Social Security Fairness Act Signed Into Law: What You Need to Know

On January 4, 2025, President Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act into law. This bill is a big win for Ohio seniors and marks the first expansion of Social Security benefits in decades, ending two harmful provisions that had unfairly reduced benefits for millions of former public employees. 

This was legislation I cosponsored, helped bring to the House floor, and voted for in November of 2024. And now, it's the law of the land!

[UPDATED 2/27/25]

Here’s what you need to know:

The Social Security Fairness Act eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) from the Social Security Act. The WEP and the GPO were misguided, unjust, and unfair, reducing the benefits of former teachers, law enforcement officers, postal workers, and other public servants who later worked for other employers. 

Since taking office in 2021, I’ve heard from many constituents who were deeply frustrated by this unfair policy. That’s why I proudly supported the Social Security Fairness Act – because hard-working public servants should receive the benefits they’ve earned. 

According to the Congressional Research Service, this change will directly impact approximately 230,000 Ohioans, ending the WEP and GPO reductions that had eaten away at their benefits. 

What This Means for You:

• If you’re impacted by the Windfall Elimination Provision or the Government Pension Offset, this law likely applies to you.
• The law applies to Social Security benefits beginning in 2024 and moving forward. According to the Congressional Budget Office, beneficiaries will see an average monthly increase of $360.
• Social Security has announced that beginning the week of February 24, 2025 they are beginning to pay retroactive benefits and will increase monthly benefit payments to people whose benefits have been affected by the WEP and GPO. 
  • According to the Social Security Administration, if a beneficiary is due retroactive benefits as a result of the Act, they will receive a one-time retroactive payment, deposited into the bank account SSA has on file, by the end of March. This retroactive payment will cover the increase in their benefit amount back to January 2024, the month when WEP and GPO no longer apply.
  • Social Security benefits are paid one month behind. Most affected beneficiaries will begin receiving their new monthly benefit amount in April 2025 (for their March 2025 benefit).
  • Anyone whose monthly benefit is adjusted, or who will get a retroactive payment, will receive a mailed notice from Social Security explaining the benefit change or retroactive payment.
  • NOTE: A beneficiary may receive two mailed notices, the first when WEP or GPO is removed from their record, and a second when their monthly benefit amount is adjusted for their new monthly payment amount. They may receive the retroactive payment before receiving the mailed notice.
  • Social Security urges beneficiaries to wait until April to inquire about the status of their retroactive payment, since these payments will process incrementally throughout March.

What Do You Need to Do?

• If you know that SSA has your mailing address and/or direct deposit information on file, no other actions are needed from you at this time.
• If you want to verify that the mailing address and/or direct deposit information that SSA has on file is accurate and up to date:
  Check your personal my Social Security account. Visit www.ssa.gov/myaccount to sign in or create an account.
• If you had not previously applied for Social Security benefits but believe you may now be eligible, you can apply here. If you are not sure if you applied in the past, Social Security also encourages you apply again. 
• If you need to apply for Surviving Spouse's Benefits, you must do so by phone. Call 1-800-772-1213 Monday through Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. ET. When the system asks, “How can I help you today?”, say “Fairness Act.” Then, you'll be asked a few questions. Your answers will help us connect you to a WEP-GPO trained representative to take your application.

For a full FAQ from Social Security click here. 

Resources:

• Social Security’s page on implementation and changes due to the Social Security Fairness Act.
• Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) explainer from the Social Security Administration
• Government Pension Offset (GPO) explainer from the Social Security Administration 

The Social Security Fairness Act is welcome progress – now we need to go further to help all Northeast Ohio seniors. I am proud to cosponsor the Social Security 2100 Act, which would expand Social Security benefits across-the-board, and provide additional benefit increases for low-income seniors and the most elderly. You can find information on this bill here. 

There are approximately 112,267 Social Security beneficiaries over the age of 65 in our district – and hundreds of thousands more who are counting on the program in the years to come.

Social Security is a sacred promise. Ohioans work hard throughout their lives, pay into Social Security, and should be able to rely upon those benefits when they retire. Rest assured, I will always fight to ensure every Ohioan can retire with dignity and financial security.