Social Security benefits to go up by 1.7 percent

Mildly positive news out today on the fiscal front.  Story at Yahoo!.

Social Security payments for retired workers average $1,237 a month, or about $14,800 a year. A 1.7 percent increase will amount to about $21 a month, or $252 a year, on average. Social Security recipients received a 3.6 percent increase in benefits this year after getting none the previous two years. About 8 million people who receive Supplemental Security Income will also receive the cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, meaning the announcement will affect about 1 in 5 U.S. residents.

I believe this flow adjustment will take place on January 1, 2013.  All of these balances WILL be spent in the economy.

Based on last FY's total Social Security withdrawals of $658B, this 1.7% increase will add just over $10B more in fiscal flows to the non-government sector next year.... like I said, mildly positive.  Perhaps the best we can expect from the morons who are unfortunately in policy making positions at this time.