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CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
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WHEREAS, The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) was |
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enacted by Congress in 1983 to help shore up the financing of the |
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Social Security program; and |
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WHEREAS, Intended to eliminate a "windfall" for certain |
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workers, the WEP reduces the Social Security benefits of a person |
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who also receives a pension from a government job not covered by |
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Social Security; and |
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WHEREAS, The WEP penalizes teachers, firefighters, police |
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officers, and other government employees who choose to serve their |
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communities in jobs not covered by Social Security; when these |
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public servants earn Social Security benefits from other work, they |
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should receive those benefits in full without being penalized |
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because of their public service; and |
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WHEREAS, This punitive provision affects a teacher who does |
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not earn Social Security benefits working in the public schools but |
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does earn them working part-time or during the summer; under the |
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WEP, the teacher's Social Security benefits are reduced by as much |
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as 40 percent even though the teacher paid into the Social Security |
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system just like other workers; likewise, the provision discourages |
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qualified, talented individuals in the private sector from choosing |
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public service if they have to sacrifice earned Social Security |
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benefits from their private sector work; and |
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WHEREAS, A very real inequity is created for police officers, |
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who often retire earlier than other government employees and begin |
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a second career that requires them to pay into the Social Security |
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system; police officers who had second careers face as much as a 40 |
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percent cut to their Social Security benefits; and |
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WHEREAS, The WEP unfairly reduces the Social Security |
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benefits of many Texans who devoted much of their careers to public |
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service; now, therefore, be it |
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RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas |
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hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to |
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eliminate the Windfall Elimination Provision from the Social |
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Security program; and, be it further |
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RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official |
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copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to |
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the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of |
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Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the |
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members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that |
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this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a |
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memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |