Don’t miss this opportunity to let elected officials know how the WEP and GPO have or will impact you.
Rep. Sam Johnson of Texas, chairman of the House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee, announced a hearing on Social Security and Public Servants: Ensuring Equal Treatment.
The hearing, scheduled for Tuesday, March 22, 2016, was to focus on two Social Security provisions – the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) – that affect the Social Security benefits paid to certain public employees (which includes many PERA members), as well as proposals to create a more equitable benefit calculation.
The WEP and GPO apply reductions to the Social Security benefits paid to public employees who also receive a government pension (like PERA). In addition, these federal benefit adjustments are not well understood, making it difficult for those affected to plan for retirement.
Ways and Means members are working to replace the current WEP formula with a proportional approach that allows Social Security benefits to be calculated in the same way for everyone, instead of using one benefit formula for some workers and a different formula for others.
Due to limited time, oral testimony at the hearing was limited to invited witnesses only. However, any individual or organization may submit a written statement for consideration by the Committee and for inclusion in the printed record of the hearing.
The announcement from Chairman Johnson includes details on how to submit written comments. Those comments, submitted in accordance with the formatting required, must be received by the close of business on Tuesday, April 5, 2016.
Read more about how this proposed federal legislation could eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision, or WEP, on PERA on the Issues. Or for more information about the Equal Treatment of Public Servants Act of 2015 (H.R. 711), visit the House Ways and Means Committee.
Windfall elimination provisionA provision of federal law that may reduce Social Security benefit payments to retirees who receive a pension based on work during which they did not contribute to Social Security. The WEP does not apply to those with 30 or more years of substantial earnings in Social Security.Government pension offsetA provision of federal law that reduces Social Security dependent benefit payments to spouses, widows, and widowers who receive a government pension like PERA.
I worked for 25 years paying social security then retired under PERA a reduction REALLY!!
WET needs to be be completely repealed. The money was put into the funds by myself and my employer. Think about if the government said they would not let you have but 1/3 of your IRA or Savings account!!! How would you feel about that??!!!
The reduction in social security money to U.S.Citizens that paid into it for 10 or more years just because they started working for Colorado PERA later in adult life and retire with PERA, is just flat wrong and is robbery.
I was married twice. Both of my husbands are deceased. Both paid into Social security. Because I have a PERA pension, I cannot get a widow’s Social Security benefit from either of their accounts because of the GPO. This is not fair. Both paid their fair share into Social Security, but lived only a short time after retirement. I should be able to now have money that I had to do without during marriage because of what they had to pay into Social Security.
This happened to me too, my husband pais into SS for over 30 years then suddenly died at 59, I’m retired with PERA and can’t claim a penny from his benefit. I also paid into it for over 10 years and don’t receive a dime f on SS. This is the same as stealing this money from out pay checks with out a chance of recovering even a dime of it. Not fair at all.
When I started working as a teacher in Colorado and California more than 30 years ago, I was switched to public employee retirement systems. I retired from teaching last June and now receive my PERA benefit for the years invested in public education. Since over 30 years of PERA investment isn’t enough to live on in my community, I need the 10 years of Social Security investments I worked and paid for in the past. It is unfair to deny me, and other public employees, what we earned.
Please rescind WEP. It is unfair to public employees who often work extra jobs to support their families. No reasonable explanation can justify denying public employees the investments they made into the Social Security System. This is not the way to treat those public employees who teach your children, fight your fires, and protect your communities.
I have been married nearly 44 years. For approx. 30 years my husband has been self-employed so has paid double: both his personal contribution to SS and what an employer would have paid. I have worked as a teacher for all of my career, and retired with PERA. If my husband would happen to die first, as his widow, I would get NO benefits from Social Security because of the GPO. That is just NOT fair.
It is wrong to pay one and restrict the other. I paid in to social security 50 years and had paid for almost 30 years in PERA. Yes they are entitlement, o am entitled to them because I paid into both.
My husband worked under social security for over 20 years but worked the last 20 under PERA. I also worked under PERA. He was drawing a small amount of social security which I cannot have because I retired from PERA. I am elgible for medicare from his social security but my small amount of retirement from PERA does not allow me to draw widow’s benefits. This is wrong.
Those of us who have completed payments for quarters into Social Security should receive the monthly benefit we worked for without being “penalized.” With the cost of supplemental medical insurance, dental, vision, long term care insurance, all other insurances, and large dental bills not covered, the full amount of Social Security retirement we worked for should be available to us to meet these bills and general cost-of-living expenses.
Others who have written are right — if a spouse dies or a divorce occurs after ten plus years of marriage, any benefits “normally” due, are denied. WEP and GPO most definitely need to be rescinded.
Finally!! This is long overdue but greatly welcomed. Teachers & other public servants who paid into SS deserve their fair share. What WEP didn’t address was the fact that most people who worked under both SS & public pension systems already got reduced benefits in both systems because they had worked only part of their careers in each.
Thanks to all the lawmakers and organizations who have worked to make this happen. As I perused the information included with this bill and watched a video of the proceedings, I couldn’t help but notice that Colorado organizations & the NEA didn’t seem to be actively involved in making this happen. Maybe that was just an oversight, and they really were involved. I certainly hope so. If that is the case, then special thanks to those organizations for helping to bring about fairness to the system and well-earned & equal retirement benefits for Colorado public employees.
Started working when I was 14 years old. Worked in construction jobs for many years. When construction slowed down I began working for a PERA employer and retired with 30 years. Feel very strongly that i should not be penalized for the time That I worked and paid into Social Security.
I worked for 30 years under Social Security. Technically, I was not supposed to be penalized by the WEP upon my retirement from a PERA position. Things changed, and I had to sign up for Social Security at 62. Okay, I lost 25% of my Social Security benefit right there. Then, Social Security said that I could only get credit for 27 years of earnings under Social Security because Social Security said I didn’t make enough money for three of those years to be entitled to count them – so they hit me with a further 15% WEP “penalty.” I knew having to sign up at 62 would hurt me badly for the rest of my life. The additional WEP simply added 15% more “insult” to “injury” in my case.
I’ve worked for the school system for 30 years as a teachers assistant in special education. My retirement check will only cover my mortgage. I’ve been married for 37 years. If my husband dies before me I will have to sell my home and I will be living in poverty.
All of the above comments are correct; I worked for PERA for 32 years and have earned ample quarters for SS as well, I earned it, it’s mine and I want my money!
Totally not fair to penalize industrious, responsible Americans that worked under SS employment and PERA. I spent 20 or more years under both and should get what I earned. It especially makes me angry since I am a single woman with only PERA and SS to support me. Meanwhile let’s give those that don’t pull their own weight FREE everything.
I am retired and receive PERA After visiting the Social Security office, I believe that I should get a small amount of Social Security for other jobs worked when I was younger.
My husband has worked and paid into social security for 40 plus years. It was upsetting to know that I would not get anything if something should happen to him. But the ultimate maddening thing is … that his ex-wife will be eligible for it! He was married to her for 13 years a long time ago. He and I have been married for 23 years since 1993. What an insult. Please do what you can, even though I realize this comment is being written later than the deadline.