Congress is preparing to vote on a bill that could increase Social Security benefits for some Americans. The Social Security Fairness Act aims to eliminate provisions that reduce benefits for millions of public sector workers. The bill is set to be introduced by Representatives Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat from Virginia, and Garret Graves, a Republican from Louisiana.
It has 325 cosponsors, more than the 218 needed to force a vote on the House floor. The legislation addresses the reduction of Social Security benefits for people who also receive public pensions from jobs not covered by Social Security. This affects individuals like public school teachers who might also have part-time jobs covered by Social Security.
Their benefits earned through other employment are reduced. Another provision reduces spousal and survivor benefits for individuals who worked as government employees in positions not covered by Social Security. Benefits for surviving spouses can be cut by up to two-thirds if they also receive a government pension.
“For more than 40 years, millions of Americans—police officers, teachers, firefighters, and other local and state public servants—have been stripped of their Social Security benefits as an unjust penalty for devoting much of their careers to serving their communities and fellow Americans,” Spanberger and Graves said in a joint statement.
Voting on Social Security fairness
They emphasized the need for action, arguing that these public servants deserve the same retirement benefits as other Americans who have paid into Social Security.
Despite efforts to build bipartisan support, progress has stalled. The representatives are now taking more assertive measures to bring the issue to a vote. “For years, we have worked together to build bipartisan support for this effort and urge House Leadership to take real action to right this wrong.
As those efforts have stalled, we are using every tool at our disposal to finally get this done,” they stated. The bill seeks to address what Spanberger and Graves describe as “unjust penalties” imposed on public servants for decades. Its passage would impact roughly 2.8 million Americans currently affected by these provisions.
Many have seen their Social Security benefits reduced, leaving them with less financial security in retirement. Alex Beene, a financial literacy instructor at the University of Tennessee at Martin, noted, “Those receiving Social Security benefits are at the forefront of many new bills and proposals and with good reason. There are plenty of potential revisions that could greatly assist individuals and families who could be receiving increased funding in a time when most of them desperately need it.”
Beene described the potential passage of the bill as a “game changer” for those affected, particularly at a time when “every dollar counts.” The removal of these provisions would offer additional financial security to millions of Americans who have been penalized by these decades-old rules.
This boost in benefits would be especially crucial given ongoing concerns about the long-term sustainability of the program.
