The Social Security Administration (SSA) has sped up implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act (SSFA) using automation, per Lee Dudek, acting commissioner of Social Security. The law requires SSA to adjust benefits for over three million people, the bulk of which Dudek said will be completed by the end of March.
SSFA repealed two Social Security provisions called the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) that reduced Social Security benefits for some individuals who receive other benefits, such as certain state or local government pension benefits. For more background on the law, check out an earlier blog, “What Public Pension Plans Need to Know About the Social Security Fairness Act.”
Implementing SSFA consists of paying retroactive benefits, increasing future monthly benefit payments and completing new applications for Social Security benefits.
Highlights of the progress from recent SSA press releases are as follows.
- Retroactive payments
- SSA has paid nearly 1,128,000 people more than $7.5 billion in retroactive payments, according to a press release issued March 4, 2025. The average retroactive payment so far is $6,710, the release said.
- Those people who are due retroactive benefits will receive a one-time retroactive payment, deposited into the bank account SSA has on file, by the end of March.
- Adjustments to increase benefit amounts
- SSA has processed 20% of adjustments—to the new increased benefit amount—from February 25 to March 3, according to Q&As updated March 3, 2025.
- Most affected beneficiaries will begin receiving their new monthly benefit amount in April 2025 (for their March 2025 benefit).
- New applications
- In February, SSA received 68,000 new applications and completed 72% of the new applications, the Q&A page said.
- Complex cases that need manual processing
- Manual processing could take up to one year.
- The agency’s original estimate of taking a year or more now will only apply to complex cases that cannot be processed by automation,” Dudek said in a press release on February 25, 2025. Under SSA’s current budget, SSA expects that manual processing of some complex cases could take up to one year to adjust benefits and pay all retroactive benefits.
Top Three FAQs for Individuals Affected by the Society Security Fairness Act
What Communication Should They Expect to Receive?
Social Security beneficiaries whose monthly benefit is adjusted, or who will get a retroactive payment, will receive a mailed notice from SSA explaining the benefit change or retroactive payment.
A beneficiary may receive two mailed notices, the first when WEP or GPO is removed from their record, and a second when their monthly benefit amount is adjusted for their new monthly payment amount. They may receive retroactive payment before receiving the mailed notice.
Beneficiaries may receive a request from SSA regarding their pension amount. WEP and GPO still apply to months prior to January 2024. In some instances, SSA may need to request the amount received for a pension from work not covered by Social Security to verify it is paying an individual correctly for these months. If this applies and SSA needs updated pension information, SSA will send a request for information in the mail.
How Can People Avoid Scams About the Repeal of WEP and GPO?
SSA sends notices via the U.S. Postal Service. SSA will never call or email to ask or require a person to pay either for assistance or to have their benefits started, increased or paid retroactively. Hang up and do not click or respond to anyone offering to increase or expedite benefits. Learn more from SSA about avoiding scams.
Should Beneficiaries Wait to Contact SSA?
SSA urges beneficiaries to wait until April before contacting SSA to ask about the status of their retroactive payment, since payments will be processed incrementally throughout March. The electronic payment systems cannot make all the necessary changes at the same time.
Beneficiaries should also wait until after receiving their April payment before contacting SSA to ask about their monthly benefit amount because the new amount will not be reflected until April for their March payment.
SSA Workforce
Federal agencies including SSA will soon experience reduction in force; however, SSA press releases about workforce and organizational restructuring emphasize that customer service is mission critical. Having SSA frontline employees helping more customers is a high priority. The agency may reassign employees from non–mission critical positions to mission critical direct service positions (e.g., field offices, teleservice centers, processing centers), a February 27 press release said.
SSA’s recently announced actions for cost savings or cost avoidance prioritize customer service by reducing non–mission critical work and potentially reassigning employees to customer service positions. SSA is committed to ensuring the workforce reorganization plan has a positive effect on the delivery of Social Security services, a February 28 press release said.
Next Steps
SSA will update the Q&A page as implementation continues; anyone can subscribe to receive alerts when SSA updates the page. SSA plans to have informational meetings in the future with state retirement boards, labor unions, financial planners, and human resources and benefits professionals.
Developed by International Foundation Information Center staff. This does not constitute legal advice. Please consult your plan professionals for legal advice.
