As members of the Texas Retired Teachers Association (TRTA) may have read in yesterday’s Inside Line or learned by watching Executive Director Tim Lee’s live event, a historic vote on repealing the harmful Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) is expected to occur tonight, November 12.
HR 82, the Social Security Fairness Act of 2023 by Rep. Garret Graves (R, LA) and Abigail Spanberger (D, VA), has 330 cosponsors, more than enough of the 218 signatures needed for a discharge petition to force a vote on the bill. A live webcast of the House debate this evening will be available here.
Despite an effort on election night to derail the bill, HR 82 is expected to be voted upon tonight by the U.S. House of Representatives. As Tim Lee shared during his live event yesterday, this vote is especially significant, as no vote to repeal or reform the WEP and GPO has been taken since the provisions were passed more than 40 years ago.
The House is also expected to vote on HR 5342, the Equal Treatment of Public Servants Act of 2023, by Rep. Jodey Arrington (R, TX). If passed, HR 5342 would reform the WEP.
If either bill passes the House, the next step would be for the U.S. Senate to consider the bill(s) before the end of the lame duck session this December. The Senate version of HR 82, S 597, by Sherrod Brown (D, OH), has 62 cosponsors.
The biggest hurdle towards meaningful relief for retirees may be in the Senate. As progress to move WEP and GPO repeal or reform has gained momentum, more and more groups wanting to stop it have surfaced. It will take the aid of all education retirees in Texas, as well as our national coalition, to encourage Senate members to make the sensible decision and fix WEP and GPO.
Members, TRTA has been working to reform or repeal WEP and GPO for decades. While it may not be easy to pass HR 82 even though there is a significant stated support by congressional members due to the estimated cost of repeal ($196 billion over the next decade), these are benefits retirees have earned and deserve!
TRTA will work alongside Mass Retirees, our friends at the Association of Texas Professional Educators (ATPE), and the broader education and public service retiree and active employee community to advance repeal of WEP and GPO before this congressional cycle is over.
Thank You!
Thank you for being a member of TRTA. Please renew your dues with TRTA if you have not done so already, as our work in the Texas Capitol and on Capitol Hill is fueled by our members’ financial support! If you know someone who is not a member, please invite them to join us! There is strength in numbers and the surest way for us to accomplish success is to grow the organization.
