One of the most infamous and utterly perplexing regulations in Social Security history has been officially repealed by Congress, marking a rare victory for retirees and common sense.
Since the Social Security Fairness Act was passed, the Government Pension Offset (GPO) has been eliminated as of January 2024.
Teachers, police officers, and public employees were the main targets of GPO’s decades-long punishments for daring to work jobs that did not contribute to Social Security.
As a result, while their non-working counterparts received full checks, tens of thousands of honest workers saw their spousal or survivor benefits cut or eliminated entirely. There is no sense in that.
Who thought this was a good idea, and what was GPO?
In 1977, the GPO rule was created. In theory, it was meant to stop retirees from “double dipping” by receiving Social Security spousal benefits in addition to a government pension.
In actuality, it was a penalty for anyone employed in a public service position that was not covered by Social Security.
Two-thirds of your spousal or survivor benefit would be deducted if you had a non-covered pension, such as from teaching in a state that did not take part in Social Security.
What would happen if you had a $1,600 pension and your spouse’s Social Security paid you $900 a month? Congratulations! You received nothing.
You could still receive full spousal benefits even if you had never worked a day in your life. But what if you had thirty years of teaching experience? You were disciplined for it.
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When and what changed?
The GPO was formally repealed in January 2024 when Congress passed the Social Security Fairness Act in late 2023. Adjustments were first processed by the Social Security Administration (SSA) in April 2025, and full implementation is anticipated by November of this year.
As a result, over 3 million retirees who had previously been excluded from receiving fair benefits for decades are now eligible for spousal and survivor benefits.
Some will see a monthly increase in their checks of hundreds of dollars, while others may be able to access benefits for the first time.
There is, of course, a catch
There is always a catch because it involves the federal government. You can only receive six months of retroactive pay if you didn’t submit an official claim prior to GPO’s repeal.
Five years ago, you could have asked the SSA if you qualified, been told, “Don’t bother, you’re blocked by GPO,” and never submitted a form. Is the rule no longer in effect?
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Although you are technically qualified, you are not eligible for the full back pay because you never submitted an application. The bureaucratic equivalent of “you should have read the fine print” is this.
Given that SSA employees misled retirees, lawmakers like Senators John Fetterman, Susan Collins, and Bill Cassidy are pressuring the agency to clean up this mess.
However, the agency hasn’t changed as of yet. No matter how long you have been denied, you are only eligible for six months of retroactive benefits.
Who benefits and who is left out?
The winners are:
- Teachers, firefighters, police officers, and other public servants who are retired but do not have pension coverage
- spouses of those retirees still living
- Anyone whose Social Security benefits were previously reduced due to GPO
Not included yet:
- Retirees who only have six months’ worth of back pay because they never made an official claim
- Anyone who was unaware that the GPO had been repealed—which, let’s face it, is a large number of people—
- Those still mired in SSA red tape or attempting to unravel decades of misguided advice
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Now what are you supposed to do?
Take action right away if you believe GPO may have had an impact on you or if you are unsure:
- Find out if you qualify for a payment adjustment under the repeal by getting in touch with the SSA.
- If you haven’t already, submit a claim right away because each month counts toward retroactive compensation.
- If you have previously been instructed not to file, obtain documentation, particularly if it was from an SSA employee.
- Make a call to your representative in Congress and urge them to support legislation that would allow misled retirees to receive full back pay.
Don’t count on receiving a call from the SSA. Actually, don’t presume that they are even aware of your identity.
