AARP Members Oppose Private Accounts
Florida candidates who support carving out private Social Security accounts risk losing the votes of fully two-thirds of the state’s AARP members, according to a new AARP Florida poll.
“Florida AARP members overwhelmingly oppose putting Social Security at risk by carving out private accounts,” said Bentley Lipscomb, AARP Florida state director. “Clearly AARP Florida members have concluded that guaranteed Social Security benefits should remain a bedrock of retirement financial security.”
The AARP member survey gathered opinions from more than 1,000 AARP Florida members in early summer 2006. With 2.7 million members, AARP Florida is the largest organization representing Americans 50 and older in the Sunshine State.
Opposition to private accounts was intense. According to the poll, 60 percent of AARP members in Florida were strongly or somewhat opposed to carving private accounts out of Social Security, with 44 percent strongly opposed. Only 9 percent strongly supported the private-accounts proposal.
The poll also reflected concern among AARP Florida members regarding their financial security in retirement.
Some 71 percent were extremely, very, or somewhat concerned about the safety of their pension benefits and retirement savings, while only 17 percent were not very or not at all concerned. Some 36 percent said they were extremely concerned about pension benefits and retirement savings, while only 6 percent said they were not at all concerned.
The AARP Florida member survey was performed by AARP’s Knowledge Management unit, a group of research experts headquartered in Washington, D.C.
For more information on the poll, please visit www.aarp.org/fl.
AARP Florida
400 Carillon Parkway, Suite 100 - St. Petersburg, FL 33716
Toll Free - All Florida State Offices 866-595-7678
(Fax) 727-571-2278