Editor’s note (June 7, 2023) : Since we published this article, more legislation has been introduced in Congress. Click here for the latest.

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Federal lawmakers seeking to repeal Social Security’s Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) are giving it another try this year.

U.S. Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and Garrett Graves (R-LA) reintroduced the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 (H.R. 82) in January. A similar bill received widespread bipartisan support in 2022 but never made it to a floor vote. Bills that don’t pass expire at the conclusion of each Congress.

The WEP and GPO, which are part of federal law, can reduce Social Security benefits for recipients of public pensions like Colorado PERA that serve as a substitute for Social Security. It’s important to note that a person’s PERA benefit is never reduced due to Social Security or other benefits.

While some bills in recent years have aimed to modify one or both the WEP and GPO, H.R. 82 seeks to fully repeal both provisions. As of early February, the bill had nearly 150 cosponsors, two of whom are from Colorado: Rep. Joe Neguse (D-CO-2) and Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO-6). The previous version of the bill received over 300 cosponsors, including four from Colorado.

Why hasn’t Congress taken any substantial action on WEP/GPO despite strong support? Essentially, it comes down to cost. Eliminating or changing the WEP/GPO provisions of Social Security would mean providing larger checks to benefit recipients, costing the system more money. Recent projections show the Social Security trust funds are expected to be depleted in about a decade, so it’s a tough sell.

Since major changes may be needed to shore up Social Security’s financial footing, it’s possible changes to WEP/GPO could be included in a larger reform package. But it’s not clear when or if that might happen.

What’s Colorado PERA doing about it? Since this is a federal issue to be determined by Congress, we encourage members and retirees to contact their members of Congress to share their opinion about these provisions and how they affect them. PERA will continue to work with the Colorado General Assembly to ensure PERA is on-track to meet its funding goal in order to continue to provide current and future retirees with monthly income in retirement that cannot be outlived.

PERA On The Issues will continue to track any legislative action on WEP/GPO throughout the year. Subscribe to our biweekly newsletter for updates on this bill and other news related to public employee retirement.