can reduce this potential handicap for the nation and the progressive movement. Yet as Robert Bixby from the Concord Coalition, an organization committed to a responsible budget, notes, “The real choices require scaling back future health care and retirement benefit promises, raising revenues to pay for them, or -- most likely – some combination of both.” Progressives must contend with this paradox of reducing the extent of the social contract in order to allow the nation and other aspects of our agenda to thrive. We as college students possibly would not normally focus our attention on programs such as Medicare that we will not benefit from for at least another 40 years. However, we are the generation that will suffer if health care costs from Medicare especially are not reigned in. And the lack of personal savings in the United States – it has been negative for over one year – further threatens our country, especially with these prospects of large deficits. Innovative We're looking for policy challenges where innovation is needed: where there isn't already a clear solution or best practices, but solutions can be developed creatively. Our goal is to develop options, not to lobby or advocate for a solution that is already known or to debate among several yes or no outcomes or pre-defined policy choices. Other organizations do the important work of debating and lobbying, that's just not our place in the process. Innovation is certainly possible on this issue. Tax increases can come from taxing damaging aspects of consumption such as cigarettes or carbon emissions. Extremely progressive rates and very high incomes can discourage CEOs from taxing huge windfalls when their workers receive much less. A wide variety of mechanisms can improve savings. Feasible Approachable: given the level of research and discourse already available and given who else is working on the issue, college students with a range of experience levels and with varied types of expertise can contribute meaningfully to the debate and are likely to think of good ideas. We don't want something so technical only engineering majors can contribute to it, or something that is already dominated by another think tank or advocacy organization. Remember, the Summer Research College can will research these proposals and give students a strong background and grasp of health and tax policy central to this challenge. Last year, pursuing this challenge would not have been possible, but with this new Summer Research initiative, students will be prepared to propose policies on these topics.
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