The future of Social Security has been in doubt for some time. Finally, after months of debate, the House will attempt to adopt legislation to address one of the program’s long-standing difficulties. The Social Security Fairness Act is a nonpartisan plan to ensure workers eligible for other pensions receive payments.
What is the Social Security Fairness Act?
The Social Security Fairness Act is a bill that would eliminate the “government pensions offset,” or GPO. This policy “adjusts Social Security spousal or widow(er) benefits for people who receive non-covered pensions.”
The bill still has enough support to pass, but it will require more votes than the previous simple majority, necessitating a supermajority barrier. Even if it passes the House, it must still pass the Senate, where we don’t know if it is broadly supported enough to do so. Still, the legislation is prevalent, and with the support of so many House members, it has a good chance of success. If the bill passes, it must be approved by the President of the United States, and if it becomes law, it will apply to all benefits payable after December 2023.
The effect of the measure on real people:
When bills like this one are introduced, it can be challenging to predict how they will affect the individuals they are intended to protect. This is why real-world examples like the one below are crucial. For instance, under the GPO, an individual with a $900 spousal benefit from Social Security and a $1,000 non-covered pension would have their Social Security payment cut by $667, or two-thirds of the non-covered pension amount. This leaves them with a $233 spousal benefit. If the GPO legislation is repealed, the same individual will be entitled to the total $900 spousal benefit amount, with no offset reduction.
