By Retired public workers who have been receiving pensions will soon see more money in their pockets thanks to a new law. The Social Security Fairness Act means an increase in benefits for millions of Social Security recipients that will be implemented much sooner than expected. Keep reading to find out more about this new law and when beneficiaries can expect their retroactive payment and benefit increases.
What is the Social Security Fairness Act?
The Social Security Fairness Act, which was signed into law on January 5, was created as a way to improve Social Security benefits for people in the public sector. This includes firefighters, police officers, postal workers, and public school teachers, as well as other professions.
The bill was written to replace two previous provisions that limited benefits for some retirees who also receive pension income. As part of the new act, more than 2.5 million people in the U.S. will be receiving a lump sum payment to make up for the money they would have received last year.
Even more good news? There will also be an increase in the monthly benefits for some public employees and their families. The average increase is expected to be around $360.
The initial timeline for Social Security Fairness Act payments
Anyone excited by the new law may have been disappointed to learn that it could take up to a year to start receiving the money. The Social Security Administration (SSA) initially cited a hiring freeze from last fall and a lack of budget as the main factors behind the delay.
Now, it seems the agency has overestimated the timeline and payments will be sent out much earlier than anticipated.
“Social Security’s aggressive schedule to start issuing retroactive payments in February and increase monthly benefit payments beginning in April supports President Trump’s priority to implement the Social Security Fairness Act as quickly as possible,” Lee Dudek, acting commissioner of Social Security said in a statement, according to the Associated Press. “The American people deserve to get their due benefits as quickly as possible.”
The only exception is for complex cases that cannot automatically be processed. Those payments may still take a year to get straightened out.
When to expect increased benefits from the Social Security Fairness Act
With the push to get payments out, most people are expected to have their one-time retroactive payment deposited into their bank account on file by the end of March. The increased monthly payments won’t be far behind!
The SSA has shared that the majority of beneficiaries will see the change to their new monthly benefits beginning in April, and it will cover the month of March. (One note: The actual payment increase will vary for each person, depending on the pension and type of benefit.)
If you’re covered under the new law, expect to receive a mailed notice from the SSA explaining the retroactive payment, benefit change or both. This might arrive after the payment has been issued, so don’t be concerned if it isn’t in your mailbox right away. You may also receive a notice from the Government Pension Offset (GPO) or the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) when it’s removed from your record.
Since it will take some time to get the payments issued to everyone, the agency is asking people to wait until April before inquiring about the status of their benefits. In the meantime, learn more about the new law, eligibility and payment timeline on the Social Security Fairness Act website.
