Will Social Security Put a Dent in Your Retirement?

Did you know …

• California has almost one million employees who qualify for Social Security benefits or are married to a Social Security earner and are denied their earned retirement benefits.
• Most of these employees are teachers, police and sheriff officers, and firefighters
• California is one of 14 states where public school teachers fall under this federal penalty. The law also affects some city and county employees.
• If a teacher worked for 20 years in the private sector, earned Social Security credits and then entered teaching in California and taught 20 years, that teacher could lose more than half of his/her earned Social Security retirement benefits.
• If a teacher’s spouse was a Social Security earner and preceded the teacher in death, the teacher would lose the earned Social Security spousal death benefit.

Tell the President …

Contact President Obama and ask him to put an end to these unfair penalties.  Two Federal bills, House Resolution 235 and Senate Resolution 484, the Social Security Fairness Act, would eliminate the
Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).

Points to include in your message are below, but, if you’re personally affected by these penalties, include your own story as well. 

Address:
President Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

E-mail:
www.whitehouse.gov/contact

The following are points you can use in your message:

• California has almost one million employees who qualify for Social Security benefits or are
  married to a Social Security earner and are denied their earned retirement benefits.
• Most of these employees are educators, police and sheriff officers, and firefighters.
• California is one of 14 states where public school educators fall under this federal penalty.
  The law also affects many city and county employees.
• If an educator worked for 20 years in the private sector, earned Social Security credits and then entered teaching in California and taught 20 years, that educator could lose more than half of his/her earned Social Security retirement benefits.
• If a public safety officer worked for 20 years providing public safety, and then went to work in private industry, he/she would receive the same penalties as the educator.
• If a public servant’s spouse was a Social Security earner and preceded the public servant in death, the public servant would lose the earned Social Security spousal death benefit.