Eliminates Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset Reductions to Social Security Benefits
“As State employees this is a win for many of us. As State employees assigned to Bargaining Unit 7, no Social Security deductions are taken from our paychecks, but there may have been times in our lives in which we worked at jobs in which we contributed to Social Security – this new law brings fairness in that those of us who have contributed to Social Security in the past, and may in the future, are now allowed to receive the full amount of our Social Security benefits, rather than being penalized with reduced Social Security benefits for having a pension.”
– CSLEA President Alan Barcelona
What is the Social Security Fairness Act?
The Social Security Fairness Act signed into law by President Biden on January 5, 2025, eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) requirement and Government Pension Offset Reductions to Social Security Benefits, and permits employees to receive the full amount of their Social Security benefits regardless of whether they are also eligible for a separate pension. The increased benefit will impact both current and future retirees and is retroactive to January 1, 2024.
What was the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)?
The WEP reduced the amount of Social Security benefits that certain employees eligible for other pension benefits received depending on the amount of time the employee worked in Social Security-covered employment.
Based on the pension benefits for which employees in Bargaining Unit 7 are eligible, they do not pay in to Social Security nor are they eligible to receive Social Security credit for such service. However, under prior law, employees also were subject to a reduced Social Security benefit for work that was performed in a position that was subject to Social Security deductions and contributions. This chart shows how benefits were reduced based on retirement age and years of Social Security service. Employees who had a minimum of 30 years of such service were not subject to a reduced benefit.
https://www-origin.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/planner/wep.html
The Take-Away
The Social Security Fairness Act eliminates the WEP requirement and permits employees to receive the full amount of their Social Security benefits regardless of whether they are also eligible for a separate pension. The increased benefit will impact both current and future retirees and is retroactive to January 1, 2024.
| Benefits Planner: Retirement | Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) | SSA – The United States Social Security Administration Learn how receiving a pension from a government job may affect your retirement benefits if you did not pay Social Security taxes. This offset is referred to as the Windfall Elimination Provision, or WEP. www-origin.ssa.gov |
The Government Pension Offset (GPO)
The new Social Security Fairness Act also eliminated the Government Pension Offset (GPO) which reduced survivor’s benefits to a spouse who was also covered by their own pension plan. It is estimated that the elimination of the WEP will result in a $360 per month average increase for existing retirees and the elimination of the GPO will amount to a $700 per month average increase.
On January 6, 2025, the Social Security Administration (SSA) issued an advisory indicating that it was in the process of analyzing the requirements of the new law and would publish additional updates as more information becomes available. https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/social-security-fairness-act.html
Brian Marvel, President of PORAC, was at the White House as President Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law and had this to say: “For more than 40 years, PORAC has championed the fight to repeal WEP and GPO, which have unfairly penalized public servants by depriving them of their earned Social Security benefits. Standing in the White House today, witnessing the President sign the Social Security Fairness Act into law, was an incredibly proud and humbling moment.”
