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Understanding the Social Security Fairness Act of 2025

The Social Security Fairness Act (SSFA) eliminates the reduction of Social Security benefits based on your work records or the work record of your spouse or former spouse while entitled to a public pension from work not covered by Social Security, i.e. the Civil Service Retirement System. The Act will affect retirement benefits and planning for almost 3 million beneficiaries by ensuring that teachers, fire fighters, law enforcement officers, and other public servants or their spouses—including more than 25,000 Mainers—receive their earned Social Security Benefits. The SSFA will repeal two provisions: the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). These unfairly reduce the Social Security benefits that public employees or their spouses have earned. 

The recent passage of the Social Security Fairness Act marks a significant victory for the Maine Career & Technical Educators and other public sector workers across the state. This landmark legislation, authored by Maine’s Senator Susan Collins, repeals two long-standing provisions that have unfairly reduced Social Security benefits for many dedicated public servants. Career & Technical Educators, who are often recruited after working years in the private sector, will no longer be penalized by these provisions. 

More than 25,000 Mainers, who dedicated their lives to public service, were prevented from receiving the full Social Security benefits they earn due to two laws from the 1970s and 1980s. The Windfall Elimination Provision, enacted in 1983, reduced the Social Security benefits of workers who receive pensions from a federal, state, or local government for employment not covered by Social Security. The Government Pension Offset, enacted in 1977, reduced Social Security spousal benefits for spouses, widows, and widowers whose spouses’ received pensions from a federal, state, or local government.

Changes expected include:

  • Increased Benefits – affected individuals will see an average increase of $360 per month in Social Security Benefits, though amounts vary based on employment history.
  • Retroactive Payments – eligible individuals will receive lump sum payments for lost benefits in 2024.
  • Survivor Benefits Restored – spouses, widows, and widowers will no longer lose survivor benefits due to GPO.
  • Greater Equity – public employees who paid into Social Security while holding additional jobs or later in their careers will now receive benefits based on their full contributions. 

The Act requires SSA to adjust benefits for over 3 million people. Since the law’s effective date is in the past, SSA must adjust some people’s past benefits as well as future benefits. Processing these changes is very complex and SSA’s analysis shows that much of the work must be done manually, on an individual case-by-case basis. SSA is currently processing pending or new claims involving future benefits and developing procedures and automated solutions for computing retroactive benefits.

SSA’s ability to implement the law in a timely manner and without negatively affecting day-to-day customer service relies on funding. The Act did not provide money to implement the law. The law requires SSA to adjust benefits for over 3 million people. Since the law’s effective date is retroactive, SSA must adjust people’s past benefits as well as future benefits. Though SSA is helping some affected beneficiaries now, under SSA’s current budget, SSA expects that it could take more than one year to adjust benefits and pay all retroactive benefits.

December 2023 is the last month that WEP and GPO will apply. This means that those rules no longer apply to benefits payable for January 2024 and later. Important Reminder: Social Security benefits payable for January 2024 would generally have been received in February 2024.

In the meantime, consider reviewing the mailing address and/or direct deposit information that SSA has on file for you. This will allow SSA to adjust your benefits as quickly as possible. Generally, no other actions are needed at this time.

The easiest way for most beneficiaries to update their address or direct deposit information with SSA, if needed, is online with a personal my Social Security account. There is no need to call—simply visit www.ssa.gov/myaccount to sign in or create an account.

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