WEP/GPO impact on SS survivor benefits when deceased spouse had PERS pension - 2025 law changes?

The 2025 changes to WEP/GPO could potentially help your situation, but it depends on the specifics. Under the old rules, GPO would reduce your survivor benefits by 2/3 of your husband's PERS pension amount. The new formula is more generous and complex. It calculates a proportional reduction based on how many years your husband paid into Social Security vs. the non-covered employment. With only 7 years of PERS and 30+ years of SS-covered work, you should see a significant improvement compared to the old 2/3 reduction. I recommend scheduling an appointment with SSA to get the exact calculation for your specific case.

the 2/3 rule is AWFUL...my aunt lost almost all her widows benifit becuz of a tiny pension from school district job. if your husband only did PERS for 7 yrs tho it probly wont be as bad for u. but ya the new law helps ppl like u.

It still blows my mind that this penalty exists at all. My husband worked his WHOLE LIFE paying into Social Security except for 6 years at a city job, and they slashed my survivor benefits by thousands! The new law helps but doesn't eliminate the problem. Good luck navigating this mess!

To give you the most accurate guidance: The GPO reform included in the SECURE 2.0 Act changes the calculation starting in 2025. Instead of the flat 2/3 reduction of your government pension, the reduction will be proportional based on how much of your husband's career was spent in non-covered employment. In your case, if your husband worked 7 years under PERS out of a total 35+ year career, the reduction would be much smaller than under current rules. You'll need to provide SSA with exact work history details for the precise calculation. Regarding timing - you don't need to wait until 2025 to apply. If you're eligible and apply before 2025, your benefit would initially be calculated under current rules, then automatically recalculated under the new rules once they take effect.

I understand your confusion with GPO! I've been trying to reach SSA for weeks to ask about my own situation (spouse worked for state government) but keep getting disconnected or told the wait time is over 2 hours. Has anyone found a better way to actually TALK to someone at SSA about these complex situations?

To answer your follow-up question - the age at which your husband passed away doesn't affect how GPO works, but it does affect the base survivor benefit amount before any GPO reduction is applied. Since he died before his FRA, your survivor benefit would be based on his Primary Insurance Amount (PIA) with potential reductions based on when you claim. The GPO reduction (whether under current or 2025 rules) is then applied after calculating that base survivor benefit. The best strategy is usually to provide SSA with complete records of both his covered and non-covered employment so they can calculate the most accurate benefit under the new proportional formula.

To clarify what's being discussed - there are two separate calculations happening: 1) The basic survivor benefit calculation, which is affected by when your husband died and when you claim, and 2) The GPO reduction, which is based on his non-covered pension. Both affect your final payment amount. Under the 2025 changes, you'll likely see a significant improvement because your husband had relatively few years of non-covered work compared to his SS-covered employment. Document everything carefully and consider working with a financial advisor who specializes in Social Security planning for government employees.