The Bush administration on Monday sought to define some common ground in the debate over Social Security, in an effort to lay the basis for future congressional action to assure the long-term solvency of the huge entitlement program.

“Social Security can be made permanently solvent only by reducing the present value of scheduled benefits and/or increasing the present value of scheduled tax revenues,” the Treasury Department said in a position paper.

Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., said the paper was the first in “a series of issue briefs that will focus on areas of common ground, and provide straightforward analysis of the challenges facing Social Security and the implications of potential reforms. By focusing first on areas of agreement, I hope these issue briefs will narrow the divide and spur further discussions of reform.”

Despite broad agreement that a solvency crisis should be addressed sooner rather than later, there seems little consensus on Capitol Hill about how to proceed.

House leaders gave a cool reception Sept. 18 to a proposal by Senate Budget Committee leaders that would require the next Congress to address the long-term budget strains associated with Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and other entitlement programs.

The bill by Sens. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., and Judd Gregg, R-N.H., would create a 16-member task force to make recommendations Dec. 9, 2008, on how to address the soaring costs of the programs. The next Congress would have to consider it without amendments in early 2009, and a three-fifths majority vote in both chambers would be required for passage.

Despite their leaders’ skepticism, Reps. Frank R. Wolf, R-Va., and Jim Cooper, D-Tenn., plan to unveil a similar plan in the House on Wednesday.