Double Social Security tax deductions from my state job paycheck - is this legal?

thats definitely not right. ss tax is 6.2% and medicare is 1.45%, your employer matches it but it shouldnt be taken out of YOUR check twice. take ur pay stub to hr and ask them to explain exactly whats happening line by line

This doesn't sound correct. The way Social Security and Medicare taxes (FICA) work is that you pay 6.2% for Social Security (up to the annual wage base limit, which is $168,600 in 2025) and 1.45% for Medicare (no wage limit), and your employer matches these amounts. But they should only be withheld once from your paycheck. A few questions that might help diagnose the issue: 1. Are you looking at the employer contribution section of your paystub and mistaking it for a second deduction? 2. Is it possible you're working two positions at the state that are processed separately? 3. Do you participate in any supplemental retirement programs that might look similar on a paystub? If none of these apply, you definitely need to speak with your payroll department specifically (not just HR) and have them explain the deductions.

I WENT THROUGH THE EXACT SAME THING with my county job last year!!! Turns out it was a payroll system error after they upgraded their software. They had been double-deducting for THREE MONTHS before I caught it! Had to fight to get my money back too - they tried to just fix it going forward. DONT let them do that to you!!

Some state government positions have unusual tax situations, especially if you're in one of the states where certain public employees don't participate in Social Security. Are you in a state like Ohio, Colorado, Massachusetts, Nevada, Louisiana, or Maine where some public employees don't pay into Social Security but instead have a separate state pension system? If you ARE supposed to be exempt from Social Security tax because you're in a qualifying state pension plan, but they're still deducting it, that could explain what you're seeing. Alternatively, if you recently transferred from a non-covered position to a covered position, there might be some adjustment happening.

This happened to my sister-in-law and it was because she worked for a university that was technically a state job but also kind of its own system?? Something about how the university processed state benefits made it look like she was paying twice but one was actually going to a different account. The amounts weren't exactly the same though. Are your deductions identical amounts or different?

If you're getting nowhere with HR, I had great success using Claimyr to reach an actual Social Security agent about a similar payroll tax issue. I was getting disconnected or waiting for hours whenever I called SSA directly. With Claimyr, I got through to an agent in like 15 minutes who explained exactly how my taxes should be handled. You can see how it works in their video demo: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU - their website is claimyr.com. Made dealing with SSA so much less frustrating!

Have you checked if one of the deductions might be for a prior pay period adjustment? Sometimes when there's an error in previous calculations, they make adjustments on a current paycheck. It would appear as an additional deduction but is actually fixing something from before. Just a thought.

After reading through all the comments, I think your best approach is: 1. First, speak with payroll specifically (not general HR) and ask for a written explanation of all four line items. 2. Request to see the legal justification for double withholding if they claim it's correct. 3. If they confirm it's an error, ask for immediate correction AND back payment for all incorrectly withheld amounts. 4. If they resist providing back payments, mention that you'll need to consult with the State Department of Labor about the improper withholding. Payroll tax errors need to be corrected with both back payments and tax record corrections. Keep us posted on what happens!

UPDATE: Just got back from my meeting with payroll! Turns out I was right to be suspicious. What happened is our agency recently changed how they classify certain positions and didn't properly update the payroll codes. Some of us were accidentally flagged as both regular state employees AND as special category employees that have different withholding requirements. They're fixing it immediately and said I'll get all the extra money back in my next paycheck! Thanks everyone for confirming I wasn't missing something obvious!

Congrats on getting this resolved! This is exactly why it's so important to carefully review every line item on your paystub - these kinds of payroll classification errors happen more often than people realize, especially after system updates or organizational changes. Your persistence paid off big time. Hopefully this helps other state employees who might be experiencing similar issues to know they should definitely question anything that looks off rather than assuming the payroll system is always right.

This is such a valuable thread for anyone working in government! I'm a new federal employee and honestly hadn't thought much about double-checking my paystub beyond making sure my salary was right. After reading about Theodore's experience, I went back and looked at my last few pay stubs more carefully. Everything looks correct for me, but now I know what to watch out for. It's really concerning how a simple classification error could cost someone hundreds of dollars per month. Thanks for sharing the whole journey from problem to resolution - it's a great roadmap for anyone who might face something similar!

Wow, what a rollercoaster but so glad you got it resolved! This is a perfect example of why we need to trust our instincts when something doesn't look right. I've been working for a state agency for about 3 years and I've seen similar classification errors happen during system migrations or reorganizations. The fact that you were flagged as both regular AND special category employees is exactly the kind of glitch that can slip through the cracks. For anyone else reading this - if payroll or HR gives you the runaround on something that seems obviously wrong, don't give up! Ask for specifics, ask for written explanations, and keep escalating until you get someone who actually knows the system. Theodore saved himself potentially thousands of dollars by being persistent. Great job advocating for yourself!