Social Security Timeline

73 years ago today, Ida May Fuller of Ludlow, Vermont, received the first Social Security check as a result of Franklin D. Roosevelt's signing of the Social Security Act into law.  Fuller had worked for three years under the Social Security program prior to receiving her first $22.54 check in 1940. Today, Social Security is an American institution, providing economic security to over 50 million seniors, disabled workers, widows and children.     

House Democrats stand united to protect and strengthen Social Security today and for future generations, and we will fight any Republican efforts to privatize Social Security.   Although Republicans have proposed “retooling” Social Security in the name of deficit reduction, the facts are clear: the Social Security program is healthy.  Since its inception, Social Security has paid for itself without adding a single dime to our national deficit. In fact, today, Social Security has a $2.7 trillion surplus.

To learn more about Social Security, view the timeline below: