WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA) took to the U.S. Senate floor calling on the Senate Majority Leader to stop wasting time on last-minute, lame duck Biden-Harris judicial nominees, and take up the Social Security Fairness Act after it passed with overwhelming support in the U.S. House of Representatives last week. The Social Security Fairness Act would repeal two unfair Social Security provisions known as Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).
“We can repeal two unfair Social Security provisions with the Social Security Fairness Act today if the Majority Leader schedules a vote,” said Dr. Cassidy. “WEP and GPO penalize families across the country who worked a public service job for part of their career with a separate pension. We’re talking about police officers, firefighters, teachers, and other public employees who are punished for serving their communities.”
“We owe it to every public servant who has taught our children, protected our streets, ran into burning buildings, and more to get this passed. The time for political theater is over! It is time to get serious and vote on legislation that matters,” continued Dr. Cassidy. “I am ready to vote yes on the Social Security Fairness Act and repeal WEP and GPO for Louisianans and Americans across the country.”
Cassidy is a long-time cosponsor of the Social Security Fairness Act in the Senate. Cassidy has been an original cosponsor of the Social Security Fairness Act since he became a Member of Congress in 2009. He reintroduced the legislation in the 117th and 116th Congress.
Background
In June, Cassidy entered a statement into the record urging the repeal of WEP and GPO ahead of the U.S. Senate Finance Subcommittee field hearing on Social Security. In July, Cassidy spoke on the U.S. Senate floor urging Congress to repeal WEP and GPO as part of his “Big Idea” to save to save, strengthen, and secure America’s retirement system.
Cassidy led a bipartisan working group to preserve and protect Social Security. Last spring, he released the inaugural Bill on the Hill video where he asked Capitol Hill visitors from across the country their thoughts on the looming benefit cuts to Social Security and presented his “Big Idea”.
In March, Cassidy grilled U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on President Biden’s plan to address Social Security, to which Secretary Yellen admitted “the president doesn’t have a plan,” to save Social Security.
Cassidy has discussed the “Big Idea” at a public forum with AARP on the future of Social Security, outlined his Social Security plan in a fireside chat with the Bipartisan Policy Committee, and authored op-eds in the National Review, Washington Examiner in October and in July, Wall Street Journal, State Affairs, Washington Post.
Cassidy’s remarks as prepared for delivery are below:
Madam President,
Before the Thanksgiving holiday, my colleagues and I voted late into the night.
I’d have no problem with this if we’re voting on meaningful legislation.
That’s not what we were been doing. We were voting on last-minute, lame duck Biden-Harris judicial nominees.
Yet we have serious legislation that will help millions of Americans that the House overwhelmingly passed in mid-November. They sent it over to the Senate, and it’s waiting for a vote.
I’m speaking of the Social Security Fairness Act to repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision and the Government Pension Offset—or WEP and GPO.
Social Security is a sacred trust between generations.
It is a promise to workers that when they retire, they will not live in poverty.
Right now, Social Security’s future is in danger.
According to the people who run this program, if Congress does nothing the Social Security trust fund will be busted in 9 years. Flat. Bankrupt.
And there will be an automatic 20-24 percent cut in benefits for everyone receiving Social Security and for those who will receive it in the future.
We must save, strengthen, and secure the program and I have a plan to do so.
One thing we can’t do is perpetuate unfairness that began decades ago.
This unfairness targets people who have dedicated their lives to serving our communities as state or local community workers, such as first responders and teachers.
Today, we can take a step towards fairness.
We can repeal two unfair Social Security provisions with the Social Security Fairness Act today if the Majority Leader schedules a vote.
WEP and GPO penalize families across the country who worked a public service job for part of their career with a separate pension.
We’re talking about police officers, firefighters, teachers, and other public employees who are punished for serving their communities.
So how did we get here?
WEP and GPO were introduced decades ago to address perceived inequalities in the Social Security system, but they have had the opposite effect of creating real tangible inequalities.
When my police officers, firefighters, and teachers in Louisiana have second jobs, second careers, or get married, they are unfairly punished. They receive less from Social Security than if they had never worked in public service at all. That’s not right.
WEP reduces the earned Social Security benefits of individuals who also receive a pension from a non-Social Security-covered job. This has resulted in thousands of individuals who have paid into the system during their careers receiving a significantly reduced Social Security benefit when they hit retirement.
GPO reduces earned Social Security spousal or survivor benefits for individuals who also receive a government pension. This provision can reduce or even eliminate the Social Security benefits that a spouse or widow might have expected and relied on. Public servant spouses would receive more if they had never worked at all.
Louisiana has more first responders per capita than any other state in the nation and tens of thousands of teachers, meaning our state is disproportionally hurt by WEP and GPO.
Time and time again I hear from constituents that they feel like they are being punished for serving their communities.
And public servants across the country rightfully feel the exact same way.
WEP and GPO affect Americans in every single state.
There is no excuse to treat our public servants this way.
WEP and GPO should have never become law. But we have an opportunity to fix it.
In mid-November, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Social Security Fairness Act.
As a longtime original cosponsor of the Senate version, I have been waiting to proudly vote yes, and finally repeal WEP and GPO.
Instead, day after day, Senate Democrats have focused their attention on ramming through partisan nominees rather than passing serious legislation.
If I sound frustrated, it is because I am.
We owe it to every public servant who has taught our children, protected our streets, ran into burning buildings, and more to get this passed.
The time for political theater is over! It is time to get serious and vote on legislation that matters.
I am ready to vote yes on the Social Security Fairness Act and repeal WEP and GPO for Louisianans and Americans across the country.
So, I call on the Majority Leader to schedule a vote on the Social Security Fairness Act, and I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting it.
With that, I yield.
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