Goodbye to reduced Social Security benefits: who is set for increased payments?

On Sunday, US President Joe Biden signed into law the Social Security Fairness Act, a bipartisan piece of legislation that is set to benefit almost three million Americans.

Who is affected by the new Social Security legislation?

The law serves to repeal two federal policies - the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) - that negatively impacted the Social Security retirement benefits available to certain public-sector workers.

Under the terms of the Social Security Fairness Act, state and federal employees who collect public pensions based on work that was not covered by Social Security - a group that includes teachers, police officers, firefighters and postal workers - will no longer have their monthly payments reduced.

The WEP and the GPO had also led to lower pension payouts for the surviving spouses of retired workers, and in some cases even caused them to be eliminated entirely.

Between them, the two repealed laws affected some 2.8 million people in the US.

When will affected retirees get their increased benefits?

In a statement on its website, the Social Security Administration (SSA) said it is now “evaluating how to implement the [Social Security Fairness] Act,” adding: “We will provide more information as soon as available.”

According to the new legislation, affected beneficiaries’ increased payments will apply retroactively, stretching back to the beginning of 2024.

Social Security Fairness Act a “monumental victory”

After the Social Security Fairness Act was signed on Sunday, the White House said in a statement: “Today, President Biden became the first president in more than 20 years to expand Social Security benefits.

“Americans who have worked hard all their lives to earn an honest living should retire with economic security and dignity.”

Shannon Benton, the executive director for the Senior Citizens League, has described the legislation as “a monumental victory for millions of public service workers who have been denied the full benefits they’ve rightfully earned.”

In quotes published by CBS, Benton added: “This legislation finally restores fairness to the system and ensures the hard work of teachers, first responders and countless public employees is truly recognized.”

Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer, the minority leader of Congress’s upper house, said on X: “No longer will public retirees see their hard-earned Social Security benefits robbed from them. Millions of retired teachers and firefighters and letter carriers and state and local workers have waited decades for this.”

The Senate passed the Social Security Fairness Act on December 21, following the legislation’s approval by the House of Representatives on November 12.

How many retired workers get Social Security benefits in the US?

Across the US, the SSA paid retirement benefits to nearly 54 million retired workers and their dependents in 2024, with an average monthly benefit of $1,918. Retired workers and their dependents account for around 78% of all Social Security beneficiaries, the SSA says.

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