The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023: What You Need to Know
The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023: What You Need to Know
The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 could significantly impact your financial future if you’ve worked in both Social Security-covered and non-covered employment. This legislation addresses two provisions that reduce Social Security benefits for public sector workers: the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).
What is the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023?
This bipartisan bill aims to eliminate the WEP and GPO, which currently reduce Social Security benefits for individuals who also receive a pension from non-Social Security-covered employment. These provisions typically affect:
Public sector employees, such as teachers, police officers, and firefighters.
State and local government workers whose positions are not covered by Social Security.
The WEP reduces benefits for those who worked in both covered and non-covered employment, while the GPO impacts spousal or survivor benefits for those receiving a pension from non-covered employment.
Key Provisions of the Act
If passed, the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 would:
Eliminate the WEP and GPO: Ensuring you receive your full Social Security benefits, regardless of whether you also receive a pension from non-covered employment.
Provide financial relief: Removing these offsets could significantly increase your retirement income.
What Should You Do?
If you are potentially impacted by the WEP or GPO, here’s what you can do now:
Determine your eligibility: To qualify for increased benefits under the new provisions, you must:
Have worked in both Social Security-covered and non-covered employment.
Receive or expect to receive a government pension from non-covered employment.
Be currently impacted by the WEP or GPO reductions.
Confirm that the Social Security Administration (SSA) has accurate employment and earnings records for you.
Contact Social Security: Stay prepared to communicate with the SSA to ensure your records are up to date and take any necessary steps to adjust benefits.
Stay informed: Follow the bill’s progress in Congress.
Plan for the future: Review your retirement plans to consider potential changes to Social Security benefits if the bill passes.
Final Thoughts
The Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 could bring significant changes by eliminating the WEP and GPO. While many benefit adjustments are expected to be automatic, ensuring your records are accurate with the SSA will be critical to receiving the full increase. Staying informed and proactive will help you maximize these changes. If you have questions about how this legislation could impact your financial plans, don’t hesitate to reach out for guidance.
This material was written in collaboration with artificial intelligence (ChatGPT) and derived from sources believed to be correct.
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