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If you worked in the public sector, make sure you don’t miss out on this - 247Wallst.com
For many years, since the 1970s/1980s, many public sector employees did not contribute to Social Security from their government paychecks, and their public sector employers did not contribute to the SS program either. As a result, those employees were not entitled to Social Security retirement when they later retired. And, if they also worked in other employment where they did pay into Social Security thus earning SS benefits, their SS payments were reduced because they have a “non-covered pension” (one earned without contributing to the SS program). This was because of two provisions of Social Security law called the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). These provisions were not popular, especially with public sector unions who felt that their members were being cheated.
Then, in January of 2025, Congress passed and President Biden signed the so-called Social Security Fairness Act which eliminated both WEP and GPO, and approved retroactive Social Security payments for those affected back to January 2024. This, of course, was great news for those affected, many of whom were automatically identified by the Social Security Administration and provided with a retroactive windfall of SS benefits. But, as this article reveals, there may be some public service retirees who fell through the cracks and were not identified as deserving by Social Security. This 247WallSt.com article by Austin Smith discusses this potential anomaly, and offers advise on how to rectify it.
Note: Not all public sector employees are affected by repeal of WEP and GPO – only those with a pension earned without contributing to Social Security. This occurred in some state and local governments in 13 states, as well as those employed by the federal government before 1986.
Social Security is a complex topic. If you’re unsure about how these basics apply to you, or if you have any questions about your individual situation under Social Security or enrollment in Medicare, note that the AMAC Foundation provides a free-to-the-public advisory service to help Americans navigate the complexities of these programs. All questions are answered quickly, at no charge. Learn more about it here…