Public sector and civil servants get the short end of the welfare stick

It’s safe to say that many of our police officers, firefighters, teachers, postal workers and many others are unaware of Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). Simply put, up to two-thirds of your Social Security income will not be available to you when you retire here in Maine and in 14 other states. With a GPO, it may also affect your spousal and survivor benefits.

Those who are not affected will feel that you must have been misinformed. “How can they just take your money?” “This is outright theft!” “This can’t be true!” Unfortunately, this is true for 2.8 million state and civil servants across the country, and has been so since the Reagan administration. Many find that they work longer hours than expected or are unable to retire with dignity or at all.

There are “rationales” for WEP and GPO, but they make no sense and are completely unfair. Collecting Social Security withholding from a private sector job and public pension withholding from another public sector or government job is certainly NOT “double dipping” as very few repeal opponents would have us believe. Your earnings are divided into two separate baskets, each of which should be available to you – just like in any private sector job.

Most of us realize that if billionaires paid their fair share of taxes (although “fair” for billionaires is a little more affordable), we would never have to talk about Social Security becoming insolvent. However, another misleading rationale for blocking repeal of these unfair provisions is the claim that it would shorten the time frame within which Social Security can become insolvent by another year. I don’t want to begrudge those who rightfully collected money for decades, but those of us who were deprived of the benefits we earned for 40 years saved the system money. The legitimate benefits are long overdue.

While some have pushed for a “compromise” bill in the past, it would only provide an additional $100 per month to victims. This symbolic gesture, adding insult to injury, would mark the end of any further efforts towards a complete repeal.

But there is potentially good news in which your voice can play an important role. a rare dispatch forcing the House to vote sometime in November or December on H.R. 82, Social Security Fairness Act. Of course, the matter then goes to the Senate. The bill is considered popular, but as has happened in the past, if it is not a priority, time for a vote could run out. Now is the time to let our Representatives and Senators know how much we value our public sector and government employees and put an end to these patently unfair provisions and compensation.

If the Social Security Fairness Act fails to pass, it may be time for a new bill. Public sector and government employers should be legally required to inform potential employees, both verbally and in print, that they will lose two-thirds of any Social Security benefits upon retirement. Even if this decision is not adopted, the politicians and legislators who voted against it should be named publicly. Voters deserve to know whether their representatives supported or opposed transparency regarding this significant risk to their financial future.