President Joe Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law on January 5, 2025. This legislation repeals two provisions—the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO)—which previously reduced Social Security benefits for certain public sector retirees, including teachers, police officers, and firefighters.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) is tasked with implementing these changes. Current beneficiaries affected by the previous provisions do not need to take any immediate action but should ensure their contact information is up to date with the SSA. Use this time to create an online My Social Security Account to easily verify personal information, if you do not have on already. The SSA will provide further guidance on benefit adjustments and timelines as the implementation process progresses. Click here for updates on the SSA.
This is not a wholesale extension of social security benefits to public employees who have never paid into the Social Security system. Rather, these changes will affect those individuals who paid into Social Security through some private sector job but were not able to receive their full Social Security benefits because, either, they or their spouse also worked in a public sector job. The Social Security Fairness Act also provides for a lump sum distribution to entitled beneficiaries due to lower benefits paid out in 2024.
KEY CHANGES:
Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP): Previously, WEP reduced Social Security benefits for individuals who also received pensions from employment not covered by Social Security taxes. Its repeal means affected retirees will now receive full Social Security benefits without reductions due to their public pensions.
Government Pension Offset (GPO): GPO had reduced spousal or survivor Social Security benefits for those receiving a government pension from non-Social Security-covered work. With its elimination, surviving spouses and others will no longer face such offsets, potentially increasing their benefit amounts.
If you have questions about how this may impact you, please feel free to contact us at 901.316.0160.
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