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For those interested in current legislative efforts, there are two main bills that have been introduced to address WEP: The Social Security Fairness Act (which would fully repeal both WEP and GPO) and the Public Servants Protection and Fairness Act (which would modify WEP with a new formula). The fairness act has more cosponsors but the Protection act is seen as more fiscally feasible. Neither has passed yet, but you can contact your representatives to express support.
Grace Thomas
•Thank you for this information! I'm going to look up both bills and contact my representatives. It sounds like the full repeal would be ideal, but I'd take the modified formula over nothing. Do you know if either bill has a decent chance of passing anytime soon?
Dylan Baskin
ive heard that if you work after you start getting your pension like a parttime job that pays into ss it can help reduce the wep penalty over time is that true??
Lauren Wood
•Yes, that's correct. Each additional year of substantial earnings under Social Security (which is $30,975 for 2025) can reduce your WEP penalty. If you reach 30 years of substantial earnings, the WEP doesn't apply at all. For people close to that threshold, working part-time after retirement can eventually eliminate the WEP reduction entirely.
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GamerGirl99
just wondering - does ur mom's pension come from a job where she DIDNT pay into social security at all? or did she pay into both? my mom paid into both and they still did the GPO thing to her which seemed so unfair!!!
She paid into both! She worked at a school district that had its own pension system, but she also had several side jobs over the years where she paid into Social Security. Then she worked part-time at a private company after retiring from the school district. So she definitely contributed to both systems, which is why the GPO seemed so unfair to us too!
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Miguel Ramos
who else gets confused between all these dif benefits? survivors, retirement, spousal, SSI, SSDI...my head spins! 🤯
Ava Martinez
•It's definitely confusing! Quick summary: Retirement benefits are based on your own work. Spousal benefits are based on a living spouse's record. Survivor benefits are based on a deceased spouse's record. SSDI is disability insurance based on work credits. SSI is needs-based for limited income/resources. Each has different rules!
Just to clarify some technical details about your strategy: This approach (survivor benefits first, then switching to retirement) can work very well when your own benefit at 70 exceeds your survivor benefit. A few important facts: 1. Your survivor benefit reached maximum value at your FRA (66 years, 8 months) 2. Your own retirement benefit grows until age 70 (getting 8% delayed credits per year) 3. Taking survivor benefits early at 64.5 means you're accepting a reduced amount (about 88-90% of the full survivor benefit) 4. But that reduction doesn't affect your own retirement benefit at 70 So mathematically, your strategy makes perfect sense if your own benefit at 70 is indeed higher than your survivor benefit would be at FRA, as the SSA rep confirmed.
Thank you for breaking down the math! So even though I'm taking reduced survivor benefits early, it was still the right move if my own benefit at 70 will be higher than the full survivor benefit would have been? That's a relief!
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Im confused about something.. if the GPO reduced your spousal benefit to $0 before, why would it change now? Did your non-covered pension amount go down or something??? This whole GPO thing is SO UNFAIR to those of us who worked in public service!
Amina Diallo
•Great question. There are a few scenarios where GPO impact could change: 1. A change in pension amount (unusual, but possible with pension recalculations) 2. A recalculation of the spouse's PIA that increases the spousal benefit potential 3. Administrative correction of a previous error 4. Changes in other income affecting taxation (doesn't affect GPO directly but might affect net payment) The GPO reduction is 2/3 of the non-covered pension amount. So if her spouse's benefit increased significantly due to delayed retirement credits or earnings recalculations, it's possible the math now works out differently. For example: If her spouse's PIA increased enough that 50% of it (reduced for early filing) is now greater than her own benefit plus 2/3 of her pension, she might now be eligible for a partial spousal benefit where before it was reduced to zero.
CosmicCowboy
my cousin works for ssa and says their computer system does weird stuff all the time with no explanation. could just be a glitch honestly. best to just go to office in person and make them look it up while ur sitting there. thats the only way to really get answers with these people
CosmicCowboy
I HATE the windfall elimination!!!! Its so unfair to teachers!!! We work our whole lives and then get penalized for choosing a public service career?? Make it make sense!!!
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Keisha Johnson
•The rationale behind WEP is that Social Security benefits are designed to replace a higher percentage of income for lower-wage workers. Since teachers with non-covered pensions appear to Social Security as "low-wage workers" (because their teaching earnings don't show up in SS records), WEP was created to adjust for this. I agree it feels unfair, but that's the current policy logic. There are ongoing efforts to reform it.
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Connor Gallagher
Just to add to my earlier comment: When you suspend benefits, you continue earning delayed retirement credits until age 70, which will permanently increase your benefit by about 8% per year. So suspending from FRA (67) to 70 could increase your benefit by around 24% for the rest of your life. Also, regarding WEP - if you have 30+ years of "substantial earnings" in Social Security-covered employment, WEP doesn't apply at all. If you have 21-29 years, the WEP reduction is lessened. Might be worth checking your earnings record to see where you stand.
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Zainab Omar
•I just checked my SS statement online and I only have about 15 years of substantial earnings under Social Security. Most of my career has been teaching. So I guess the full WEP will apply to me regardless. Still, getting that 24% increase by waiting until 70 seems worthwhile.
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