Senate Advances "Social Security Fairness Act" to End Penalties on Government Pensioners

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about 2 months ago - Politics

In the United States Senate, a crucial decision was made regarding a proposed law that aims to make Social Security fairer for retirees. This proposed change is known as the "Social Security Fairness Act of 2023."

Here's what happened: The Senate agreed to move forward with discussions on this bill, thanks to a vote where 73 senators said "yes" and 27 senators said "no." This decision required a special kind of vote called a "cloture motion," which needs more than half (3/5 majority) of the Senate to agree.

What is this bill about? It's trying to get rid of some rules that currently reduce the amount of Social Security money people receive if they also have a pension from a government job. In simpler terms, the bill wants to stop penalizing retired folks who get money from both Social Security and a government pension.

The bill plans to change two main things:

  1. Government Pension Offset: Right now, if you get a pension from a government job, your Social Security benefits might be cut. This bill wants to remove that penalty so retirees can keep the full amount of their Social Security benefits.

  2. Windfall Elimination Provision: This rule currently reduces Social Security benefits if you have other income, like a pension from a private sector job. The proposal aims to get rid of this rule as well, letting people keep more of their Social Security money.

If passed into law, these changes will start in January 2024, meaning people could see an increase in their Social Security checks. This is important because it would help more retirees have enough money to live on after they stop working, acknowledging the hard work they've done throughout their life. The proposal is still being discussed, and the Senate has agreed to take a closer look at it.

This is a law that changes how Social Security benefits are calculated for people who get government pensions. The main point is that it stops two rules that could reduce the Social Security payments to these individuals.

  1. Government Pension Offset Repeal: Usually, if someone gets a government pension and did not pay Social Security taxes, their Social Security spousal or survivor benefits might be reduced. This law removes that reduction, ensuring people can receive more from Social Security.

  2. Windfall Elimination Provision Repeal: This rule reduced the Social Security retirement or disability benefits for those who worked in jobs that did not pay into Social Security but also had other jobs that did. With this law, the reduction is removed, potentially increasing their Social Security benefits.

The law applies to Social Security payments starting January 2024, meaning changes in payments will be seen from this date. The Social Security Administration will make necessary adjustments to ensure these calculations are reflected in benefits paid out.

100 votes

Yes

73

No

27

Not Voting

0

-
  1. Signed by President.
  2. Presented to President.
  3. Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate, under the order of 12/20/2024, having achieved 60 votes in the affirmative, without amendment by Yea-Nay Vote. 76 - 20. Record Vote Number: 338.
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  4. Point of order that the measure violates section 311(a)(3) of the Congressional Budget Act raised in Senate.
  5. Motion to waive all applicable budgetary discipline with respect to the measure agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 66 - 30. Record Vote Number: 337.
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  6. Message on Senate action sent to the House.
  7. Cloture motion on the measure rendered moot in Senate.
  8. Passed Senate, under the order of 12/20/2024, having achieved 60 votes in the affirmative, without amendment by Yea-Nay Vote. 76 - 20. Record Vote Number: 338.
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  9. Motion by Senator Schumer to commit to Senate Committee on Finance with instructions to report back forthwith with the following amendment (SA 3357) withdrawn in Senate.
  10. Motion by Senator Schumer to commit to Senate Committee on Finance with instructions to report back forthwith with the following amendment (SA 3357) made in Senate.
  11. Cloture motion on the measure presented in Senate. (CR S7286)
  12. Considered by Senate. (consideration: CR S7285-7287, S7303-7304)
  13. Measure laid before Senate by motion.
  14. Motion to proceed to consideration of measure agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 73 - 23. Record Vote Number: 328.
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  15. Motion to proceed to measure considered in Senate. (CR S7217)
  16. Cloture on the motion to proceed to the measure invoked in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 73 - 27. Record Vote Number: 326.
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  17. Motion to proceed to measure considered in Senate. (CR S7131)
  18. Referred to the Subcommittee on Social Security.
  19. Placed on Calendar Senate

    This is a law that changes how Social Security benefits are calculated for people who get government pensions. The main point is that it stops two rules that could reduce the Social Security payments to these individuals.

    1. Government Pension Offset Repeal: Usually, if someone gets a government pension and did not pay Social Security taxes, their Social Security spousal or survivor benefits might be reduced. This law removes that reduction, ensuring people can receive more from Social Security.

    2. Windfall Elimination Provision Repeal: This rule reduced the Social Security retirement or disability benefits for those who worked in jobs that did not pay into Social Security but also had other jobs that did. With this law, the reduction is removed, potentially increasing their Social Security benefits.

    The law applies to Social Security payments starting January 2024, meaning changes in payments will be seen from this date. The Social Security Administration will make necessary adjustments to ensure these calculations are reflected in benefits paid out.

  20. Engrossed in House

    This is about changing rules for some people who get Social Security payments. The goal is to make sure people who get these payments because they worked at jobs that don’t pay into the Social Security system are treated more fairly.

    First, the bill removes a rule that cuts Social Security benefits for people who also get a government pension. This means if someone worked in a government job that didn't pay into Social Security, their Social Security payments won't be reduced just because they get a government pension.

    Second, it gets rid of the "windfall elimination provision." This provision reduces the Social Security benefits for people who didn’t pay Social Security taxes at some of their jobs and also have other pensions. Now, their Social Security benefits won’t be reduced due to this rule.

    Lastly, these changes will start in December 2023. This means people who get Social Security payments will see changes or might get more money starting then. The Social Security office will adjust the amount of money people get to make sure everything is fair based on the new rules.

  21. Introduced in House

    This bill removes two parts from the Social Security laws that affected how much money people could get. The first part removed is the Government Pension Offset. This change means if you receive a government pension and Social Security from your spouse's work, now your Social Security benefit will not be reduced. The second part removed is called the Windfall Elimination Provision which affected how the Social Security benefit was calculated for people who have pensions from jobs where they did not pay into the Social Security system. These changes will start affecting payments in January 2024.