# Summary
The Strengthening Social Security Act of 2023 makes several changes to increase Social Security revenue and benefits. The bill gradually eliminates the wage cap that limits Social Security taxes starting in 2025, with the applicable percentage declining from 80 percent in 2025 to zero percent by 2029, meaning all wages above the current cap will eventually be subject to Social Security taxation for both employees and self-employed workers. The legislation increases Social Security benefit calculations by raising the first bend point from 90 percent to 95 percent, beginning in 2029 with a gradual phase-in, and adds a new component that includes five percent of earnings above the current wage cap in benefit determinations for individuals becoming eligible after 2029. The bill directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics to develop a Consumer Price Index for Elderly Consumers by mid-2024 to better measure inflation for seniors, which will be used to calculate cost-of-living adjustments starting in late 2024. Additionally, the legislation improves widow and widower benefits for two-income households by allowing survivors to receive a benefit equal to 75 percent of their own benefit plus the deceased worker's benefit, effective in January 2025. The bill contains no specific funding authorization but preserves existing Supplemental Security Income benefits for current beneficiaries.