Why Some Retirees Are Seeing Bigger Social Security Checks: The Reasons Explained
A significant number of older adults are receiving an anticipated financial boost. And it’s about time. On January 5th, Congress repealed two provisions: the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). These changes eliminated or decreased retirement and disability benefits for over 3.2 million employees receiving pensions from jobs not included under Social Security coverage. Signed into law in 1983, the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) lessened the Social Security benefits for employees whose retirement income comes from pensions not subject to Social Security payroll taxes. This measure aimed to stop what’s known as "double dipping," ensuring that public sector workers—federal, state, and local—with non-covered pensions wouldn’t collect greater Social Security payments than those who had contributed consistently through many years of work under Social Security regulations. The Government Pension Offset Act, enacted in 19...