News

On January 5, 2025, President Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law, legislation that will repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO).

This repeal marks a significant victory for LACERA retirees—both those currently impacted by the WEP/GPO penalties as well as future LACERA retirees who will receive the full Social Security benefits to which they are entitled.

What Happens Next?

The effective date for the WEP/GPO repeal for those receiving Social Security benefits is January 2024. While it has not yet been announced how soon Social Security will recalculate and apply the new benefit amounts, in his remarks on January 5, President Biden announced that in addition to those full monthly benefits, affected retirees will receive lump-sum payments retroactive to January 2024. If you are a member who has been subject to the WEP or GPO, you do not need to take action. Social Security will automatically apply the changes and make the lump-sum payments.

LACERA will keep members posted as we receive information from the Social Security Administration regarding its implementation plan, timeline, and further details.

More About the WEP/GPO and Its Ultimate Repeal

Since 1983, the WEP has reduced the Social Security benefits for workers who receive a pension but who also qualified for benefits under the Social Security system (e.g., County workers employed before 1983 or LACERA members who were formerly employed in the private sector). Since 1977, the GPO has reduced Social Security benefits for spouses, widows, or widowers who also receive a government pension by 2/3rds of their pension amount, sometimes eliminating the Social Security benefit completely.

The repeal of the WEP/GPO penalties comes after decades of efforts by public pension plans and public sector unions. Why did it take so long? Legislation to repeal the WEP/GPO has been successively introduced since 2001 and historically garnered bipartisan support, but it was never brought up for a vote. Frustrated with inaction on the legislation, this year the bill’s chief House sponsors led an effort to use the House’s rules to discharge the bill from the Ways and Means Committee and bring it to the full House for a direct vote. On September 19, 2024, the cosigners of the discharge petition reached the crucial threshold of 218 signatures, a simple majority in the House. This paved the way for House passage of the bill (327 to 75) on November 12, 2024, and subsequent transmission to the Senate, where it passed in a historic vote (76 to 20) on December 21, 2024.

Over the years, LACERA has been in contact with every House member and senator, urging for support of this repeal. Up to the final congressional votes, LACERA was a consistent advocate on behalf of its 187,000 members and beneficiaries.