On Sunday, President Joe Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act, a bipartisan bill aimed at increasing Social Security benefits for public sector workers such as teachers, firefighters, and police officers who also receive pensions.
The legislation repeals the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO), two policies that have limited benefits for certain retirees for over 40 years. The WEP reduced Social Security payments for those with pensions from jobs not subject to Social Security taxes, impacting about 2 million beneficiaries as of December 2023. The GPO reduced spousal and survivor benefits for individuals with government pensions, affecting approximately 750,000 people during the same period.
“This bill ensures millions of teachers, nurses, and other public workers, as well as their spouses and survivors, receive an estimated $360 more per month,” Biden said, highlighting its significance for middle-class families. He also noted that over 2.5 million Americans will receive lump-sum payments to address prior benefit shortfalls.
Effective after December 2023, the act provides full Social Security benefits to federal retirees and others previously impacted by WEP and GPO. Advocacy groups, including the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, celebrated the signing as a historic achievement.
The bill passed the Senate on December 21 with bipartisan support, led by Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). It was approved by the House in November with similar bipartisan backing, spearheaded by Representatives Garret Graves (R-La.) and Abigail Spanberger (D-Va.).
William Shackelford, president of the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association, called the repeal of these provisions a long-awaited victory for fairness, honoring those who were affected but are no longer alive to see the change.
