[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 101 (Tuesday, June 23, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4547-S4548]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BROWN (for himself, Ms. Collins, Ms. Warren, Ms. Hirono, 
        Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Vitter, Ms. Murkowski, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. 
        Reed, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Franken, Mr. Udall, and Mr. Heller):
  S. 1651. A bill to amend title II of the Social Security Act to 
repeal the Government pension offset and windfall elimination 
provisions; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. BROWN. Mr. President, I rise today to address America's 
retirement savings crisis. A 2013 survey conducted by the Governors of 
the Federal Reserve System found that roughly 31 percent of Americans 
have no retirement savings or access to a defined-benefit pension. In 
addition, 19 percent of respondents nearing retirement--those aged 55 
to 64--reported having zero savings or pension to rely on in the coming 
years.
  In light of these figures it is more important than ever that 
Congress ensure America's seniors have access to the Social Security 
benefits they have earned. Yet provisions such as the Windfall 
Elimination Provision, WEP, and the Government Pension Offset, GPO, 
prevent millions of Americans--including teachers, firefighters, and 
police officers--from receiving their full benefits. It is time 
Congress repealed them.
  This afternoon, I, along with Senator Collins and a number of my 
Senate colleagues from both sides of the aisle,

[[Page S4548]]

introduced the Social Security Fairness Act. This bipartisan bill will 
repeal both the WEP and GPO provisions which Congress enacted in 1983 
and 1977, respectively. In December 2014, these unfair provisions 
chipped away at more than 2 million Americans' Social Security 
benefits. That same month, in my State of Ohio, more than 200,000 
Ohioans had their Social Security benefits reduced because of these 
provisions.
  Over the past 35 years, fewer and fewer workers have been given 
access to defined-benefit plans, and, today, only about half of the 
total U.S. workforce is covered by an employer-sponsored retirement 
plan. That is why Social Security is critical for so many. Congress 
should make sure that every American has access to all the Social 
Security benefits he or she has earned. Repealing these provisions is 
an important step in that direction.
  I ask my colleagues to join me in repealing the WEP and GPO by 
cosponsoring this legislation.
  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise to speak about the Social Security 
Fairness Act of 2015, which I am joining my colleague from Ohio in 
introducing today. This bill would repeal both the windfall elimination 
provision, WEP, and the government pension offset, GPO. We believe that 
these two provisions in the Social Security Act unfairly penalize 
certain individuals for holding jobs in public service when the time 
comes for them to retire.
  The WEP affects individuals who have worked in both the private 
sector and in public sector jobs for which Social Security taxes were 
not withheld. For such individuals, the WEP applies a special formula 
to calculate benefits, reducing them compared to what would otherwise 
be paid.
  The GPO affects retired public employees whose spouses are entitled 
to Social Security benefits. When these individuals apply for Social 
Security spousal or survivor benefits, the GPO applies an offset, 
reducing the Social Security benefit based on the amount of that 
individual's public pension. In some cases, the spouse will not be 
entitled to any spousal or survivor benefit because of the GPO.
  The WEP and the GPO have enormous financial implications for many of 
our teachers, police officers, firefighters, postal workers and other 
public employees. Given their important responsibilities, it is simply 
unfair to penalize them when it comes to their Social Security 
benefits. These public servants--or their spouses--have all paid taxes 
into the Social Security system. So have their employers. They have 
worked long enough to earn their Social Security benefits. Yet, because 
of the GPO and WEP, they are unable to receive all of the Social 
Security benefits to which they otherwise would be entitled.
  The impact of these two provisions is most acute in 15 States, 
including Maine, which have state retirement plans that lack a Social 
Security component. However, it is important to point out that the GPO 
and WEP affect public employees and retirees in every state, including 
our emergency responders, other Federal employees, and postal workers. 
Nationwide, more than \1/3\ of teachers and educating employees, and 
more than \1/5\ of other public employees, are affected by the GPO and/
or the WEP.
  As of 2013, one and a half million people were affected by the WEP 
and 615,000 people had their benefits reduced by the GPO. Many more 
public employees across the country stand to be harmed in the future. 
Moreover, at a time when we should be doing all that we can to attract 
qualified people to public service, this reduction in retirement 
benefits makes it even more difficult for our federal, state and local 
governments to recruit and retain the public servants who are so 
critical to the safety and well-being of our families.
  What is most troubling is that this offset is most harsh for those 
who can least afford the loss: lower-income women. In fact, of those 
affected by the GPO, more than 80 percent are women. According to the 
Congressional Budget Office, the GPO reduces benefits for more than 
200,000 individuals by more than $3,600 a year--an amount that can make 
the difference between a comfortable retirement and poverty.
  Many Maine teachers, in particular, have talked with me about the 
impact of these provisions on their retirement security. They love 
their jobs and the children they teach, but they worry about the future 
and about their financial security.
  Roxie Brechlin of Bar Harbor, Maine, is one of many examples of the 
effect that the GPO and the WEP have on our teachers when they retire. 
Mrs. Brechlin first began paying into Social Security when she took her 
first summer job at age 16. After graduation, she continued to pay into 
Social Security for 18 more years before getting her first teaching 
job. Mrs. Brechlin worked as a teacher for 23 years, and for 14 of 
those years she worked full-time at another job during the summer, 
paying more and more into Social Security each year.
  Mr. Brechlin recently contacted my office to explain the effect that 
the WEP and GPO will have on his wife. Mrs. Brechlin recently retired. 
When she applied for Social Security benefits, the WEP applied, and her 
benefit was reduced by two thirds. Mr. Brechlin is more concerned about 
what would happen to his wife if he were to predecease her. Normally, a 
widow would be eligible to continue to collect 100 percent of her 
husband's benefit. Mrs. Brechlin, however, would not be able to collect 
any survivor benefit, due to the application of the GPO. Not only does 
this fact worry Mr. Brechlin, he also sees it as unfair.
  It is time for us to take action, and I urge all of my colleagues to 
join us in cosponsoring the Social Security Fairness Act to eliminate 
these two unfair provisions.
                                 ______