Social Security recipients in some states could lose more than $500 in monthly benefits if a key funding source becomes insolvent. Exactly how much a retiree may lose will vary significantly depending on where they live, according to a new study from nonpartisan fiscal think tank Committee for a Responsible Budget. Among the U.S.’s 63 million Social Security recipients, those in Connecticut stand to lose the most money if the Old-Age and Survivors Insurance trust fund runs out by 2032, as the study points out.“No state would be spared from the potentially devastating effects of insolvency,” the committee wrote.Connecticut’s Social Security recipients would lose an average of $556 a month, followed by New Jersey ($554), New Hampshire ($553), Delaware ($549) and Maryland ($541). Exactly how much a retiree may lose financially will vary significantly on where they live (AFP/Getty)The least - but not insignificant - impact would be felt by those in Louisiana ($460), Arkansas ($469), Kentucky and New Mexico ($472), and Montana and Maine ($478).The Social Security system is set up to generate money through a 7.2 percent tax levied on paychecks. The Social Security Administration uses those funds to pay monthly benefits to retirees - $2,071, on average, as of January 2026.For the system to work as it should, the money entering needs to be more than the money taken out. In 1945, ten years after Social Security launched, that wasn’t a problem. There were roughly 42 workers for every one retiree, according to the nonpartisan research foundation Tax Project. By 2024, that ratio had shrunk to around three workers for every one retiree. The staggering decline in worker-to-retiree ratio hinges on several factors. Those 55 and over are more likely to work than they were in 2000, while those under 55 are less likely to work, a 2023 analysis from the Federal Reserve Bank of Minnesota found.The ratio of workers to retirees has dropped signficantly since 1945, putting strain on the Social Security System (Getty)Nearly one in four American workers is 55 or older, a May study from career development platform MyPerfectResume found. Retirees are also living around 15 years longer, resulting in individuals receiving benefits for more years.The average life expectancy in 1945 was 63.6 years, according to the Social Security Administration. In 2026, life expectancy is 79 years, the National Center for Health Statistics notes.Lawmakers have floated solutions for the Social Security trust fund’s looming insolvency. These include increasing the paycheck tax rate by 1 percentage point over 10 years; removing income limits that allow high earners to stop paying Social Security taxes after their income hits a certain point ($184,500 in 2026); and increasing the full retirement age to 69, the nonprofit policy solutions think tank Bipartisan Policy Center reported.