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The Harsh Consequences of the GPO/WEP
The U.S.Constitution governs our nation. Article 1,section 8 “The Congress shall have the power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay debts, and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States, but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States”. Can we interpret this to mean Congress cannot tax and discriminate against a certain class of people i.e. public employees, when private employees can receive both a pension and full Social Security? Are they invading “our general welfare” by imposing a “tax” that places many public service retirees at or below the poverty level?
The Windfall Elimination Provision penalizes a worker up to 60% of their Social Security. A retiree who paid Social Security for years expects to receive their earned benefits upon retirement. The Webster dictionary defines “windfall as an unexpected good fortunate” Clearly there is nothing unexpected after paying Social Security taxes for 16, 20 35, years.
The Government Pension Offset requires a retiree upon retirement to report to Social Security the amount of their State pension. Social Security then takes 2/3s of the pension and it is subtracted from the retiree’s earned Social Security benefits. Each year the state grants a cost of living increase BUT the retiree must report the increase to Social Security and again the 2/3s penalty is repeated. Is the FEDERAL GOVERNMENT crossing the line into the States rights? Our Answer is YES/
The Cruelty of the OVERPAYMENT
“We strive to process the reports we receive from the beneficiaries as quickly as possible in order to minimize the amount of an overpayment. Sometimes these reports are delayed and as a result, this increases the amount of the overpayment.” Diane B. Garro, Acting Deputy Commissioner Legislation
Mrs.D received a check for $430.00 Sept. 1999 Mrs.C March – May 1998 check was $765
For Oct. Nov. Dec. her check was $384 June – Oct. check was $721.
For Jan. Feb 2000 her check was $394 Nov. check was $392. She received a letter
In March she received a letter from from SS she was overpaid $1,685.
SS advising she owed $1,669.in overpayment. Dec. ‘98’ to Jan. ‘99’ check was $392.
She was required to send a partial check to SS. Feb. to Aug 1999 check was $347.
April check was $177 By May 2003 she would Sept. to Dec. check was $343.
have repaid SS’s error- her check $190.per month Checks in 2003 are $404.
Mrs. S.retired June 2001 at 73 after 30 years of teaching. She was receiving her husbands SS. of $934.She was informed by SS because of the offset she would receive no widow’s benefit (husband paid SS for 58 years) and because of the windfall her earned benefits would be cut. Social Security continued to send her regular checks. In October she again visited the SS office to report her circumstances. In January 2002 a letter from SS stated they would continue sending her the full amount. A February letter stated, “they made a mistake and my Social Security had been cut to $104 a month” This was followed by a letter that she owed $7,343 and that her $104 per month would be withheld until 2007. She is still required to send in a check each month for her Medicare.
These stories represent the many letters we receive on overpayment. QUESTION if Social Security miscalculates a retiree’s benefit is it legal to hold the beneficiary responsible for the repayment?
It takes a SS worker about 11/2 hours to completely process a routine payment change to a retiree’s check from the Government Pension Offset. The cost to S S is the hourly wage of $18.00 plus benefits. To process an overpayment we can add another 1.2 hours increasing the cost to the SSA budget to a little over $45.00 per hour. The national estimate of SSA spouse and widow (er) beneficiaries affected by GPO as of December 2001 is 176, 400. Information is from the 2002 Annual Statistical Supplement.
In Ohio the average cost of living for a retiree in the State Employee Retirement System is approximately $18.72 per month. Two thirds of that is the offset of $12.48. Is this a cost effective program for Social Security? We wonder what is the financial loss in the other states?
What further proof do the Members of Congress require to see the human misery the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision creates in the lives of the elderly in their districts? Recognize the unnecessary financial cost to Social Security. Recognize the discrimination against the essential employees needed in your community. Tell us Members of Congress where will you and your families be as more and more people learn about this discrimination and elect to avoid going into education, the police force, firefighting or any other public employment?
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