
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SUNDAY, September 19, 1993                   TAG: 9309190130
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

BABY BOOMERS' FUTURE STILL BRIGHT, STUDY SAYS

Educated baby boomers in two-income families will be better off financially in retirement than their parents, according to a congressional study that contradicts widespread fears about the generation's future.

But not all baby boomers can look forward to a comfortable retirement, according to the report Saturday by the Congressional Budget Office.

Single, poorly educated baby boomers could wind up on public assistance when they retire, the CBO warned, while couples who never bought their own home or relied on a single income may also have trouble making ends meet.

"Although the future looks bright for those who are well-educated, it is distinctly gloomy for those without many marketable skills," Congress' nonpartisan budget analysts said in their report. "Those with a college education can expect higher incomes, faster wage growth and more resources available for saving."

Marital status and home ownership are also important indicators in predicting a baby boomer's economic health in retirement, CBO said in the report, requested by Rep. Andy Jacobs, D-Ind., and chairman of the House Ways and Means subcommittee on Social Security.

The financial benefits of being in a two-income family tend to continue in the retirement years, while homeowners accumulate more wealth than non-homeowners, the CBO said.

The baby boom generation includes roughly 76 million people born between 1946 and 1964. Many people, including the baby boomers themselves, are concerned that public and private resources will be inadequate to provide for their financial well-being when they retire in large numbers between 2010 and 2030, the CBO said.

Nevertheless, the CBO said baby boomers have done well on balance; they are richer and better-educated than their parents were at the same ages.

CBO also argues that most baby boomers will enjoy higher incomes and more wealth than their parents when they retire as long as real wages continue to grow. The budget office also assumes that Social Security and private pensions remain intact and that health care expenditures don't swamp other gains.

by CNB