Jan. 5 (UPI) — President Joe Biden signed a bill Sunday to raise Social Security benefits for millions of current and former public employees, potentially affecting millions of Americans.
The measure will boost benefits for firefighters, teachers, police officers and others in public service jobs, Biden said during a signature ceremony in the White House’s East Room.
“The bill I’m signing today is about a simple proposition: Americans who have worked hard all their life to earn an honest living should be able to retire with economic security and dignity — that’s the entire purpose of the Social Security system,” Biden said during the ceremony. “This is a big deal.”
The bill Biden signed Sunday rescinds two provisions — the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset, both of which limit Social Security benefits for people who also receive retirement payments from other sources, including public retirement programs from a state or local government.
The measure had bipartisan support, which was reflected at Biden’s signing ceremony. The legislation’s primary sponsors — Maine Republican Sen. Susan Collins and Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown — received a standing ovation from ceremony attendees.
The Congressional Research Service said that in December 2023, 745,679 people, about 1% of all Social Security beneficiaries, had their benefits reduced by the Government Pension Offset. About 2.1 million people, or about 3% of all beneficiaries, were affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision.
The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, which is the nation’s largest trade union of public employees, celebrated the signing of the bill, saying the two provisions were now “gone for good.”
“These outdated rules denied over two million retired public service workers their hard-earned Social Security benefits,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said in a statement explaining that with Biden’s signature on the bill, “Thousands of AFSCME members can now retire with peace of mind, and passionate job seekers will be inspired to pursue these critical careers knowing their futures will be secure.”
“It’s a game-changer for public service,” Saunder said.
The Congressional Budget Office said last fall that doing away with the WEP would increase monthly payments to the affected beneficiaries by an average of $360 by December 2025. Ending the GPO would increase those monthly benefits in December 2025 by an average of $700 for 380,000 recipients getting benefits based on living spouses, according to the CBO. The increase would be an average of $1,190 for 390,000 or surviving spouses getting a widow or widower benefit, the CBO said.
