The Social Security Administration (SSA) has implemented new measures that will affect Social Security payments in the United States. The recent Social Security Equity Act will be a great help to firefighters, police officers, teachers, and postal workers, as well as their retirement in the United States. Through retroactive payments, they will receive the amounts, but it should also be noted that in cases where overpayments are detected, there could be instances of withholding. Keep reading to learn all the latest news about this new law.
Big increase in Social Security payments in the coming weeks
Millions of people will see an increase in their Social Security payments in the coming weeks, thanks to the implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act. However, at the same time, other beneficiaries could face cuts if they are found to have received overpayments in the past.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) reported that it has already processed more than 3.1 million retroactive adjustments for public sector workers whose benefits had been reduced.
Who are the beneficiaries? How much does each person receive?
This law increases Social Security benefits for certain types of workers, including some:
- teachers, firefighters, and police officers in many states;
- federal employees covered by the Civil Service Retirement System; and
- people whose work had been covered by a foreign social security system.
In total, the agency has distributed around $17 billion, with an average retroactive payment of $6,710 per person.
For this reason, when they retired, their benefits were lower than what they would have received if they had been contributing normally. The new law corrects this situation and is returning the money that had not been recognized before.
Will every teacher, firefighter, police officer, or public worker receive a benefit increase because of the new law?
Not necessarily. We know that some press articles have mentioned teachers, firefighters, police officers, and other public employees when discussing the new law. However, only people who receive a pension based on work not covered by Social Security may see benefit increases. Most state and local public employees – about 72 percent – work in Social Security-covered employment where they pay Social Security taxes and are not affected by WEP or GPO. Those individuals will not receive a benefit increase due to the new law.
Over 278,000 applications received
Following the legislation’s entry into force on January 5, 2025, the SSA received over 278,000 applications from individuals in this situation and has already resolved 92% of those cases.
However, it is not all good news: those who received improper payments in the past are receiving notifications from the SSA.
Retention of up to 50% of your monthly payments if you do not take this into account
Starting July 24, beneficiaries with overpayments could see up to 50% of their monthly payments withheld until the debt is paid off, unless they request an exemption or a reduced payment plan within 90 days of notification.
Key dates for these adjustments include July 23 and August 1, when new payments will be issued with the corresponding increases or reductions, according to the SSA’s official schedule.
What should people do now that the Social Security Fairness Act is law?
The Act applies to benefits you get on your own record (retirement or disability benefits) and to spouse’s or surviving spouse’s benefits on another person’s record. What action you need to take depends on your situation and on what type of benefits you are eligible for.
If you are entitled to retired or disabled workers’ benefits, and your benefits are currently being reduced by WEP; OR if you are entitled to spouse’s or surviving spouse’s benefits, and your benefits are currently being reduced or eliminated by GPO:
- If you know that SSA has your mailing address and direct deposit information on file, no other actions are needed from you at this time.
- If you want to verify that the mailing address and direct deposit information that SSA has on file is accurate and up to date:
- Check your personal my Social Security account. Visit www.ssa.gov/my account to sign in or create an account.
- If you are unable to create an account, please call 1-800-772-1213 to verify the information we have on file.