The Social Security Fairness Act remains stalled in the U.S. Senate, and a rally is planned in Washington, DC for Wednesday, December 11th at 11:30 AM. The event will take place in collaboration with the Alliance for Retired Americans and numerous labor unions under the AFL-CIO. This united front represents a significant opportunity to send a powerful and undeniable message to members of the Senate: The time to act is now.
Back in the 1930s, there was a growing worry that the current pension programs were insufficient to provide retired railroad workers with the necessary support. Especially when they became older and unable to work. To address this concern, Congress set up a national railroad retirement system. If you are a retired railroad worker, you know your benefits differ from Social Security’s. Although both programs share some similarities, there are some notable differences in funding and benefit structure. Keep reading as we highlight some critical areas where these two retirement programs differ.
After several months of warnings and four days before the U.S. Treasury debt default, Congress finally passed a legislative compromise raising the nation’s borrowing limit. The House approved the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 with a vote of 314-117, followed by the Senate with a vote of 63-36 the following evening. The President signed the bill into law on June 3, 2023.
Annually in October, the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) announce the cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for the upcoming year. Every year there are questions from a new widow(er) pertaining to why they did not receive a COLA. They are worried they are not receiving their benefits properly and do not understand why others received them but did not. In some cases, due to a rise in Medicare premiums, they actually see their take-home amount lowered as well.