General (03)
Susana Barrios
From: Rep. Lou Correa <repcorrea@mail8.housecommunications.gov>
Sent: Thursday, January 30, 2025 1:39 PM
To: Public Comment <publiccomment@anaheim.net>
Subject: \[EXTERNAL\] Bringing home the Social Security benefits you’ve earned.
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Hello,
The Social Security Fairness Act was signed into law earlier this month—meaning that hundreds of
thousands of Californians will have access to more of their Social Security benefits. I’m proud to
have joined a bipartisan coalition of my colleagues to pass this important bill, which is the first law to
expand social security benefits in decades. Now, seniors who were previously denied benefits under
the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset will have full access to their
benefits.
WHAT WERE THESE PROVISIONS?
The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) was a formula used to reduce the Social Security benefits
for certain employees, including those who dedicated their lives to public service, if they receive a
retirement or disability pension from an employer that didn’t withhold taxes from their salary. The
Government Pension Offset (GPO) was used to reduce Social Security benefits for some spouses,
widows, and widowers by over half because they received a government pension. These provisions
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reduced the Social Security benefits of many workers, spouses, and surviving spouses who receive a
pension based on employment not covered by Social Security—including many teachers, police
officers, firefighters, and other state and local public servants.
HOW WILL THIS LAW AFFECT ME?
Social security is America’s promise that if you work hard, you’ll have a retirement. Over 290,000
Californians saw their benefits affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision—but they’ll now see
their benefits increase by an average of almost $360 a month. In addition, the over 102,000
Californian spouses—including many Orange County residents—that couldn’t access these benefits
before will now see an average increase of over $700 a month.
If your benefits are being reduced or eliminated by these provisions, you should make sure that the
Social Security Administration (SSA) has your current mailing address and direct deposit information,
especially if it has recently changed. If you never applied for these benefits, the SSA recommends
filing soon. More information and updates are available HERE.
These payments are retroactive starting from December 2023. Starting in January 2025, there will
also be a 2.5% cost-of-living increase to all Social Security beneficiaries. However, these changes
might look different for everyone, and the increase in Medicare Part B premiums can affect everyone
differently. You should also be aware of potential scams and visit the SSA’s scam center for
information on common scams and how to report.
As always, my office is here to help you—if you have questions about Social Security benefits or need
help with a federal agency, please don’t hesitate to reach out to my Santa Ana office at (714) 559-
6190.
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Sincerely,
Rep. Lou Correa
Member of Congress
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