<br><div><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__bv"/><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__bvd gnt_x__h"/><aside class="gnt_em gnt_em__fp gnt_em_vp__tp gnt_em__el" aria-label="Video - Biden signs Social Security bill enhancing benefits for millions"><div class="gnt_em_vp_w" data-g-r="vp_tp" data-c-vt="teal" data-t-pl="teal-hero"><button class="gnt_em_vp_a gnt_em_vp__tp_a" data-g-r="vp_ap vp_tg" data-c-vpattrs="{"muted":true,"bContent":false,"an":"usatoday","pn":"USA TODAY","vidNum":1,"docking":true,"t0060":1,"cut":1}" data-c-vpdata="{"adsEnabled":true,"awsPath":"news","byline":"Cheddar","canonicalURL":"","contentSourceCode":"VIDE","credit":"Cheddar","duration":42000,"headline":"Biden signs Social Security bill enhancing benefits for millions","hlsURL":"https://hlsmedia.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/videos/videoelephant/renditions/77488804007/79053fc1-de0e-44fd-aece-94fc32c0b3f8/480p_30fps,720p_30fps,1080p_30fps,master.m3u8?subtitles=77488804007","id":"77488804007","image":{"opto":true,"url":"/gcdn/authoring/videos/videoelephant/thumbnails/77488804007.jpg"},"keywords":"Joe Biden","mp4URL":"https://www.gannett-cdn.com/authoring/videos/videoelephant/renditions/77488804007/79053fc1-de0e-44fd-aece-94fc32c0b3f8/1080p_30fps.mp4","origin":"Video Elephant","pageURL":{"long":"https://www.usatoday.com/videos/news/2025/01/06/biden-signs-social-security-bill-enhancing-benefits-for-millions/77488804007/"},"promoBrief":"Joe Biden signed the Social Security Fairness Act, expanding benefits for retired Americans, including firefighters, police officers and teachers.","propertyName":"USATODAY","series":"","ssts":{"section":"news","subsection":"","topic":"","subtopic":""},"tags":[{"id":"bce3c45f-197d-4845-8248-87d4f3a737c8","name":"Joe Biden"}],"title":"Biden signs Social Security bill enhancing benefits for millions","url":"/videos/news/2025/01/06/biden-signs-social-security-bill-enhancing-benefits-for-millions/77488804007/"}" aria-label="Play video"><img alt="" class="gnt_em_vp_img" src="https://www.usatoday.com/gcdn/authoring/authoring-images/2024/12/12/USAT/76943588007-img-2333.jpg?crop=480,270,x0,y185&width=480&height=269&format=pjpg&auto=webp" data-g-r="vp_po" fetchpriority="high" elementtiming="ar-lead-image" decoding="async"/><svg class="gnt_em_vp_svg"><use xlink:href="#gnt_svg_video_play"/></svg></button></div></aside><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Retired Middlebury, Connecticut, school teacher Bill Callahan waited 40 years for <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2024/12/08/senate-bill-social-security-fairness-act/76827228007/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Congress to pass a bill</a> to eliminate the reduction in Social Security benefits he receives because he also has a pension.</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Now, the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/social-security-fairness-act.html?tl=0%2C1%2C2%2C3%2C5%2C7%2C8%2C10" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|z|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Social Security Administration (SSA) says</a> Callahan and about 3 million other affected public sector workers will have to wait a year or more before seeing any money the Social Security Fairness Act promised to bring. The <a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/82/text" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|z|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Social Security Fairness Act</a> eliminates the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/2020/07/01/pension-windfall-elimination-provision-social-security/5353023002/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)</a> and the <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/powell/2018/06/06/2018-social-security-questions-answers/645336002/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">Government Pension Offset (GPO)</a>, which reduce Social Security benefits for certain retirees who also receive pension income. Together, WEP and GPO affect nearly 3 million Americans including police officers, firefighters, postal workers and public school teachers.</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">Since the Social Security Fairness Act's "<a target="_blank" href="https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/82" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|z|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">effective date is retroactive</a> (to January 2024), SSA must adjust people's past benefits as well as future benefits," the agency said. "Though SSA is helping some affected beneficiaries now, under SSA's current budget, SSA expects that it could take more than one year to adjust benefits and pay all retroactive benefits."</p><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">A frustrated Callahan, 67, said "at the end of the day, it's going to turn out to be a temporary fix for 3 million citizens. The Congress will devise another poorly conceived fix and another group will become the new pariah."</p><aside aria-label="advertisement" class="gnt_m gnt_x gnt_x__lbl gnt_x__al"/><h2 class="gnt_ar_b_mt">How much more money monthly would affected workers receive?</h2><p class="gnt_ar_b_p">The amount of additional monthly money <a target="_blank" href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2025/01/06/benefits-social-security-fairness-act/77483465007/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-t-l=":b|e|k|${u}" class="gnt_ar_b_a">each affected...</a></p></div> <style> .wrapper { text-align: center; } </style> <div class="wrapper"> <a class="button" href ="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/2025/01/29/social-security-benefits-fairness-act-wait-year/77995124007/">Read more <span>➤</span></a> </div>
