DEAR JOYCE: Now 61, I lost my job six months ago. Any rational observer would agree that my termination was due to age discrimination, not job performance.

I've about reached the conclusion that I'm going to sue my former employer, but my wife reminds me that last summer you wrote about the Supreme Court's ruling that makes it much more difficult for older workers to prove illegal age discrimination, and that there was a good chance Congress would pass new legislation to overturn that decision. Before I spend money on a lawyer, any evidence of that happening yet? -- J.R.

Yes. The Supreme Court, in a narrow 5-4 decision issued in June, ruled that in an age bias case, an employee has to prove that age was the only reason the employee was fired, not merely one of the factors -- a ridiculously difficult standard.

That decision placed the burden of proof squarely on the employee, metaphorically dropping an onion into a petunia patch. In other types of discrimination cases -- race, sex, religion and national origin -- the employee need only show that bias was one of the factors, and the burden is on the employer to prove its actions were taken for nondiscriminatory reasons.

Bills have been introduced in the Senate and House to reverse what many people, including me, see as a grossly unfair decision. The sponsors of the legislation, Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa and Rep. George Miller of California, hope to put age discrimination cases on an equal footing with other types of employment discrimination claims.

If you want to meet with an employment lawyer, ask for a no-charge initial interview before deciding whether your complaint has legal merit.

DEAR JOYCE: I became disabled at age 52 and will apply for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. Are they taxable? -- K.H.

I asked the Social Security Press Office for clarification. Here are highlights:

SSI payments are not taxable. SSI is a program of income based on need paid to individuals who are disabled, blind or age 65 and older. To qualify, a person must have very limited income and little in the way of resources (such as bank accounts). The current maximum federal monthly SSI payment is $674 for an individual. Some states supplement the federal payment. By contrast, the average Social Security retirement benefit is $1,159. For more information, visit two useful Web sites: socialsecurity.gov and ssa.gov. Continued...