Issue link: http://educator.cta.org/i/1527898
H.R. 82: Historic Progress on Unfair Retirement Penalties for Teachers A N E N D M A Y B E in sight for laws that unfairly reduce retirement benefits for more than 3 million public workers, including CTA members, with a vote to repeal them coming soon in the U.S. House of Representatives. Lawmakers in Washington, D.C., announced in September they had the signa- tures needed to force a vote on H.R 82, the Social Security Fairness Act, which would eliminate the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) rules that reduce Social Security benefits for certain retirees who also receive pension income. A vote in the House of Representatives could come during the "Lame Duck" session after the general election in November. The bill has 329 co-sponsors in the House and 62 in the U.S. Senate — the "most bipartisan and co-sponsored bill in the United States Congress," according to Rep. Greg Landsman, D-Ohio. The historic effort would not have been possible without the advocacy and activism of NEA members. Since the start of this Congress until Sept. 20 when the signature threshold was reached, NEA members and allies have sent more than 180,000 messages to Congress urging the full repeal of GPO-WEP. Additionally, the NEA Board of Directors has held more than 600 meetings with members of Congress during this session. " Today marks a major milestone brought forth by the tireless advocacy of edu- cators and other public servants," NEA President Becky Pringle said in September. "Educators dedicate their lives to public service, but when it's time to retire, far too many find that they have been stripped of Social Security and retirement benefits due to an unjust and morally wrong penalty. The WEP reduces Social Security benefits of people who work in jobs covered by Social Security and jobs not covered by Social Security over the course of their careers, for example, educators compelled to take part-time or summer jobs to make ends meet — affecting more than 2.8 million Americans. The GPO reduces or eliminates—the Social Security spousal or survivor benefits of people who also get a pension based on federal, state or local government employment not cov- ered by Social Security — affecting about 800,000 retirees. Both laws have been unjustly impacting dedicated public workers for more than 40 years. "Record levels of Americans are demanding a change to these archaic and punitive laws," Pringle said. " The time to act is now because everyone should be able to retire with dignity and receive the benefits they earned through a lifetime of public service." For more information and to sign a petition to urge congressional leaders to repeal the GPO and WEP, visit nea.org/gpowep. 41 O C T O B E R / N O V E M B E R 2 0 24 35 grants, ranging from $500–$2,500, awarded across the U.S. this year! ExploreActTell.org START TODAY! FREE STANDARDS-ALIGNED LESSONS & RESOURCES For grades 6–12 Civic engagement and leadership Project-based learning Implement a project & compete for grant funds