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In 2024, TRTA worked with its national coalition partners to repeal the arbitrary and unfair Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). For more than four decades, TRS retirees who also worked in the private sector before, during, or after their education careers and paid into Social Security saw their Social Security benefits slashed by WEP, simply because they also received a public pension. TRS retirees also had their spousal or survivor benefits cut or eliminated by GPO. TRTA will continue to keep members updated about the implementation of H.R. 82, the Social Security Fairness Act, as benefits are restored for thousands of TRS retirees and millions of public servants.

In 2023, due to TRTA’s strong advocacy efforts, the Legislature appropriated approximately $5 billion in general revenue designated for COLAs and supplemental payments for eligible TRS annuitants, the largest amount ever appropriated from the state using only general revenue funds for a TRS benefit enhancement. TRTA accomplished the following:

• Worked with the Legislature to pass Senate Bill 10, providing all TRS annuitants aged 70 and older with a supplemental payment and a tiered cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for TRS annuitants who retired as of August 31, 2020 or before.
• Ensured that the TRS pension fund contribution increases from the state were implemented to help maintain the fund’s actuarial soundness.
• Launched a successful, comprehensive statewide campaign to support the passage of Proposition 9, a constitutional amendment in the November General Election that provided $3.3 billion in general revenue funds for tiered COLAs for TRS annuitants. Proposition 9 received more votes than any of the other 13 amendments on the ballot!
• Secured the passage of SCR 28, a resolution urging Congress to repeal GPO and WEP.

In 2021, TRTA’s advocacy added $1 billion of new funding into the TRS pension fund! TRTA accomplished the following:

• Worked with the Legislature to keep its promise of allocating $5 billion towards TRS.
• Passed a supplemental payment bill that provided eligible TRS retirees with additional income!
• Passed a Sunset bill that mandates TRS to be more responsive to member needs, creates an ombudsman at TRS, requires TRS to report bonuses for its investment team, and increases customer service in health care appeals.
• Passed a Golden Ticket bill that allows retirees who left TRS-Care to rejoin!
• Passed a return-to-work bill that requires TRS to alert educators before penalizing them for minor infractions.