CLEVELAND — The retirement incomes of more than 270,000 Ohioans could be greatly impacted by the actions of the U.S. Senate over the next few weeks. In Ohio, if you are a firefighter, police officer, teacher or other public employee who is part of the state's Public Employees Retirement System, since 1983, you haven't been able to collect your full Social Security benefits when you retire even if you've paid into the system for years working other jobs.
"If you're in the private sector, you pay into a 401K or some type of other retirement program, you're still entitled to all of your Social Security Benefits; however, if you are a public servant and you pay into like our members pay into Ohio Police and Fire Pension Fund, there benefits through Social Security are drastically reduced for themselves as well as their spouses and widows," said Jake Konys, president of the Association of Cleveland Fire Fighters Local 93.
"It causes a lot of our membes to double think, you know, retirement when they get to that point in their life."
That's why Senator Sherrod Brown joined with Republican Susan Collins of Maine in introducing the Social Security Fairness Act, which would eliminate the provision that cuts what public employees receive.
The Windfall Elimination Provision, enacted in 1983, reduces the Social Security benefits of workers who receive pensions from a federal, state, or local government for employment not covered by Social Security. The Government Pension Offset, enacted in 1977, reduces Social Security spousal benefits for spouses, widows, and widowers whose spouses receive pensions from a federal, state, or local government. The Social Security Fairness Act would repeal both laws, ensuring law enforcement, firefighters, teachers, park rangers, and other public sector workers and their families receive the full Social Security benefits they earn.
"It would impact me hugely," said Cleveland Fire Captain Sam Divito, treasurer of the Fire Fighter's Union. He joined the department after paying into Social Security for 17 years, working for two Fortune 200 companies. The inability to draw his full benefits means he'll end up working longer than he'd like.
"That extra money would definitely sway me to maybe leave earlier than what I was originally planning to do," Devito said.
That's important to note, he says, as Cleveland police, for example, recently raised the top age of recruits to the force from 40 to 55. For some, losing much of what they paid into Social Security will be a recruitment issue.
"If they're hiring people at later life their pension is not going to be the same as somebody that has been able to do 30 years in the safety force profession," he said.
Jon Harvey, president of the Ohio Association of Professional Fire Fighters, agrees. "We're seeing an all-time low of people getting into the fire and police services so I think maybe not all that a 20 year old thinks about when they want to be a firefighter or police officer but I think this will allow the ability for us to use it as a recruiting tool and try to make sure that we're keeping people in these jobs."
Critics of the move point to the Congressional Budget Office report that it would add $ 196 billion to the deficit over the next decade while moving up Social Security's depletion date by six months. That being said, when it passed the House last week, it did so overwhelmingly 327-to-75 with Ohio's 15-member delegation - 10 Republicans and 5 Democrats who have rarely agreed on anything - all voting for it.
The problem now? The calendar. The Senate only has weeks left in session, and if it doesn't pass the upper body by the time they recess, it will die. Harvey, for one, is hopeful that the fact that it has support from 62 senators is a good sign they'll move on it.
"I would say mostly it gives you a little hope that sound policy is something that the legislators will take serious and move on stuff that makes sense and I think that this bill just absolutely makes sense I think it's way overdue," he said.
Brown and Collins Monday joined others in a letter to Senate leadership urging them to bring the measure to the floor for a vote.
"For the first time in history, you have the opportunity to bring this bill across the finish line. We urge you, on behalf of the nearly 2.5 million retirees impacted by WEP and GPO in every state across the nation, to bring the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R.82) before the U.S. Senate for a vote," they wrote.
