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Social Security Fairness Act: Update - Social Security Administration

About 3.2 million people were affected by enactment of the Social Security Fairness Act in early January 2025. The media coverage of this event has many Social Security recipients wondering if their personal benefits will be affected. Here at the AMAC Foundation’s Social Security Advisory Service we have fielded many questions from a wondering public, including questions from those who are actually affected, and also from those who are not. Thus, here is a quick guide to whether your Social Security benefits are affected by the Social Security Fairness Act, or not:

The only people affected by the Social Security Fairness Act are those who worked for, and retired from, a federal, state, or local government employer, and who earned a pension from that work while not contributing to Social Security, and who also separately became entitled to Social Security benefits from other work or as a surviving spouse. Those in that category may have had their separately earned Social Security benefits reduced by rules known as the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP), and/or the Government Pension Offset (GPO). WEP may also affect those who have a separate pension from a foreign employer. If you do not have a federal, state, or local government pension, then you are not affected by the Social Security Fairness Act, which repealed both the WEP and GPO provisions.

That still leaves over 3 million retired government retirees who ARE affected and who will see an increase in their Social Security benefits, but much confusion has existed about when those increases will be received. The new legislation also provided some retroactive benefits, which has raised similar questions.

Despite initial confusion, the Social Security Administration has now provided guidance on when those government retirees can expect to receive their increased monthly Social Security benefits, as well as their retroactive benefits. This guidance is contained in the SSA’s recent newsletter, which can be found at this link: https://www.ssa.gov/news/newsletter/#03-2025-5 or by clicking here.

Also, if you’re unsure about how these basics apply to you, or if you have any questions about your individual situation under Social Security, note that the AMAC Foundation provides a free-to-the-public advisory service to help Americans navigate the complexities of this program. All questions are answered quickly, at no charge.  Learn more about it here…

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