NARFE National President Joins Congressional Leaders to Promote WEP/GPO Repeal

NARFE National President Ken Thomas joined Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-VA, Rep. Rodney Davis, R-IL, and other officials at a press conference July 29, 2022, to celebrate surpassing 290 cosponsors for the Social Security Fairness Act, H.R. 82. Per House rules, hitting this threshold could allow these representatives to force a floor vote.

For decades, public servants have been waiting for a solution to the unfair Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO), Spanberger noted. Stressing the importance of the bill, Thomas cited that the “time to act is now,” and that the bill could be voted on in the House as early as September.

But the road ahead is still uncertain, as some may seek to prevent a floor vote. The day prior, the bill faced a “hiccup,” as Davis described it. He was referring to a provision (section 7) included in H. Res 1289, passed by the House, that changed the rules of the game after the fact, by turning off the counting of legislative days for purposes of the Consensus Calendar, thereby preventing H.R. 82 from banking the necessary days to qualify for a floor vote.

Under House rules adopted at the start of the Congress, any bill receiving 290 or more cosponsors may be placed on the House Consensus Calendar, teeing it up for a vote, so long as it maintains at least 290 cosponsors for 25 legislative days, and is not reported by the committee with primary jurisdiction (here, the Committee on Ways & Means). At press time, H.R. 82 had 299 cosponsors, surpassing the necessary amount.

In response to the impending rule change, NARFE and other allied organizations raised alarm bells with members of Congress. With the help of leaders like Spanberger, Davis and others, House leadership committed to reversing the late rule change.

NOVEMBER ACTION ALERT: URGE YOUR MEMBERS OF CONGRESS TO COSPONSOR THE

EQUAL COLA ACT This year, Federal Employment Retirement System (FERS) retirees are once again on track to receive a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) reduced by 1 percentage point less than the change in consumer prices (which occurs when consumer prices increase by more than 3 percent). That means their COLA won’t keep pace with increasing inflation. NARFE supports the Equal COLA Act, H.R. 304/S. 4221, a bill that would ensure FERS retirees receive COLAs equal to change in consumer prices, regardless of how much prices have risen. Visit NARFE’s Legislative Action Center at www.narfe.org and send a letter to your lawmakers urging them to cosponsor this crucial bill.