Will I ever qualify for Social Security spousal benefits if my husband's SS benefits eventually exceed 2/3 of my teacher's pension (GPO question)?

Yes, you could eventually qualify for spousal benefits if your husband's benefit grows high enough through COLAs. Here's how it works: The GPO reduction is 2/3 of your non-covered pension, which would be $2,000 (2/3 of $3,000). That $2,000 gets subtracted from any spousal benefit you'd normally receive. Spousal benefit at your FRA would normally be 50% of your husband's PIA. So if his benefit is $3,500, your unreduced spousal would be $1,750. Since $1,750 - $2,000 = -$250, you'd get nothing initially. But if his benefit increases through COLAs to, let's say, $4,100, then your potential spousal would be $2,050. After the $2,000 GPO reduction, you'd get $50/month. And yes, if he delays until 70, his benefit would be approximately 32% higher (around $4,620), making your potential spousal benefit $2,310. After GPO reduction, you'd get $310 monthly - definitely more substantial!

my neighbor is a retired teacher and her husband gets social security and she doesn't get a DIME of his because of that stupid GPO rule its so unfair they should get rid of it!!! she worked for 35 years teaching kids and now gets nothing from ss even though she paid into it for some years too before becoming a teacher. don't know about your cola question but just wanted to say the whole system is broken imo

Your math checks out! I was in a similar situation with my husband's SS and my state pension. Our financial planner confirmed that once his benefit (after COLAs) reached a certain threshold, I would start receiving a small spousal benefit despite GPO. One important thing: you need to actually APPLY for spousal benefits. SSA won't automatically start sending them once you qualify. When my husband's benefit finally crossed that threshold after 5 years of COLAs, I had to go in and apply. They did give me 6 months of retroactive benefits, but I could have been collecting for nearly a year before I realized I needed to apply. And yes, him delaying until 70 would definitely help your situation faster than waiting for COLAs to slowly increase his benefit amount. Just make sure one of you is keeping track of when you cross that threshold!

Have you looked at survivor benefits? I think GPO applies there too but the math is different because survivor benefits are 100% of his benefit instead of 50%. So even with the GPO reduction, you might qualify for survivor benefits immediately if he passes before you (though I hope that's not for a very long time!

try calling social security directly to get the exact answer about future cola increases. i've tried calling them for weeks about my own situation and can NEVER get through!! always busy or disconnected after waiting forever. so frustrating!

One more tip - keep a spreadsheet tracking your husband's benefit increases each year with COLAs and calculate when you'll hit that threshold. SSA won't notify you when you become eligible for a small spousal benefit. I'd recommend checking the calculation every January after new COLAs take effect. Also, if you do work after retiring from teaching, aim for at least 5 years with substantial earnings under Social Security. That won't eliminate WEP entirely if you later claim your own SS benefit, but it will significantly reduce the WEP penalty.

Sorry for the tangent, but does anyone know if the GPO amount ever gets recalculated if your pension amount changes? My wife will be in a similar situation with her state pension, but her system offers occasional one-time adjustments based on inflation (not annual COLAs). Would those pension increases mean recalculating the GPO reduction?

I don't think anyone's mentioned this yet, but you should verify whether your teacher's pension includes any cost-of-living adjustments. Some state pension systems do provide small annual increases, though they're typically capped and not as generous as Social Security's COLAs. If your pension also increases over time (even slightly), that would affect the GPO calculation and potentially delay when you'd qualify for spousal benefits.