Impact on widows of proposed changes in OASI mother's benefits

This article examines the impact of a proposal that would terminate mother's and father's benefits when the youngest child in the care of a surviving spouse reaches age 16, rather than age 18, as in current law. Losses to families and savings to the social security program are estimated by taking into account 1977 benefit receipts and provisions in the Social Security Act that would have affected benefit size in that year. The study reveals that very few widowers would have lost any income if such a provision had been in effect at that time. Two-thirds of the families headed by widows with a youngest child aged 16-17, however, would have lost some income. Sixteen percent would have had family incomes below the poverty line without mother's benefits-10 percent already below the line and 6 percent that would have fallen below it because of the change. Fewer families with children under age 16 than with youngest children aged 16-17 would have lost benefits, but more would have been in poverty. An analysis of the characteristics of widows who might use a short-term training benefit if one were made available to them suggests that such a benefit would not be used by those widows who are neediest economically and educationally.