1948 Advisory Council
The Advisory Council of 1948 recommended important improvements in
the Social Security program. Their Report would eventually result in the
1950 Amendments to the Social Security Act, which in the words of Bob
Ball, ". . . really saved the concept of contributory social insurance
in America." The 1950 Amendments expanded coverage under Social Security--sending
it on the way to the universal program we have today. It also dramatically
increased the value of Social Security benefits, for both current and
future beneficiaries. The changes were so important that the period starting
in 1951 became known as the "new start" to Social Security.
The 1950 Amendments, following the 1935 Act and the 1939 Amendments, stands
as one of the most important milestones in the historical development
of Social Security in America, and the Report of the 1948 Advisory Council
started the legislative process in motion.
The work of the Advisory Council was produced in four separate reports,
reproduced here. We are also reprinted two articles from the Social Security
Bulletin of 1948 which briefly summarize the main features of the much
longer formal Reports of the Council, as well as a Report published by
the Social Security Administration (SSA) in 1948 in which SSA gives its
own views on the Council's recommendations.
Articles About the 1948 Advisory Council Report
Views of the Social Security Administration on the Report of the 1948 Advisory Council
The 1948 Advisory Council Report
| Part I | Old-Age and Survivors Insurance, Introduction & Summary |
| Part I | Old-Age and Survivors Insurance |
| Part I | Old-Age and Survivors Insurance, Appendixes (in Adode PDF format-- 2.5 meg., 21 pgs.) |
| Part II | Permanent and Total Disability Insurance, with Appendixes (in Adode PDF format-- 3.6 meg., 25 pgs.) |
| Part III | Public Assistance (in Adode PDF format-- 3.8 meg., 25 pgs.) |
| Part III | Public Assistance, Appendixes (in Adode PDF format-- 1.8 meg., 17 pgs.) |
| Part IV | Unemployment Insurance (in Adode PDF format-- 8.4 meg., 52 pgs.) |
| Part IV | Unemployment Insurance, Appendixes (in Adode PDF format-- 6.0 meg., 48 pgs.) |