03/05/2024 03:00 PM House STATE AFFAIRS

        HJR 18-SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFIT REDUCTION REPEAL                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
3:35:24 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SHAW  announced that the  final order of business  would be                                                               
HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 18,  Urging the United States Congress                                                               
to  repeal  the  Windfall Elimination  Provision  and  Government                                                               
Pension Offset of the Social Security Act.  [                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
3:35:51 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The committee took a brief at-ease.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
3:35:54 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE ALYSE  GALVIN, Alaska State Legislature,  as prime                                                               
sponsor,   presented  HJR   18.     She  provided   a  PowerPoint                                                               
presentation,  titled  "Urging  the  United  States  Congress  to                                                               
Repeal the Windfall Elimination  Provision and Government Pension                                                               
Offset of  the federal Social  Security Act" [hard  copy included                                                               
in the  committee packet].   She began her presentation  on slide                                                               
2, titled  "What are  WEP/GPO?" which  read as  follows [original                                                               
punctuation provided]:                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     THE WINDFALL ELIMINATION PROVISION                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     "The  Windfall Elimination  Provision (WEP)  can affect                                                                    
     how  Social  Security  calculates  your  retirement  or                                                                    
     disability  benefit. If  you work  for an  employer who                                                                    
     doesn't  withhold  Social   Security  taxes  from  your                                                                    
     salary, any  retirement or  disability pension  you get                                                                    
     from  that   work  can  reduce  your   Social  Security                                                                    
     benefits. Such  an employer may be  a government agency                                                                    
     or an employer in another country."                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GALVIN the  Windfall Elimination  Provision (WEP)                                                               
and  Government Pension  Offset (GPO)  affects Alaskans  who have                                                               
paid into  the Social  Security program and  are employed  by the                                                               
State of Alaska, which does  not withhold federal social security                                                               
taxes  from Alaskans'  paychecks.   This scenario  is common  for                                                               
many Alaskans.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENATIVE GALVIN moved  to slides 3-4, which  read as follows                                                               
[original punctuation provided]:                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     THE GOVERNMENT PENSION OFFSET                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
     "The  Government Pension  Offset  (GPO) adjusts  Social                                                                    
     Security spousal  or widow(er) benefits for  people who                                                                    
     receive "non-covered  pensions." A  non-covered pension                                                                    
     is  a  pension  paid  by  an  employer  that  does  not                                                                    
     withhold  Social  Security   taxes  from  your  salary,                                                                    
     typically,  state  and  local governments  or  non-U.S.                                                                    
     employers.  Under  Social  Security's  dual-entitlement                                                                    
     rule,  spouses with  their  own  covered earnings  have                                                                    
     their  spousal  benefits  offset  dollar-for-dollar  by                                                                    
     their  own  earned  benefit.  The  GPO  has  a  similar                                                                    
     intention; the offset  originally was dollar-for-dollar                                                                    
     for non-covered  pensions, but  Congress reduced  it to                                                                    
     two-thirds in 1983."                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
     ACCORDING TO THE CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE...                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     Alaska  has  the  highest  percentage  of  WEP-affected                                                                    
     beneficiaries  of   any  state,   with  11.7%   of  all                                                                    
     beneficiaries and 15.2% of all retired workers                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     THIS IS A BIPARTISAN ISSUE                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     There are over 300 cosponsors  in the U.S. House* There                                                                    
     are over 49 cosponsors in the US Senate*                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
     ALASKANS ARE DIFFERENT                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
     With    many   veterans    and   seasonal    employment                                                                    
     opportunities,    our     teachers,    troopers,    and                                                                    
     firefighters  can  be disproportionately  penalized  by                                                                    
     these provisions                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
     *Both Senator Murkowski  and Representative Peltola are                                                                    
     co-sponsors  of this  legislation  in their  respective                                                                    
     bodies                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GALVIN said  WEP  decreases  the social  security                                                               
benefits received  by those who receive  retirement or disability                                                               
pensions   from   the   state.       These   penalties   end   up                                                               
disproportionately impacting  those Alaskans who are  most likely                                                               
to find themselves in some form  of social or civic service, such                                                               
as troopers, teachers, firefighters, and  many other fields.  She                                                               
argued  that if  a teacher  takes a  summer job,  social security                                                               
benefits earned  at the  summer job  should be  paid out  to them                                                               
accordingly.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:40:08 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GALVIN said that  the Social Security Fairness Act                                                               
has  already been  introduced  at the  federal  level to  address                                                               
inequities.  There are currently  over 300 cosponsors in the U.S.                                                               
House of  Representatives and 50 in  the U.S. Senate.   She moved                                                               
to   slide  5,   titled  "WEP-GPO   ROLLBACK  ENJOYS   WIDESPREAD                                                               
CONSTITUENT   SUPPORT,"   which   read   as   follows   [original                                                               
punctuation provided]:                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
     "...I  have at  least 40+  years working  experience. I                                                                    
     spent 26 years  as an elementary school  teacher on the                                                                    
     North Slope  and in Fairbanks.  During my work  years I                                                                    
     worked  at  various  jobs before  and  during  college,                                                                    
     summer jobs to  help ends meet while  teaching, and for                                                                    
     the University  of Alaska as an  adjunct professor (all                                                                    
     paying into  social security). I have  earned well over                                                                    
     forty  quarters  towards  my Social  Security  benefits                                                                    
     over the years.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                              
     My  current Social  Security benefit,  after paying  my                                                                    
     monthly premium for Medicare, is  $65.00, well under to                                                                    
     what  I am  entitled. I  earned those  benefits on  the                                                                    
     jobs outside  of my  public service  and because  of my                                                                    
     public school teaching I face the penalty of the WEP.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
     I  am  married to  a  Social  Security beneficiary  who                                                                    
     spent his  whole career  in private  employment...If he                                                                    
     were to pass away before  me, using the current formula                                                                    
     of my public service in Alaska,  I would not be able to                                                                    
     receive  any  of  his  spouse  survival  benefits  that                                                                    
     others  receive.  He  paid  into  the  Social  Security                                                                    
     system his whole work life  and due to the GPO penalty,                                                                    
     none  of the  normal  spousal benefits  will apply  for                                                                    
     me..."                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GALVIN urged the committee  to join her in calling                                                               
on Congress to repeal these penalties for public servants.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SHAW commented  on HJR 18 and his  personal experience with                                                               
social security benefits.  He offered his support of HJR 18.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:43:01 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  STORY  asked  about support  across  the  federal                                                               
delegation.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
3:43:24 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GALVIN provided her  understanding that many other                                                               
states are  experiencing the same  predicament.  Even  so, Alaska                                                               
is  disproportionately  experiencing   unfairness  compared  with                                                               
other states  in the  country.   She noted  that many  people are                                                               
unaware  of  the  impacts  of   the  provision  at  the  time  of                                                               
onboarding. She  noted challenges with recruitment  and retention                                                               
in  public positions  like  police officers  and  teachers.   She                                                               
discussed the  "death tier,"  which refers  to the  likelihood of                                                               
outliving one's benefits.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SHAW reiterated his support of HJR 18.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
3:46:04 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE STORY asked about the rollback date.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
3:46:18 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MEREDITH  TRAINOR,  Staff,  Representative Alyse  Galvin,  Alaska                                                               
State  Legislature, on  behalf  of  Representative Galvin,  prime                                                               
sponsor of HJR  18, replied that the GPO was  introduced into law                                                               
in  1977, the  WEP  was introduced  in  1983.   Each  of the  two                                                               
policies have different effective dates.   The WEP effective date                                                               
applies to those  hired after December 31, 1983.   She offered to                                                               
follow up with more information.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
3:47:19 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SHAW highlighted  Alaska as the state most  impacted by the                                                               
Windfall  Elimination   Provision  and  the   Government  Pension                                                               
Offset.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR SHAW announced that HJR 18 was held over.