Social Security payouts for millions of retired public servants will increase. Proponents claim that it fills a significant coverage gap. The price is high, though.
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The Senate passed the Social Security Fairness Act over the weekend to restore benefits to retired public service workers who are also getting pension payments.
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Spouses of public service workers will also get full benefits when their spouse dies, like people who work in the private sector.
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Some are concerned about what it means for the struggling Social Security trust fund.
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The Senate passed the Social Security Fairness Act over the weekend to restore benefits to retired public service workers who are also getting pension payments.
-
Spouses of public service workers will also get full benefits when their spouse dies, like people who work in the private sector.
-
Some are concerned about what it means for the struggling Social Security trust fund.
DallasA last-minute Senate vote may shortly result in higher Social Security payouts for millions of retired public sector employees.
About 3 million former teachers, police officers, firefighters, and civil servants who also receive pension payments had their benefits restored by the Social Security Fairness Act.
By a vote of 76 to 20, the proposal cleared both the House in November and the Senate this past weekend. Four senators abstained from voting.
Social Security Fairness Act: Bill to raise benefits for some passes House
Bipartisan backing for a law pertaining to Social Security would increase payouts for employees who are also qualified for other pensions.
Teachers, firefighters, police officers, postal workers, and other public pension recipients have not received full Social Security payments for any private sector employment they have held for over 50 years.
The Windfall Elimination Provision, which was intended to stop so-called double-dipping from a government pension and Social Security, resulted in a smaller Social Security benefit for retirees.
For retirees from public service like Hobie Hukill, the new Social Security Fairness Act alters that.
“The Windfall Elimination Provision cut my calculated benefit almost in half,” remarked retired educator Hukill.
“That really is the one that particularly galled most of our public employees, especially today, because so many of our public school employees and even in our other public services, they come in and out of the private sector to the public sector,” stated Zeph Capo, president of the Texas AFT.
Like those in the private sector, spouses of public servants will likewise get full Social Security payments upon their spouse’s death.
However, others who opposed the legislation contended that it would merely hasten the depletion of the Social Security trust fund.
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“The goal of the Social Security Fairness Act is to address issues of inequality. U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis, a Republican from North Carolina, stated, “Unfortunately, it’s doing it in a way that is at the expense of $200 billion out of the Social Security Trust Fund without a dime offsetting it.”
The estimated cost is $196 billion. Social Security is expected to become bankrupt within the next ten years if nothing changes. This is expected to accelerate that schedule by around half a year.
The Social Security Fairness Act still needs to be signed into law by President Joe Biden.
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