"You want me to contribute to retirement when my kids need clothes and food?" said the 43-year-old mother of three. "Look at my income. There's no way I can save enough money. I'm really hoping (Social Security) will be there for me."

After taking many wrong turns in life, Malott walked into a rehab clinic seven years ago and started the long climb back to sobriety. Today, she holds down a counseling job and owns a home in Wai'anae that she shares with her three young children.

It's hard enough to cover daily necessities on her salary of $30,500 a year. There's not a lot left over to put in a retirement fund.

Still, it is one more burden Malott will have to shoulder if Social Security runs short of money. Greenspan told Congress on Wednesday that Social Security benefits have to come down "as soon as possible" to prevent the trust fund from going bust once baby boomers start to retire. The first wave of boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, would be eligible for full Social Security benefits starting in 2011.

"It's going to hurt all workers," said Terry Lau, political director for the Hawai'i State AFL-CIO.

The burdens on Social Security have grown as people live longer and the base of workers paying Social Security taxes declines. Today, taxes from three workers pay for one retiree's benefits when it used to be 40 workers for each retiree. By 2018, there will be more money being paid to retirees than collected in Social Security taxes.

Last year, 47 million Ame-ricans received $470 billion in Social Security benefits. About two-thirds of those getting Social Security said the money represents half or more of their income. For 20 percent of the elderly, Social Security is their only income.

In Hawai'i, nearly 200,000 people received $158 million in benefits in 2002, the latest year for which data is available, according to the Social Security Administration. That's one out of six residents. The average check came to $819 a month.

About half of Hawai'i residents pay Social Security taxes totaling $2.2 billion a year. Currently, employees pay about 6 percent in Social Security taxes while the employer kicks in an equal amount.

Social Security checks help defray living costs of Hawai'i retirees, who otherwise would have to increasingly dip into their savings, said Cliff Robello, a certified financial planner in Honolulu.

At current levels, Social Security is expected to replace more than 36 percent of a two-earner couple's former earnings, according to a study by the Brookings Institution, a think tank in Washington, D.C.

Without this retirement supplement, those under age 55 need to make alternate plans or face a financially strapped future.

"You're going to have to do it yourself," said Mel Hertz, chairman of Financial Planning Association, Hawai'i chapter. "Don't count on the system being there at all. If it's there, hallelujah!"

Hertz says your retirement is a three-legged stool: Funded by you from your private savings, your employer through matching 401(k) plans or a traditional pension, and the government in the form of Social Security.

As benefits from one source diminish, it's up to you to boost the other two. But counting on employers for your retirement is also fraught with risks — the company could change its benefits, go bankrupt or lay you off. In the end, you have to rely primarily on yourself to fund your retirement.

To start, make sure you're saving at least 10 percent of your annual gross income, Hertz said.

Put in as much as you can into tax-sheltered retirement plans available to you — 401(k), 403B, SEP-IRA, as well as traditional, Roth and Individual IRAs — Robello said. The younger you are, the more money should be in stocks. But make sure you diversify your investments and don't bet your money on just a few stocks.

Even if the recent bear market has decimated many portfolios, stocks still brought in an average return of 10 percent a year since 1926, according to research firm Ibbotson Associates. Moreover, if you hold stocks for at least 15 years, you probably won't lose money.

How much money would you need by retirement? Robello said that if your portfolio earns an 8 percent return, withdrawing only 4 percent means you'll never have to tap your principal. That means if you need $40,000 a year to live on — by this time your house should be paid off and you're at a much lower tax bracket — you'll need to have the equivalent of $1 million in today's dollars for retirement.

Sound like a lot of money? It's not as tough to build assets as you think. Starting early is key.

If you started saving $10 each day at age 25 and earn an annual return of 8 percent, after 40 years you'll have over $1 million, assuming monthly compounding and no increase in contributions. If you wait until you're 35 to start, you'll only end up with $450,000. To get to $1 million by 65, you would need to save $23 a day or $700 a month.

Of course, $1 million in four decades won't be worth as much as it is today due to inflation. To keep up, make sure you bump up your contributions by at least 4 percent a year, which historically has been the average inflation rate, Robello said.

Learn to budget better so you can free up money for retirement. Since time is of the essence, put away money for retirement even if you have to fund other goals, such as buying a house, car or saving for your children's college education.

Saving doesn't have to be painful. By bringing lunch and snacks to work, you can save at least $10 every working day.

Don't just focus on clipping coupons, which saves you a few cents a time, Robello advises, but also watch your major expenditures where you can save hundreds or even thousands of dollars. For instance, consider a used car instead of a new one. Shop around for the best auto insurance rates. Wait for sales on major appliances. Make sure you claim all your tax breaks. Refinance your mortgage.

And remember: The bottom line is to start saving as soon as possible.