00:00Social Security, a cornerstone of American social welfare since its inception in 1935,
00:06has consistently adapted to societal shifts.
00:10One significant change involves the recent removal of the government pension offset,
00:15or GPO. In January 2025, the GPO was a social security provision that historically reduced
00:22and in some cases completely eliminated spousal and survivor benefits for certain individuals.
00:27To understand its impact, it's essential to know about social security, spousal, and survivor
00:33benefits. Spousal benefits provide eligible individuals with a portion of their spouse's
00:39full social security benefits, capped at 50% of the primary insurance amount. Or PIA's survivor
00:46benefits operate similarly. With a maximum benefit of 100% of the PI, these benefits are crucial for
00:54individuals, who may not qualify for social security on their own, or would receive minimal
01:00amounts. The GPO specifically affected workers who received federal, state, or local pensions from
01:06employment not covered by social security. These non-covered workers did not pay social security
01:13taxes on their government earnings. As of December 2023, about 1% of all social security beneficiaries
01:20had their benefits reduced by the GPO. The GPO's origins trace back to a 1977 Supreme Court ruling,
01:28Califano v. Goldfarb, which found sex-based distinctions in survivor benefits unconstitutional.
01:36This ruling led to hundreds of thousands of retired men in non-covered government positions
01:41suddenly qualifying for social security spousal or widower benefits, prompting concerns about fairness
01:48and cost. Congress subsequently created the GPO to prevent these individuals from receiving full
01:54social security spousal and survivor benefits, while also collecting a non-covered government
01:59pension. Initially, 100% of the non-covered e-government pension was subtracted from the social security
02:07spousal benefit. This was later revised to a two-thirds reduction. For example, if a monthly non-covered
02:14pension was $1,200, two-thirds, or $800, would be deducted from the spousal benefit. If the spousal benefit
02:24was $1,000, the individual would receive $200 from social security. If the reduction exceeded the social
02:31security benefit, no social security benefits would be paid at all. The GPO was a distinct provision from
02:38the windfall elimination provision, or WEP, with the GPO specifically impacting spousal and survivor
02:44benefits, and having the potential to eliminate benefits entirely. Unlike the WEP, money explainers
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