Congress passed the Social Security Fairness Act in 2024, but SSA still claims another year before benefits are restored
WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Senator John Hickenlooper joined 25 Senate colleagues in calling for the immediate implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act, which repealed unfair Social Security provisions that excluded millions of public servants from accessing their full Social Security benefits.
“The Social Security Fairness Act restores full Social Security benefits for the millions of teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public servants who are unfairly penalized by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO),” wrote the senators. “We call for the immediate implementation of this legislation to provide prompt relief to the millions of Americans impacted by WEP and GPO.”
In January 2024, the bipartisan Social Security Fairness Act was signed into law. However, the Social Security Administration (SSA) stated it could take more than a year to adjust and pay the owed benefits. The delay would leave millions of public servants with “non-covered pensions” with reduced or eliminated Social Security benefits from the now-repealed Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).
Specifically, the following public workers were excluded:
- Teachers, firefighters, and police officers in many states
- Federal employees covered by the Civil Service Retirement System
- Workers covered by a foreign social security system
In the letter, the senators called for greater accountability in how the SSA implements the Social Security Fairness Act.
Read the full letter HERE or below:
Dear Acting Commissioner King,
We write to you concerning the implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act (Public Law No: 118-273). This legislation passed Congress on an overwhelmingly bipartisan basis on December 21st, 2024 and was signed into law on January 5th, 2025. The Social Security Fairness Act restores full Social Security benefits for the millions of teachers, police officers, firefighters, and other public servants who are unfairly penalized by the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).
The Social Security Administration’s website currently states, “SSA expects that it could take more than one year to adjust benefits and pay all retroactive benefits” owed under the Social Security Fairness Act. We call for the immediate implementation of this legislation to provide prompt relief to the millions of Americans impacted by WEP and GPO. In the interim, we request monthly updates and briefings regarding the status of the Social Security Administration’s progress towards implementing the Social Security Fairness Act.
Thank you for your prompt attention to this important matter. We look forward to your response.
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