California Professional Firefighters

Resolution Encourages Adoption of Federal Social Security Fairness Act

Assembly Member Tom Torlakson (D-Antioch) has introduced AJR 10, a bill supported by the CPF that encourages Congress and the President to enact the Social Security Fairness Act of 2009. This federal legislation will eliminate two provisions known as the WEP and the GPO, which unfairly prevent public employees from receiving a portion of earned retirement benefits.

In 1983, the "Windfall Elimination Provision" (WEP) as part of a large reform package designed to shore up the financing of the Social Security system. Its purpose was to remove a "windfall" for persons who may have spent some time in a job not covered by Social Security, such as a firefighter, but also had worked other jobs in their life where they did pay into Social Security for a period long enough to enable them to qualify for Social Security benefits. In other words, as a public safety member (active or retired) and at some point in your career you may have contributed to Social Security, thereby becoming eligible to receive Social Security benefits at age 62 or 65.  Under current federal law, your earned Social Security benefits can be reduced up to 60 percent as a result of the WEP.

Like the "Windfall Elimination Provision," the "Government Pension Offset" (GPO) was also adopted in 1983 to shore up the finances of the Social Security trust fund. The GPO reduces a public employee spouse's or widow(er)'s benefit from Social Security by two-thirds of the monthly government pension amount received. This "offset" law was aimed at cutting the benefits of spouses and widow(er)s who were also collecting a government pension.

Ultimately, if the Social Security Fairness Act is passed at the federal level it would allow many classes of rank and file public employees, including peace officers and firefighters, to receive 100 percent of their earned Social Security benefits.

AJR 10 was introduced on March 9 and has been referred to the Assembly Public Employees, Retirement & Social Security Committee where it passed unanimously on May 6th. This bill was heard on the Assembly floor on May 18th where it passed with a 62-13 vote. The bill was heard in the Senate Public Employment and Retirement Committee on June 22nd where it passed unanimously. The bill was amended on August 24th for minor non-substantive changes. On September 1st AJR 10 passed off the Senate Floor with a 26-8 vote and was returned to the Assembly for concurrence, where is passed 64-13. On September 16th the bill was chaptered into law.

Click here to see Assembly Member Torlakson's press release on the bill.

For questions, please contact CPF Legislative Director Amy Howard.