WEP and GPO provisions affect those who have retired, or will retire, under the CSRS system. Image: zimmytws/Shutterstock.com
A report for Congress has put ending or softening windfall elimination provision and government pension offset provisions of Social Security as among the potential changes to that program whose financial impact is unknown, pending decisions on the details.
The GAO report was the latest in a series from that agency—mirrored in reports from other agencies and outside groups—about the pending exhaustion of the main Social Security trust fund in about 10 years, after which the program will have enough ongoing income to pay for only about 80 percent of the currently promised benefits.
Like many of those other reports, the GAO listed—without either endorsing or recommending against—a number of proposals in circulation to increase income to the program, reduce the rate of growth in outflows, or both. However, it also notes that other proposals in circulation are based on arguments about inequity with current benefits – and less so about financial considerations.
Among those equity-focused ideas are the WEP and GPO provisions, which affect those who have retired, or will retire, under the CSRS system which does not include Social Security. The former reduces a person’s own earned Social Security benefit from non-CSRS employment unless the earnings exceed a threshold for at least 30 years. The second reduces and commonly eliminates a spousal or survivor Social Security benefit based on a spouse’s Social Security covered work.
The GAO put reforms of those provisions in the category of “options with mixed or uncertain” effects on Social Security finances.
“Both provisions address concerns that Social Security’s rules provided excess benefits to these individuals. The effect of changes to these provisions would depend on factors such as whether the reform option applies a different reduction to these individuals’ benefits. Eliminating these provisions without a replacement would worsen the program’s finances,” it said.
“However, other reform options would replace one or both provisions and apply a different benefit reduction to workers with non-covered employment that would, in aggregate, reduce overall program spending,” it said.
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