Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Paul Gosar, D.D.S. (AZ-09) issued the following statement after cosponsoring H.R. 82, the Social Security Fairness Act, legislation repealing the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO).

“I am proud to cosponsor the Social Security Fairness Act.  Nearly 1.4 million Arizonans receive Social Security benefits, including over 106,000 individuals in my district.   Sadly, many of my constituents, including fire fighters, police officers and teachers, have seen their benefits cut because of four-decade old federal laws eating into their Social Security entitlements they paid into.

This legislation would finally repeal WEP and the GPO which have unfairly penalized thousands of Arizonans who worked tirelessly their entire lives.  I strongly support this bill and will be urging Congress to right the wrong by ensuring my constituents and Americans affected receive their full Social Security,” concluded Congressman Gosar.

Background:

The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) are two separate provisions that reduce regular Social Security benefits for workers and their eligible family members if the worker receives (or is entitled to) a pension based on earnings from employment not covered by Social Security. The WEP affects 1.9 million people while the GPO affects 695,000 people, according to the Congressional Research Service.