A former top executive at the Social Security Administration quietly floated an idea to park part of the program's $2.7 trillion trust fund in a short-term Treasury note that would automatically convert into an S&P 500 index basket at maturity, but the proposal never really saw the light of day.
What Happened: Scott Coulter, who served as SSA chief information officer until spring, argued the hybrid debt-equity instrument could buy the program time by earning higher market returns than traditional special-issue bonds, according to an internal summary seen by The Wall Street Journal.
Coulter drafted the plan while acting as SSA's liaison to the Trump-backed Department of Government Efficiency. He proposed shifting only a slice of assets to limit risk, saying the note would give trustees an upside without violating the law's daily investment mandate. The trust fund currently invests exclusively in non-marketable Treasury securities.
Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano, who was confirmed for his role in May this year, shelved the idea. The former Fiserv chief told lawmakers that he’s more focused on fixing customer service first and integrating artificial intelligence tools.
In a separate statement, Bisignano said safeguarding the fund "remains a top priority for the Trump administration."
Why It Matters: The non-partisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget warns that President Donald Trump's pending "One Big Beautiful Bill" would speed the depletion of the retirement reserve to 2032 by trimming taxes on benefits. Eliminating benefit taxes outright would drain $1.5 trillion more, show estimates.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has floated a broader fix that involves pairing the program with a new sovereign wealth fund seeded by "baby bonds" for newborns. Any equity move, however, would need congressional approval and fresh borrowing to redeem existing bonds, an expensive step at today's rates, former trustee Charles Blahous noted while speaking to WSJ.
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