December 18, 2024

Manchin Opposes Social Security Fairness Act, Introduces Amendment to Protect Long-Term Social Security Solvency

Washington, DC – Today, U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (I-WV) spoke on the Senate floor on his opposition to the Social Security Fairness Act, which would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) from Social Security Benefit calculations. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) expects this bill to cost $183 billion over ten years, and it would accelerate the Social Security Trust Fund insolvency.

Senator Manchin introduced an amendment with Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) to instead replace the WEP/GPO with a proportional benefit formula, ensuring public workers receive their appropriate benefit without putting the Trust Fund at risk and adding further to the national debt. Senators Manchin and Cruz spoke on the Senate floor about their amendment.

“I rise today on behalf of the 476,000 West Virginians who rely on Social Security benefits,” Senator Manchin said in part. “The bill is estimated to cost nearly $200 billion over 10 years, and would hasten the insolvency of the Social Security Trust Fund… West Virginia leads the country with the highest percentage of our population receiving Social Security benefits. While we need to make sure retirees are receiving their fair share, we cannot do it at the expense of all beneficiaries and future generations. That’s why our amendment would achieve both goals.”

“The Cruz-Manchin amendment fixes the Windfall Elimination problem, which means it corrects the unfairness for retired cops, for retired firefighters, for retired teachers. But, it does so at a much, much more affordable price tag. The Cruz-Manchin amendment would cost $25 billion compared to $190 billion. It does not speed up the insolvency of social security by a single day,” Senator Cruz said.

The WEP reduces Social Security benefits for individuals who receive a public pension from a job not covered by Social Security and the GPO reduces benefits for surviving spouses, widows, and widowers who also receive government pensions of their own. As of 2023, more than 476,000 West Virginians received monthly Social Security benefits and about 7,700 are subject to WEP or GPO.

A video of Senator Manchin’s floor speech is available here and his remarks as prepared are below:

M. President, I rise today on behalf of the 476,000 West Virginians who rely on Social Security benefits.

The Senate will soon consider the Social Security Fairness Act, which would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision and Government Pension Offset from the Social Security Benefit calculation, providing relief for many public employees who have been adversely impacted.

However, this legislation comes at a high cost.

The bill is estimated to cost nearly $200 billion over 10 years, and would hasten the insolvency of the Social Security Trust Fund.

In one of my first hearings on the Armed Services Committee, I asked Former Admiral Mike Mullen, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, what the greatest threat facing our country was, without hesitation he replied “Our national debt which is more threatening than any other country’s military might.”

The United States is in a fiscal crisis. In Fiscal Year 2013, federal spending was less than $3.5 trillion. In Fiscal Year 2023, it was $6.1 trillion. That’s about an 75% increase – $2.6 trillion.

Last year, total revenues were $4.4 trillion which left us with a deficit of $1.7 trillion dollars – the largest deficit in US history outside of the two fiscal years during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have been spending more than we bring in every year for the last 22 years. And the debt that has resulted from it is absolutely crippling.

Most Americans couldn’t last 22 paychecks spending more than they take in, let alone 22 years.

Years of fiscal irresponsibility have brought us to the crisis we are in today, which is more than $36 trillion dollars of national debt, which equals roughly $104,000 per American.

It is terrifying to think that by the end of this fiscal year, the U.S. will spend more on paying the interest on our debt than on national defense or improving the lives of Americans.

To govern is to make tough choices. However, as matters stand, we are now choosing to ignore our fiscal crisis.

That is why I am offering an amendment, along with my colleague from Texas, Senator Cruz. That would repeal the WEP/GPO without putting the Trust Fund at risk and adding further to our national debt.

Our amendment would replace the WEP/GPO with a proportional benefit formula, ensuring our public workers receive their appropriate benefit.

The Social Security Trust Fund is currently projected to become insolvent by 2033. At which point it would be unable to pay workers their full benefit. It’s important we protect beneficiaries with commonsense proposals.

West Virginia leads the country with the highest percentage of our population receiving Social Security benefits. While we need to make sure retirees are receiving their fair share, we cannot do it at the expense of all beneficiaries and future generations. That’s why our amendment would achieve both goals.

I urge my colleagues to support this amendment and repeal this unfair calculation, in a more fiscally responsible way that ensures the long-term solvency of Social Security.

M. President, I yield to my colleague.