U.S. Senator Mazie K. Hirono, along with Senators Ed Markey, Ron Wyden, and 25 other colleagues, have urged the Appropriations Committee to allocate at least $15.402 billion for the Social Security Administration (SSA) in the Fiscal Year 2025 Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations bill. This funding is aimed at facilitating the full implementation of the Social Security Fairness Act.
The Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset had previously reduced benefits for public servants receiving a public pension. These provisions were repealed by the Social Security Fairness Act, signed into law by President Biden in January 2025, affecting 3.2 million public servants.
In their letter to Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins and Ranking Member Patty Murray, the lawmakers stated that “due to persistent underfunding, staff shortages, and a hiring freeze in place since November 2024,” implementing this new law would be challenging without significant upfront costs. The SSA acknowledged that some affected individuals might not see changes in their benefits for up to 12 months without additional funding.
The senators emphasized that without increased funding, SSA might have to divert resources from other priorities, potentially increasing wait times and reversing progress on reducing disability appeals backlogs.
The letter was also signed by Senators Michael Bennet, Sheldon Whitehouse, Elizabeth Warren, Peter Welch, Mark Warner, Bernie Sanders, Raphael Warnock, Jacky Rosen, Amy Klobuchar, Jack Reed, Richard Blumenthal, Angus King, Alex Padilla, Brian Schatz, Kirsten Gillibrand, Elissa Slotkin, Cory Booker, Tim Kaine , Mark Kelly , Chris Murphy , Catherine Cortez Masto , Jon Ossoff , Ruben Gallego , Angela Alsobrooks , and Jeff Merkley.
They concluded by expressing appreciation for past bipartisan efforts to increase SSA funding and urging continued support for both implementing the Social Security Fairness Act and enhancing overall customer service.
