Editing Social Security Act (section)

==Amendments==

===Social Security Act Amendments of 1939===

H.R.6635 Approved, August 10, 1939,
Public Law 76-379

==== Expansion of benefits ====
The original Act provided for only one Federally-administered benefit: Old-Age Insurance, which was paid only to the insured worker. The 1939 Amendments transformed the very nature of the Social Security program. The Amendments created two new benefit categories under §202 of the Act:

* Payments to the spouse and children of a retired worker called '''dependents or family benefits''', a provision of Old-Age Insurance.
* Payments to the family of an insured worker in the event of the premature death of the worker, called '''survivors benefits''', the provision of the then-newly created Survivors Insurance program.

Retirement-aged wives, children under 16 (under 18 if attending school), widowed mothers caring for eligible children, and aged widows were all made eligible for dependents and survivors benefits.

Under select circumstances, parents of deceased insured workers were also made eligible for Survivors Insurance. To be eligible parents must be at least age 65, not entitled to Old-Age Insurance, wholly dependent upon the insured worker for income, and mustn't have married since the death of the insured worker. Furthermore, the parent(s) are not eligible if the deceased insured worker leaves a widow or unmarried surviving child under the age of 18.

The 1939 Amendments also increased benefit amounts and accelerated the start of monthly benefit payments from 1940 to 1942.

==== Alteration of financing mechanisms ====
The Old-Age Reserve Account previously established under §201 of the Act was replaced by the Federal Old-Age and Survivors Insurance Trust Fund, administered by a Board of Trustees. The [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|Secretary of the Treasury]], [[United States Secretary of Labor|Secretary of Labor]], and the Chairman of the Social Security Board were all [[ex-officio member]]s. The composition of the Board of Trustees has been significantly altered since.

===War Mobilization and Reconversion Act of 1944===

S.2051 Approved, October 3, 1944
  
Public Law 78-458

Title XII

===Social Security Act Amendments of 1946===

H.R.7037 Approved, August 10, 1946
Public Law 79-719

Title XIII

===Social Security Act Amendments of 1950===

H.R.6000 Approved August 28, 1950
Public Law 81-734

These amendments raised benefits for the very first time and placed the program on the road to the virtually universal coverage it has today. Specifically it is the introduction of the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA).

===H.R.6291===

Approved June 28, 1952
Public Law 82-420

===Social Security Act Amendments of 1952===

H.R.7800 Approved, July 18, 1952
Public Law 82-590

===Social Security Act Amendments of 1954===

H.R.9366 Approved September 1, 1954
Public Law 83-761

===H.R.9709===
Approved September 1, 1954
Public Law 83-767

Title XV

===Maternal and Child Health and Mental Retardation Planning Amendments of 1963===

H.R.7544 Approved, October 24, 1963
Public Law 88-156

Title XVII

===Social Security Amendments of 1965===
{{Main|Social Security Amendments of 1965}}

H.R.6675 Approved, July 30, 1965
Public Law 89-97

Title XVIII
Title XIX