AARP SURVEY: NEW "ANXIETY INDEX" REVEALS ECONOMIC ISSUES FACING, DRIVING VOTERS 50+ IN 2012 ELECTIONS

Across party lines, voters want more information candidates' plans to strengthen Social Security and Medicare.

WASHINGTON - In the coming November elections, a key group of voters - non-retired baby boomers ages 50-64 - are driven by economic anxieties that extend well beyond the single issue of jobs, according to the results of a new series of surveys by AARP.  All voters age 50+ want the candidates to better explain their plans for Social Security and Medicare, which will help them determine their votes.

50+ Voters' Financial Outlook: Dissatisfied and Anxious

The particular pressures facing boomer voters - across party lines - are reflected in a new "Anxiety Index," which measures their worries on issues including prices rising faster than incomes (75% worry somewhat or very often about this), health expenses (62%), not having financial security in retirement (73%) and paying too much in taxes (71%).  By comparison, 32% of these boomer voters regularly worry about being able to find a full-time job with benefits or keep up with their mortgage or rent (30%), issues that are more widely discussed as leading economic issues for voters in the coming election.

"We know the issue of jobs is very important to voters age 50-plus, but any meaningful discussion of the economy and this year's election has to include the future of Social Security and Medicare," said Nancy LeaMond, AARP Executive Vice President.  "For these voters, 'retirement security' and 'economic security' are largely the same thing."

Non-retired boomer voters are pessimistic about retirement.  Almost three-in-four (72%) believe they will have to delay retirement, and almost two-in-three (65%) worry they won't have enough to retire.  Half of these voters (50%) don't think they'll ever be able to retire. They overwhelmingly (59%) believe the recent economic downturn will force them to rely more on Social Security and Medicare.

Anxiety about retirement security is a main driver for all voters 50+.  Nearly seven-in-ten (69%) of retired voters 50+ worry about prices rising faster than their incomes, and almost half (48%) worry about having unaffordable health expenses, despite the relative security provided by Medicare.  Only four-in-ten (42%) African-American voters 50+ are confident that they will have enough money to live comfortably throughout their retirement.  Hispanic voters 50+ overwhelmingly say that the recent economic downturn negatively impacted their personal circumstances (84%) and will force them to rely more on Social Security and Medicare (69%).

50+ Voters and the 2012 Elections

Economic anxieties among voters 50+ are leading to a general dissatisfaction with political leaders.  Voters 50+ are as likely to say that their personal economic circumstances were negatively affected by political gridlock in Washington (78%) as by the economic downturn (77%).  Almost half (49%) of these voters disapprove of President Obama's job performance, and more than eight-in-ten (81%) disapprove of Congress.  As of now, voters 50+ evenly are split in their presidential vote preference (45% for President Obama, 45% for Governor Romney, and 10% not sure).

The concerns of 50+ voters highlight the importance of Social Security and Medicare as election issues.  They think the next president and Congress need to strengthen Social Security (91%) and Medicare (88%).  They also overwhelmingly (91%) think that these issues are too big for either party to fix alone and require Republicans and Democrats to come together.

Voters 50+ are looking to the candidates for more information on these key issues.  These voters overwhelmingly think the candidates have not done a good job of explaining their plans on Social Security (67%) and Medicare (63%).  Moving forward, these voters - across party lines - say that getting more information on the candidates' plans on Social Security (72%) and Medicare (70%) will help them determine their vote on election day.

"The message from voters 50+ is clear," added LeaMond.  "In a razor-tight election, candidates have a major opportunity to reach key voters by speaking about their plans on Social Security and Medicare - and they are making a huge gamble if they ignore them."

Earlier this year, AARP launched You've Earned a Say, a national conversation to ensure that Americans have a say in the future of Social Security and Medicare.  Through You've Earned a Say, AARP is taking the discussion about the future of Medicare and Social Security out from behind closed doors in Washington.  To date, more than 2.1 million Americans have engaged with You've Earned a Say to share their thoughts about how best to protect and strengthen health and retirement security for today's seniors and future generations.

For more information, please visit www.earnedasay.org.  For complete results of AARP voter surveys, please visit www.aarp.org/voters50plus.

Methodology

AARP commissioned Hart Research Associates and GS Strategy Group to conduct a series of surveys of registered voters ages 18+, which were conducted by telephone July 10-16, 2012.  For the national survey, blinded telephone interviews were conducted with 1,852 registered voters (core sample of 1,001, plus oversamples of voters 50+, African American voters 50+ and Hispanic voters 50+).  The margin of error for the primary national sample of 1,001 is ±3.1%, for the sample of 536 non-retired baby boomers it is ±4.2%, and for the sample of 1,331 voters age 50 and over the margin of error is ±2.7%.  Additional oversample surveys were conducted in Colorado, Florida, Nevada, Ohio, Virginia and Wisconsin.

About AARP

AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization, with a membership of more than 37 million, that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for Americans 50+ and the world's largest-circulation magazine; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for the 50+ audience; AARP VIVA, a bilingual lifestyle multimedia platform addressing the interests and needs of Hispanic Americans; and national television and radio programming including My Generation and Inside E Street. The AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. AARP has staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Learn more at www.aarp.org.

Des Moines, April 12, 2012–AARP thanks the Iowa Senate for supporting Iowa's largest workforce -Direct Care Workers, by funding and including language to professionalize Direct Care Workers in the Senate HHS Appropriations Budget, Senate File 2336.

"AARP thanks the members of the Iowa Senate who voted for improving and supporting Iowa's largest skilled workforce so that Iowa is prepared to care," said Kent Sovern, AARP Iowa State Director.

A task force made up of members of Iowa's direct care workers as well as industry providers has spent more than two years developing the recommendations on how to better support Iowa's Direct Care Workers.  SF 2336 establishes core state standards for training, creates career pathways for advancement and specialization, and creates a Board to oversee these professional standards.  Currently, Iowa has professional oversight boards and requires qualitative credentialing for all plumbers, hair stylists, massage therapists and a host of other occupations, but does not require a similar credentialing for all direct care workers.

"This most recent direct care support language passed in the Iowa Senate is the product of extensive negotiations and input from stakeholders in all corners of long term care," said Sovern.  "AARP commends the Iowa Senate for giving Iowa's direct care workers the recognition and professional status they want and deserve, and for insisting upon minimum training standards for paid caregivers for various Iowans and in various long-term settings."

With an estimated 73,000 direct care workers in Iowa, these paid caregivers make up the largest segment of Iowa's workforce.  Moreover, demand for direct care services is high and growing.  Iowa will need an additional 12,000 direct care workers by 2012.  High turnover is a persistent challenge.  This legislation elevates the profession by offering all Iowa's direct care workers portable training and credentials.

AARP hopes the Iowa's Representatives will also support this language and funding to continue to be a national leader in better serving Iowa's long-term care needs.

About AARP
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with a membership that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with over 35.1 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP's millions of members and Americans 50+; AARP VIVA, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Bipartisan Legislation Will Protect Older Workers from Discrimination

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Iowa Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) have today joined with Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) to introduce legislation that revives vital civil rights protections for older workers that were limited following the Supreme Court's decision in Gross v. FBL Financial.  Harkin is Chairman of the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee while Senators Leahy and Grassley are the Chairman and ranking member respectively of the Senate Judiciary Committee.

In Gross, the Supreme Court overturned established precedent that had applied standards of proof the Supreme Court first set out in interpreting the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to the Age Discrimination and Employment Act (ADEA).  The Court held that because Congress did not amend the ADEA to include this standard when it codified the standard for race, sex, national origin, and religion claims as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the standard did not apply to age claims.  As a result of this discrepancy, the opinion has also had reverberations in a wide range of civil cases in addition to age discrimination, including discrimination based on disability.   

"Jack Gross's story is unique, but sadly, is not uncommon," said Senator Harkin.  "Prior to the Court's decision in Gross, the same standard of proof applied equally to all workers, regardless of the type of invidious discrimination they faced.  Ignoring these consistent standards, the Court's decision established a far higher standard of proof for age than for discrimination based on race, sex, national origin and religion, without any rationale or justification.  The Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act will reverse the Court's decision and restore the law to what it was for decades so that Jack Gross and all older workers in this country enjoy the full protections of the law."

"The decision in the Gross case has had a major impact on employment discrimination litigation across the country.  It's time we clarify the law to ensure that other people like Jack Gross aren't put in similar situations.  Older Americans have immense value to our society and our economy and they deserve the protections Congress originally intended," Grassley said.

"This bipartisan legislation reaffirms the contributions made by older Americans in the workforce and ensures that employees will be evaluated based on their performance and not by arbitrary criteria such as age," said Senator Leahy.  "In these difficult economic times, hardworking Americans deserve our help.  We must not allow a thin majority of the Supreme Court to eliminate the protections that Congress has enacted for them."

"The Supreme Court's decision in my case significantly undermined well-established protections against discrimination for older workers," said Jack Gross, the Des Moines man whose case prompted the legislation.  "I am also concerned that this decision, with my name on it, is being used as precedent to undermine workers' rights under other civil rights laws, too."

"I am grateful and proud to have two tenured and highly-respected senators from my home state of Iowa leading the charge on this bipartisan bill to restore longstanding legal standards.  Congress has a long history of working together, on a bipartisan basis, to create a level playing field in the workplace, and I hope they will enact this legislation as soon as possible."

The Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act will restore fundamental fairness.

• The Act reverses the Gross decision and restores the law to what it was for decades before the Court rewrote the rule.  The Act makes clear that when a victim shows discrimination was a "motivating factor" behind a decision, the burden is properly on the employer to show it complied with the law.
• The Act is modeled on the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which passed the Senate on a bipartisan basis 93-5.  Among other things, the Civil Rights Act of 1991 codified the "motivating factor" framework for race, sex, national origin and religion discrimination claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
• The Act makes clear that this "motivating factor" framework applies to all anti-discrimination and anti-retaliation laws involving race, sex, national origin, religion, age and disability - treating all workers, and all forms of discrimination, equally.

The bill is supported by the AARP, the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the Leadership Conference for Civil and Human Rights, National Employment Lawyers Association, National Partnership for Women and Families, and National Senior Citizens Law Center.

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Des Moines – A recently released Iowa Utilities Board staff memo critically analyzes a proposed amended version of House File 561, a bill that would allow utilities to raise customers' rates up front for a possible Iowa nuclear power plant before it is built.  This memo confirms many of AARP's and other ratepayer concerns and reasons for opposing the proposed legislation.

 

In the memo, the IUB staff notes the various ways an amended HF 561 not only fails to protect consumer interests, but that the proposed changes to Iowa law would actually create incentives for utilities to behave in a manner contrary to the public interest.

 

Even with the last minute amendment, the IUB staff writes (on page 3, section 3) HF 561 "would shift nearly all of the construction, licensing and permitting risk associated with one or more nuclear plants from the company to its customers." The legislation does this by pre-approving spending and guaranteeing utilities can recover pre-approved prudent costs, "including a profit on capital investments."

 

The memo also notes that "some of these provisions could create incentives for the company to engage in behavior that could be contrary to the public interest in certain situations." Among those provisions is a section that would permit the full recovery of all pre-approved expenditures, including profits, even if the utility does not complete the project.

 

Continuing on page 3, the memo presents one example of "the way the bill shifts risk form the company to its customers and creates undesirable incentives." For example, what happens if the utility company makes a multi-million dollar construction mistake a few years and $1 billion into the project?  The changes HF 561 makes to Iowa law would "effectively create an incentive for the utility to walk away from the plant" because the utility is already guaranteed recovery and profit on all spending up to that point.

 

"This memo supports AARP concerns about shifting the high cost and risks to build an estimated multi-billion plant onto ratepayers before it is built," said AARP State Director Kent Sovern.  "Besides highlighting the ways this bill incentivizes behavior contrary to the public interest, the memo also details ways this legislation would tie the hands of the Utility Board from protecting and advancing the public interest."

 

Sovern also praised the Iowa Senate, which did not pass HF 561 last year. "The Senate demonstrated its leadership and its concern for consumers in its refusal last year to pass this legislation. This memo," Sovern said, "confirms many of the ways this legislation is a raw deal for Iowa consumers."

 

AARP is concerned about keeping utility rates affordable and accessible, which is particularly an issue for aging Iowans.  November 2011 data shows that despite the fact Iowa had a relatively mild winter, near record numbers of Iowans were still behind on their utility bills. Iowans can make their voices heard and contact their lawmakers on this issue by calling a statewide toll-free connection to the State Senate at 1-800-480-4075, or on line at www.action.aarp.org/ia.