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AARP Warns Against Use of Chained CPI

The AARP today released a poll with a message for Congress: Vote for the budget proposal known as chained CPI at your peril.

The wonky-sounding chained consumer price index proposal is portrayed by supporters as a slight tweak in the way inflation is calculated, but the seniors lobby say it would amount to a cut for the elderly and veterans living on tight budgets already.

The poll found that 66 percent of older American voters would have a “considerably less favorable” view of their member of Congress if the lawmaker voted for the proposal, which is expected to be included in the Obama administration’s fiscal 2014 budget.

“This cut to Social Security would break the promise to seniors and hurt veterans who’ve sacrificed so much for this great country,” said AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond in a statement announcing the poll’s results. “The chained CPI reduction snowballs over time and would increase taxes for most taxpayers — at the same time that it cuts benefits for children, veterans, widows, retirees, and people with disabilities. As this survey shows, older Americans oppose the chained CPI and they’ve historically made their opinions known to their elected officials.”

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