So what, 4.89 trillion then?

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:

Treasury Secretary John Snow repeatedly ducked pointed questions about costs in testimony before the House Budget Committee. Asked by Rep. John Spratt of South Carolina, ranking Democrat on the panel, if the cost to taxpayers for Bush's plan might be $4.9 trillion over 20 years - a widely cited estimate from a reputable Washington research center - Snow said, "It sounds a little bit high to me."

*UPDATE* More:

"It's completely impossible to be less than $4 trillion," said Jason Furman, a Harvard professor and budget expert at the center. Furman arrived at that figure by projecting forward the 2015 cost estimate for individual accounts offered by the Social Security Administration.

House Budget Committee Republicans countered that over the long term, individual accounts would foster individual savings and reduce Social Security commitments.

"We're improving the balance sheet of the United States," said Rep. Rob Portman, R-Ohio.

Yeah you people who will end up destitute with now Social Security benefits and a private account worth nothing, can't you see your helping to improve the balance sheet of the United States? So what if you can't afford electricity, where are your priorities.

I hate to quibble, by the way, but if the projected 75 year cost if nothing is done is 3.7 trillion, and private accounts will cost at least 4 trillion, how will that help "improve the balance sheet of the United States?