ICYMI: “Congress Approves Full Social Security Benefits for Public Sector Retirees”

Congress Approves Full Social Security Benefits for Public Sector Retirees

The New York Times | Maya C. Miller

“The Senate passed bipartisan legislation early Saturday that would give full Social Security benefits to a group of public sector retirees who currently receive them at a reduced level, sending the bill to President Biden.

“The vote to clear the measure was a lopsided 76 to 20, reflecting the broad popularity of an effort to allow approximately more than 2.8 million public pension recipients — some of them teachers, firefighters and police officers — to collect Social Security benefits at the same level as other beneficiaries.

“The House passed the bill by a wide margin of 327 to 75 last month after a bipartisan group of lawmakers forced it to the floor, and President-elect Donald J. Trump recently threw his support behind it.

…

“The bill eliminates two provisions set up decades ago to shore up Social Security’s solvency. Projections show the Social Security fund will run out of money in 2038 and, if no action is taken before then, beneficiaries would see a 27 percent cut in benefits. Passage of the measure speeds up that timeline by six months.

“Twenty-seven Republicans joined Democrats in support.

“The two provisions were designed to prevent what is known as “double dipping” on retirement benefits by certain public employees and their relatives.

“It primarily affects two groups. One is public employees who receive pensions that are exempt from Social Security payroll taxes, but who also worked at least 10 years in jobs that required them to pay into the system. Such workers appear in the Social Security system as though they earned far less over their lifetimes than they actually did, and since the program pays out a higher proportion of low earners’ incomes in benefits, they receive a larger retirement benefit than they otherwise would. Another is people who receive public pensions but also become eligible for Social Security survivor benefits upon the death of a spouse or family member.

“Under the current law, both groups face a reduction in their benefits. The legislation on its way to enactment would allow them to receive the full amount.

…

“Senator Susan Collins, Republican of Maine and a lead sponsor of the measure, framed the issue as a ‘long overdue’ matter of fairness affecting teachers, firefighters and police officers as well as some federal employees who were hired before 1984, when the federal pension system was brought under the Social Security system.

“In a floor speech Wednesday, Ms. Collins cited one of her constituents, a retired female schoolteacher who had to return to work at age 72 after her husband’s death to make financial ends meet. The woman’s husband was a Navy veteran who paid into Social Security for 40 years, but since she received a public pension from the school system, her surviving spousal benefits through Social Security were reduced by two-thirds.

“‘This is an unfair, inequitable penalty,’ Ms. Collins said. Public sector workers who are currently being penalized, she said, ‘have earned these benefits.’

“Public sector retirees and their allies on Capitol Hill in both parties have pressed for the measure for decades. It has sailed through Congress over the last several weeks, bypassing the usual committee process after proponents in the House collected 218 signatures on a so-called ‘discharge petition’ to force it to the floor. Senate leaders also skipped committee consideration.”

…

Click HERE to read the full article.

###