The U.S. Senate today, Dec. 21, overwhelmingly passed the Social Security Fairness Act with a 76-20 bipartisan vote, repealing the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO). These longstanding federal policies have denied nearly 3 million public employees, including police officers, firefighters, postal workers, and teachers, their full Social Security benefits.

The movement to repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) has reached a critical moment. After the U.S. House passed the Social Security Fairness Act in November, the Senate is preparing for a decisive vote that could happen at any moment. The bill would restore full Social Security benefits to approximately 2.8 million public employees, including teachers, firefighters, and police officers, whose benefits have been unfairly reduced by these provisions. (Source: MSN News)

TEXPERS' Legislative Committee Chairperson Tyler Grossman is hopeful the Senate will now expand Social Security benefits to public employee pensioners, as the House passed Social Security Fairness Act enjoys rare bipartisan support on Nov. 12. But he says despite the measure's favorable odds, now isn't the time to relax.