Congress is Back and Making Moves

Last night was an exciting night for Congress as each chamber moved bills important to AASA and educators across the country. Although they are not quite past the finish line, these actions are very promising. We will continue to update this blog with new actions.

Social Security Fairness Act: The House passed the Social Security Fairness Act (SFFA)- a bill that eliminates the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP). WEP reduces the earned Social Security benefits of an individual who also receives a public pension from a job not covered by Social Security. For example, educators who do not earn Social Security in public schools but who work part-time or during the summer in jobs covered by Social Security have reduced benefits, even though they pay into the system for enough quarters to receive benefits. WEP impacts teachers in 15 states, adding additional challenges for teacher recruitment and dissuading mid-career changers to consider education.

SFFA also repeals the Government Pension Offset (GPO) which affects the spousal benefits of people who work as federal, state, or local government employees — including police officers, firefighters, and educators — if the job is not covered by Social Security. The GPO reduces by two-thirds the benefit received by surviving spouses who also collect a government pension — often offsetting benefits entirely.

The bill now goes to the Senate where leadership is currently negotiating floor time for the proposal. Currently, the bill has bipartisan support in the Senate and is expected to pass if brought to the floor.

Secure Rural Schools: Meanwhile, on the other side of Congress, the Senate passed the Secure Rural Schools (SRS) Reauthorization by unanimous consent (UC). This bill provides critical funding to schools who are unable to generate revenue due to their proximity to national forest lands. Without reauthorization, impacted districts across the country will lose funding they rely on. It is currently unclear when or if the House will bring the measure to the floor. AASA will continue to urge the House to do the right thing and reauthorize SRS as soon as possible.