Hearing Highlights Social Security Reform Bill That Includes NARFE Priorities

NARFE NewsLine – A weekly newsletter that goes out to NARFE members on Tuesdays and includes weekly recaps of legislative news, compiled by NARFE’s advocacy and communications teams. LEGISLATIVE ACTION CENTER – A one-stop site to send a letter to Congress, and more, at www.narfe.org.

WEP FROM P.9

benefits between 2023 and 2060 would be subject to either a new formula created by the bill or the current formula, whichever is more beneficial.

This bill’s construct is similar to that of H.R. 2337, the Public Servants Protection and Fairness Act, which would also provide an increased monthly benefit for current WEP-affected beneficiaries and a new formula going forward. However, H.R. 2337 provides a slightly larger increase in benefits than H.R. 5834 for the primary worker ($150 vs. $100) but does not provide any rebate for spousal and child beneficiaries. H.R. 5834 also eventually only uses the new WEP formula, while H.R. 2337 would always allow for the better of the current and new formula. While this last difference may seem small, it changes the net cost to Social Security over the 75-year window in which its solvency is typically measured.

Brady, who introduced H.R. 5834, and Rep. Richard Neal, D-MA, who introduced H.R. 2337, are the ranking member and chairman, respectively, of the House Committee on Ways and Means, which has jurisdiction over the issue. It’s good news that both support similar bills.

But it’s bad news that with such interest from both leaders, they still haven’t reached a compromise.

NARFE supports both bills, as they each represent a positive change in addressing the WEP, and is encouraging the two lawmakers to work together to advance legislation.

—BY SETH ICKES, POLITICAL ASSOCIATE

In December 2021, the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Social Security held a hearing on H.R. 5723, Social Security 2100: A Sacred Trust, introduced by Rep. John Larson, D-CT, chair of the subcommittee. The legislation is a temporary reform of Social Security that extends the solvency of the Social Security trust fund while simultaneously increasing benefits and providing financial security to those who need it most.

New to this latest iteration of the bill is a provision to repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) for about four years. While not a permanent repeal, it follows with the temporary nature of the legislation and represents a step in the right direction. NARFE refrained from endorsing previous versions of this bill due to the omission of such a provision in a comprehensive Social Security reform bill, and the association pushed for it to be included.

H.R. 5723 also includes terms to adopt the Consumer Price Index for the Elderly (CPI-E) as the basis for the annual Social Security costof-living adjustment (COLA). This change would more accurately reflect the spending habits of seniors, putting a greater emphasis on health care cost increases. In a letter to the subcommittee, NARFE National President Ken Thomas asked the committee to work with the House Committee on Oversight and Reform to extend this change to Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) annuities.

The bill would also increase Social Security payments for all beneficiaries by an amount equal to 2 percent of the average benefit, end the standard five-month waiting period for disability benefits and establish a benefit minimum at 125 percent of the poverty line.

—BY ROSS APTER, DIRECTOR, LEGISLATIVE AND POLITICAL AFFAIRS