The Social Security Fairness Act is finally up for a vote in the Senate after passing the House of Representatives with overwhelming bipartisan approval. In addition, over 60,000 people have signed a petition encouraging Congress to implement the improvements proposed by the Act.
The vote aims to eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO), which affect around 3 million pensioners. The WEP is a mechanism used to adjust Social Security worker payments for people who receive “non-covered pensions” but qualify for Social Security benefits based on their other Social Security-covered earnings.
A non-covered pension is one provided by an employer who does not deduct Social Security taxes from your income, such as state and local governments or non-U.S. companies. The GPO modifies Social Security spousal or widow(er) benefits for individuals who receive “non-covered pensions.”
The WEP mostly impacts persons with fewer than 30 years of considerable earnings from Social Security-covered employment who also receive a “non-covered pension.” Firefighters, police officers, nurses, teachers, and other blue collar workers are typically required to work another employment when their public service tenure ends.
The petition to remove the provisions, sponsored by MoveOn, states that “it is time to put an end to the lawful robbery of our Social Security benefits.” Public employees and those who earned pensions abroad were eligible, and our accounts were pre-funded as part of a defined benefit social insurance program.”
What to Know about the Social Security Fairness Act
The plan, proposed by Louisiana Republican Representative Garret Graves and Virginia Democratic Representative Abigail Spanberger, cleared the House of Representatives 327-75 last month with nearly unprecedented bipartisan support, but it must still pass the Senate before it can become law.
This should not be a problem because it has also received support in that house, as Graves says, “This was a hard-fought battle for the most popular bill in Congress.” Our bill is equally popular in the Senate and should have the same success.
The petition is extremely powerful, reminding lawmakers that the Social Security Trust Funds‘ depletion is not a good enough cause to deny retirees their legal benefits, especially given that the scheme would merely hasten its depletion by six months. As it states:
“We are not the problem, and trust funds should not be built on the backs of hardworking Americans and their families. Act Now—stop the WEP and GPO’s flagrant injustices and demand a vote on the Social Security Fairness Act so that we can receive the full extent of our earned and spousal Social Security payments. To do differently contradicts our trust in the government’s ability to legislate properly, a value that all Americans cherish.”
Many senators appear to agree, since it has strong Senate support despite Republican worries about the bill’s cost, but this petition is valued by more than just lawmakers and affected citizens. Experts such as Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, see the need of repealing these measures. As he told Newsweek.
“A decades-old restriction has prevented a small number of Americans with family members in public service professions from getting full Social Security payments. Unfortunately, it appears less probable that it will pass this year.
Kevin Thompson, the founder and CEO of 9i Capital Group, tempers his exuberance by stating, “This has been a divisive issue for years, frequently stalling in the House or Senate. While more public support through petitions may assist raise awareness, the underlying issue remains: Social Security’s financial shortfall must be rectified before any further demand is placed on the trust fund.”
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