While some Republican lawmakers supported the bill, others raised concerns about its sustainability and the potential impact on the Social Security Trust Fund, which is facing imminent insolvency issues.

On January 5, 2025, President Joe Biden signed a significant measure aimed at increasing Social Security payments for public employees, impacting nearly three million retirees, including teachers, firefighters, and police officers.

This legislation, known as the Social Security Fairness Act, addresses a long-standing disparity by eliminating two provisions that had previously reduced Social Security benefits for individuals receiving pensions from other sources.

The provisions being eliminated are the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision, which limited benefits for those with public sector retirement plans.

As of December 2023, the Congressional Research Service estimated that approximately 745,679 individuals had their benefits reduced due to the Government Pension Offset, while around 2.1 million were affected by the Windfall Elimination Provision.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projected that the removal of these provisions would lead to an average increase in monthly payments of $360 by December 2025, with certain beneficiaries seeing an increase of about $700.

This law is expected to benefit over two million public workers who have contributed to Social Security throughout their careers, allowing many to enjoy retirement after years of dedicated service.

Edward Kelly, president of the International Association of Firefighters, expressed enthusiasm for the change, calling it a correction of a 40-year injustice affecting firefighters and their survivors.

During the signing ceremony at the White House, Biden emphasized the importance of ensuring that Americans who have worked hard can retire with economic security and dignity.

However, the new policy changes will add more administrative work for the already understaffed Social Security Administration, which is facing its lowest staffing levels in over 50 years amid ongoing funding and service delivery challenges.

Moreover, a report from the Social Security and Medicare trustees warned that the trust fund could cease to pay full benefits by 2035, and the new law could potentially accelerate this insolvency by about six months.

The changes will take effect from January 2024 onward, requiring the Social Security Administration to issue retroactive payments, although the specifics of this process remain unclear.