Social Security Fairness Act Signed into Law, Public Servants Due Additional Benefits with WEP/GPO Repeal
After a decades-long effort, two provisions that denied a portion of Social Security benefits to certain public employees and beneficiaries, were repealed.
On Sunday, January 5, 2025, President Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law, paving the way for approximately three million Americans to start receiving larger Social Security checks.
The legislation repeals the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO), two provisions that impacted public servants including law enforcement, teachers, and firefighters.
WEP reduced Social Security benefits for individuals who receive pension or disability benefits from jobs where Social Security payroll taxes were not withheld. GPO reduced Social Security payments for the spouses and surviving spouses of individuals who receive a government pension.
“By signing this bill, we’re extending Social Security benefits for millions of teachers, nurses and other public employees and their spouses and survivors,” President Biden said at the signing ceremony. “That means an estimated average of $360 per month increase.”
The news was hailed by federal employee groups, who have long fought for such legislation.
“This milestone represents the culmination of years of tireless advocacy by NARFE and its members, who time and again made the case for fairness and equality in Social Security benefits,” said National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) President William Shackelford. “With the repeal of WEP and GPO, federal retirees, along with so many others, will finally receive the full Social Security benefits they’ve earned.”
The Senate approved the legislation by a vote of in the nick of time, just before the 118th Congress adjourned. It earlier passed the House by a wide-margin, after co-sponsors Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and Garret Graves (R-LA), used a discharged petition to force the bill to the floor.
Payments
According to the law, payments will be retroactive for Social Security starting in January 2024. That means people who only got a partial payment, will start seeing full payments for 2024, as well as going forward, with President Biden noting that lump sum payments will be in the thousands of dollars.
The Social Security Administration set up a web page for information on the upcoming payments.