One of the last things former President Joe Biden did before leaving the White House was signing into law the Social Security Fairness Act. It knocks out two federal rules that had been reducing the Social Security payments of retirees drawing a public pension. Benefits also had been reduced for spouses and families under the rules.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) says that retirees who qualify could get an increase of $700 to $1,000 in their monthly payments. However, it may take time before they start receiving the extra money.
Ann Busenkell, a retired teacher from Los Alamitos, California, is one of those affected. She taught for more than 30 years and had to budget carefully after retiring.
“Life was all about careful budgeting,” Busenkell said. “I had to make sure I had enough for the future, to pay my bills, and now that I’m older, to hire people to help me.”
Busenkell’s husband died, and she expected to receive some of his Social Security benefits. But when she went to the Social Security office, she found out she didn’t qualify because she had been a teacher.
“[My husband] thought I would receive those benefits,” she recalled. “I didn’t realize I wouldn’t until I went to the Social Security office. I asked if I should be getting some of my husband’s benefits, and they said, ‘No, you’re a teacher. You don’t get those.’ I wiped my tears away and went home, thinking that was that.”
That changed in January when the new law was signed. Now, Busenkell and others in her situation will be eligible for higher payments once the SSA starts issuing them.
“It’s huge for someone like me. Just huge,” Busenkell said. “It’s fair. It finally felt fair. Now I can sit down, do my math, and figure out a new budget. It’s going to be so much easier to live.”
Public sector workers to benefit from the new law
The law primarily benefits those public employees like teachers, police officers, and fire fighters who had to work for more than 10 years. Most of these workers have to suffer a lot financially due to the old rules which cut down their benefits. The extra money will ease life for them.
City employees don’t make $200,000 or $300,000 a year,” said Shelby Rothman, a financial adviser at EnJoy Financial. “These are people who really need that extra $700 or $1,000 per month. That is going to change their lives. It gives me chills just thinking about how much this helps them.
Some had feared former President Donald Trump might try to stand in the way of the new law, but Trump publicly supported these benefit increases.
A situation arose that involved two officials who had access to personal information related to millions of Americans under the leadership of the Department of Government Efficiency headed by Elon Musk; people began asking themselves whether their data were safe, although there is no mention of linking such officials to this change being proposed on Social Security.
For the time being, retirees impacted by the old rules are waiting to bank their inflated checks. The Social Security Administration hasn’t provided an exact date on which the money is available, though many around them hope it will be soon.
