Social Security Benefits Increased for Some Americans: Here's Who's Impacted

After Congress passed a new bill in the final days of its December session, Social Security payments have changed for millions of Americans.

Courtesy of the Social Security Fairness Act, millions of Americans will see higher Social Security checks now that the windfall elimination provision (WEP) and GPO (government pension offset) have been abolished.

Why It Matters

For decades, Americans have seen lower Social Security checks if they fall into the circumstances under the WEP and GPO.

Nearly 3 million public sector workers, including police officers, firefighters and teachers, had their benefits slashed because they collected pensions that weren't covered by Social Security.

A woman walks past the Social Security Administration office in downtown Los Angeles on October 1, 2013. Social Security payments are increasing for millions of Americans because of the Social Security Fairness Act. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

What To Know

While the WEP reduces benefits for retired or disabled pension workers who have fewer than 30 years of significant earnings from employment covered by Social Security, the GPO targets the spouses of pension workers.

The Social Security Fairness Act reversed those rules and increased benefits for checks paid after December 2023.

By eliminating the WEP, monthly payments will increase by an average of $360 by December 2025, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

While lawmakers got the bill passed and President Joe Biden signed it into law, it initially faced pushback on the cost, which could further affect the Social Security Administration's projected funding shortfall. The agency is predicted to run out of money for full payments by as early as 2035.

What People Are Saying

Martha Shedden, president and co-founder of the National Association of Registered Social Security Analysts (NARSSA), told Newsweek: "H.R. 82, known as the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023, will do away with the WEP and GPO pension rules that affect the amounts of Social Security some individuals can collect....The WEP and GPO rules apply to certain government, state, local jobs—often teachers—who are receiving a pension for their work in those jobs, but their employers do not contribute payroll taxes into Social Security."

Outgoing Democratic Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown, one of the bill's co-sponsors: "Social Security is a bedrock of our middle class. You pay into it for 40 quarters, you earned it, it should be there when you retire. All these workers are asking for is for what they earned."

International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) General President Edward A. Kelly: "Congress broke a promise 40 years ago to millions of Americans when it enacted the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset....Millions of retirees devoted themselves to protecting our communities, teaching our children and delivering essential services. They kept their promise to the American people. And by restoring these Social Security benefits, Congress has finally done the same."

What Happens Next

Now that the Social Security Fairness Act is in effect, it's good news for beneficiaries who have long had their benefits lowered because of the WEP and GPO. However, some have sounded the alarm on how the new rules will impact Social Security's funding crisis.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) is facing insolvency as early as the mid-2030s. At that point, there will only be enough money to pay out roughly 80 percent of what recipients are owed from their time in the workforce.