10 States That Would Be Hurt the Most by Social Security Cuts

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Rumors of Social Security cuts have swirled around the program for years. Changing demographics have created a situation in which the ratio between retirees and current workers has gotten unbalanced. As a result, the Social Security program has been forced to draw down its reserve Trust Fund, to the point that it will become depleted in 2037. At that point, taxes on current workers will fund only about 76% of promised benefits.

While many solutions have been floated, one of the options is simply to cut benefits. If that were allowed to happen, some states would be affected more than others, as the number of recipients and the amount of benefits paid out is not equal from state to state.

Currently, there are 10 states that have more than 1.9 million Social Security recipients, making them the ones most impacted by any cuts to benefits. These states are listed below, ranked by the number of recipients.

California

• Number of recipients: 6,251,295

California is far and away the state that would be most affected by any cuts to Social Security, with nearly 1.3 million more Social Security recipients than any other state. California’s Social Security recipients also receive far and away the largest dollar amount of benefits, which totaled more than $837 million as of December 2022. This is more than double the amount that beneficiaries in any other state in America received. 

Florida

• Number of recipients: 4,986,213

Florida has a reputation for being a state with a large number of seniors, and that’s actually borne out by the numbers. Out of the nearly 5 million Social Security recipients in the state, over 3.8 million are retired workers. Roughly $340 million in benefits is at risk if Social Security payments get cut.

Texas

• Number of recipients: 4,568,465

Texas has the third-highest number of Social Security recipients, and it runs third in terms of total dollar payments to recipients, where it is slightly nosed out by New York. Still, more than $360 million in benefits could be subject to Social Security cuts in the state.

New York

• Number of recipients: 3,710,827

New York receives more in Social Security payments than Texas, even though it has roughly 850,000 fewer recipients. This is likely due to the fact that New Yorkers have higher average incomes than Texans, which results in higher benefits.

Pennsylvania

• Number of recipients: 2,898,240

Pennsylvania Social Security recipients are at risk of losing some of their $216 million in benefits if payments are to be cut. Nearly 3 million Social Security recipients could feel the pain.

Ohio

• Number of recipients: 2,427,966

Ohio is the seventh-most populated state in America, but it has the sixth-most Social Security beneficiaries, at over 2.4 million. That means Ohio has more beneficiaries in relation to its entire population than some other states, making it more susceptible to future cuts.

Illinois

• Number of recipients: 2,285,265

Illinois is the sixth most-populated state in the nation, but it ranks No. 7 when it comes to the number of its residents that are Social Security recipients. Still, roughly $159 million in benefits are at risk of Social Security cuts. 

Michigan

• Number of recipients: 2,269,413

Michigan is one of three states in the Midwest with a large number of Social Security beneficiaries. Up to $165 million in benefits could be in jeopardy if there are cuts to Social Security.

North Carolina

• Number of recipients: 2,234,888

North Carolina isn’t often thought of as having a large population, but it actually ranks No. 9 in the U.S. This is part of the reason why the state has so many Social Security recipients, at over 2 million. Payments in the state top $134 million.

Georgia

• Number of recipients: 1,945,822

Georgia and its nearly $158 million in Social Security benefits are at risk in the event of future program cuts. Nearly 2 million recipients could be affected in the Peach State.

Other States

Although these are the top 10 states that would be the most impacted by Social Security cuts, there isn’t a state across the board that would remain unaffected. Even Wyoming, which receives the smallest dollar amount of Social Security benefits of any state, still has 123,325 beneficiaries receiving over $4 million in benefits. Plenty of other states receive more than $50 million.

The bottom line is that potential Social Security cuts are a nationwide problem.

Gabrielle Olya contributed to the reporting for this article.

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