BILL: Increase Social Security Benefits for Public Sector Workers - Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 - H.R.82

The Bill

H.R.82- Social Security Fairness Act of 2023

Bill Status

• Introduced by Rep. Garret Graves (R-LA): March 9, 2023
• Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) is the lead Democratic sponsor
• The bipartisan bill had seven original co-sponsors and currently has 197 co-sponsors
• Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means: March 9, 2023 
• House and Senate: Not yet voted
• President: Not yet signed

Bill Overview

• The bill would ensure that public sector employees like firefighters, police officers, teachers, and their families, receive full Social Security benefits regardless of other benefits they are entitled to receiving.
• The bill would repeal provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for individuals already receiving other benefits, like a state or local government pension.
• The changes proposed in the bill will be effective for benefits payable after Dec. 2023.
• The Social Security Fairness Act would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) from the Social Security Act. Both provisions were aimed at reducing high payouts and retirement windfalls.
• The bill is identical to the Senate version of the bill, the Social Security Fairness Act (S. 597), reintroduced by Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Susan Collins (R-ME) on March 1.

What's in the bill?

A fairer way of calculating payments

• When calculating payments, Social Security only takes into consideration covered employment.
• When an individual is employed by a non-covered, public sector employer that does not pay into Social Security, it appears that they have a much lower income and reduces the benefits they are entitled to. 

Eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision

• The bill eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), enacted in 1983, which reduces Social Security benefits for individuals who received a pension from a job in which they did not pay Social Security taxes.
• WEP impacts approximately two million Social Security beneficiaries.

Eliminates the Government Pension Offset

• The bill will also eliminate the Government Pension Offset (GPO), enacted in 1977, which reduces Social Security benefits for spouses and widows who already receive a pension of their own.
• The offset currently impacts approximately 780,000 retirees.

What the sponsors say

• Rep. Graves said:

"Our teachers, police officers, firefighters, emergency responders, and other local and state public servants – and their spouses or survivors – have been wrongly penalized. We will keep fighting to get them the full retirement benefits they paid for, including those who have already retired. We're not giving up."

• Rep. Spanberger said:

"I am looking forward to finally righting this wrong and making sure America's federal employees, teachers, police officers, and firefighters receive the retirement security they deserve."

• Sen. Collins said:

"This important, bipartisan bill would eliminate these unfair provisions that have enormous financial implications for many public service employees, such as retired teachers and police officers."

• She continued:

"It would also give current public sector employees the peace of mind to know that they will be able to receive their full Social Security benefits when they reach retirement age."

Concerns

• In 2022, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that a full repeal of WEP would cost the government $88 billion over a decade, and GPO would cost the government $107 billion over a decade.
• Ways and Means Chairman, Rep. Jason Smith (R-MO), said:

"You know me, I care about protecting Social Security. So I challenge them to help us come up with, if you do repeal it, how do you pay for it so it's not on the backs of seniors."

Do you support increasing Social Security benefits?

 —Emma Kansiz