This legislation will benefit more than 2.8 million Americans and 50,000 public servants in Nevada
Washington, D.C. – Last night, the Senate passed the Social Security Fairness Act, bipartisan legislation supported by U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) to restore full Social Security benefits to retired law enforcement officers, firefighters, teachers, and other public servants by repealing the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). The legislation now heads to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law.
“Public employees like law enforcement officers and teachers are dedicated to serving communities across the country,” said Senator Cortez Masto. “There are thousands of hardworking Nevadans who have paid into Social Security at some point in their career, but can’t access the full benefits they’ve earned. I commend my colleagues in the Senate for passing this important legislation to fix this issue, and I look forward to the President signing it into law.”
Currently, the WEP reduces Social Security benefits for 39,000 Nevada retirees who have worked both in jobs covered and not covered by Social Security, while the GPO reduces Social Security spousal and survivor benefits for 12,000 Nevadans. In Nevada, many public servants receive pensions from jobs not covered by Social Security — but thousands of them have also worked in jobs, or currently work a second job, where they’ve paid into the Social Security program. Specifically, the Social Security Fairness Act eliminates the unfair WEP and GPO provisions and will help more than 2.8 million Americans and their families receive the benefits they’ve earned—including 50,000 Nevadans who’ve worked both in jobs covered and not covered by Social Security over the course of their careers.
Senator Cortez Masto has consistently worked to protect Social Security and Medicare, lower costs, and ensure Nevada seniors can retire with dignity. She helped pass the Inflation Reduction Act, allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices and capping the cost of insulin at $35-a-month for Medicare recipients. Cortez Masto has also introduced bipartisan legislation to improve the transparency of Medicare Advantage plans.
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