[Smokin' Joe]

I hate to break it to you, but Social Security payments are adjusted every year for inflation.

That does not so much matter, if the income is in inflated dollars tied into a fixed tier of rates and income numbers are inflatng, too.

As the SSI payments increase, a greater proportion becomes taxable, iirc.

That way more people are paying higher rates and getting caught up in things like the AMT, so the result is more revenue for the Government. I'd bet that increase will outstrip even the increase in the payments.

Unless the indexes are indexed for inflation, at some point having enough to buy bread will make you, by definition, "rich", just as a six figure income does today, although median home prices have gone from $20-30K to $ 185K in the time since those definitions of 'wealth' were codified.

[Toddsterpatriot]

That does not so much matter, if the income is in inflated dollars tied into a fixed tier of rates and income numbers are inflatng, too.

As the SSI payments increase, a greater proportion becomes taxable, iirc.

Income tax brackets are adjusted for inflation too.

That way more people are paying higher rates and getting caught up in things like the AMT,

AMT is not adjusted for inflation.