There is a growing debate in Washington about the future of Social Security. There are many different plans, but all agree that something has to be done. Without a new plan, the current system will be overloaded with the baby boomer seniors and will go bankrupt sometime early next century.

Before you nod off to sleep from boredom, maybe I should explain to many of you the importance of Social Security. Knowing what the government is supposed to provide for you will hopefully stimulate your interest in the subject.

First of all, Social Security was started in 1935 as one of Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal programs. It was started as a way to provide a pension for retirees. Over the years, the program has been amended for the disabled, widows, widowers and orphans.

FICA (that’s the name for the Social Security law, and that’s what you see on your paycheck) deducts 6.2 percent of your weekly income and deducts the same amount from your employer on the first $65,400 of your wages. Another 1.45 percent on all of your wages is deducted for Medicare. As you can see, a lot of your hard-earned dollars go into this program.

There is a big problem, though. Because of the huge population explosion after World War II, more people than ever before in America’s history will start earning Social Security after 2008. This massive drain on the system, barring any reforms, will bankrupt the program sometime in the 2020s or 2030s. Since many of us will be retiring in the 2040s, this should be of great importance to all of us.

Many are unconvinced that our lawmakers will be able to save Social Security. In a Time/CNN poll conducted on April 8 and 9, 54 percent believed that the 63-year-old program would go bankrupt before they retired. I myself seriously question whether the money I’ve put into the program will be there when I retire.

There have been many proposals to save the future of Social Security. The first is simple enough: raise the minimum retirement age. If done gradually, it would avoid asking those already close to retirement to shoulder the burden. Raising the age from 62 to 67 over 10 or 15 years seems like the best idea. People are living longer, and raising the retirement age gradually is a fair way to keep Social Security alive.

Some groups want to completely privatize Social Security. As one can probably guess, this is a rather radical proposal that people don’t completely want to back. Though such a program might have better returns, the risk of people losing their money with a private company is just as high (some say greater) than keeping the system in the government.

Another proposal is less controversial. It asks the government to reduce the FICA tax if individuals choose to invest their money in other retirement investments like the stock market. If, however, people had a higher aversion to risk and chose to keep their money in the current system, it would stay there.

There is good reasoning for this idea. By 2012, the Social Security will be paying out more than it is earning in payroll taxes. (Source: Cato Institute) The trust fund that backs the system will have to be used to pay out benefits.

This trust fund earns interest on U.S. Treasury securities it purchases. Though these T-bonds are very secure, they earn low rates of interest. This has caused the Social Security system to be the worst investment people could have made over the past 50 years.

As risky as the stock market seems, it has fared historically better than Social Security. Also, many people like the option of investing their money in stocks or mutual funds to save for their retirement instead of the government taking their money to save for someone else’s. In that same Time/CNN poll, 60 percent of those asked said they would support such a program.

Giving people their own investment choices with their FICA taxes seems to hold the strongest support as a possible reform option. When you realize that millions already have their own pensions, IRAs, and 401K plans, changing Social Security to reflect the current reality doesn’t seem too objectionable.

No matter what your age, the Social Security debate effects you. Almost 44 million people receive benefits every month; that number will only increase over the next 25 years. If you want a part of those benefits the government takes out of your paycheck every week, you need to educate yourself and ask your lawmakers to find a solution soon.

Robert Zeis is a senior in finance from Des Moines.