PASI Letter to House Subcommittee on Social Security
March 28, 2022
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
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House Ways and Means Committee
Subcommittee on Social Security
1102 Longworth House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515
The Honorable John B. Larson, Honorable Members Mr. Bill Pascrell, Jr., Ms. Terri A. Sewell, Ms. Gwen Moore, Ranking Member Mr. Tom Reed, Mr. Tom Rice, Mr. Jodey C. Arrington, Mr. Ron Estes, Mr. Kevin Hern.
Dear Chairman Larson and Subcommittee Members:
Since many Polish Americans are among your loyal constituents, we are writing in unity with them to ask you to co-sponsor H.R. 82, “Social Security Fairness Act of 2021”, which your colleagues Representatives Linda Sánchez, Brian Higgins, Steven Horsford, and Earl Blumenauer have done. Additionally, we ask that you vote to report your findings to the House Ways and Means Committee so that it may be brought to the House Floor and voted on.
As you know, H.R. 82 permanently repeals the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO), both of which unfairly, and too often drastically, reduce the Social Security benefits of numerous government workers and legal immigrants. As a result, many fall into low-income and poverty status.
The GPO and WEP provisions are especially unjust towards legal immigrants whose small retirement pensions come from their native countries. Many of your constituents, including a considerable number of Polish Americans, fled persecution under repressive governments and are adversely affected by these provisions. These constituents are primarily first-generation immigrants who retire with a very modest income that combines Social Security benefits with a foreign pension. Their combined income frequently falls below the poverty threshold. Because these immigrants did not have an option to work in jobs covered by Social Security in their native country, reducing their benefits is discriminatory and unjust. Their foreign pension can in no way be called a “windfall”, which is commonly defined as an “unexpected gain” and “piece of good fortune”.
H.R. 5723 is, most commendably, a major overhaul of the Social Security system; however, Section 110, paragraph (c)(1) only repeals the WEP and GPO restrictions within the years 2022 to 2026. Offering temporary rather than permanent relief to 2.5 million retired Americans who are adversely affected by these provisions appears to be counterintuitive. Furthermore, because H.R. 82 currently has 267 bipartisan cosponsors and will be easily passed, withholding it from a House Floor vote appears to be equally counterintuitive.
Because H.R. 82 will quickly provide these Americans with much-needed, permanent economic relief as well as correct a longstanding injustice, it is imperative that these restrictions be repealed immediately. We respectfully implore you to vote with your four Subcommittee colleagues and report your findings to the House Ways and Means Committee so that H.R. 82 can be brought to the House Floor and voted on.
Sincerely,
Edward W. Jesman, President
Polish American Strategic Initiative
(310) 291-2681
cc:
Chairman Richard Neal (House Ways and Means Committee)
Representative Linda Sánchez
Representative Brian Higgins
Representative Steven Horsford
Representative Earl Blumenauer
Polish American Strategic Initiative
P.O. Box 2771, New Britain, CT 06050
(844) 650-7274 // info@joinpasi.org
