Mar
12
2012
By Guest (not verified)
Due to my health I may have to take an early retirement. This question has nothing to do with SSI. I'm 59 and a high school teacher, my Texas TRS pension would approx. $1000 p/mo. If I decide to start drawing my S.S benefits when I turn 62, how will this my S.S. benefits? One would think the windfall aspect for retirees would noy effect my S.S. benefits since it's barely above the poverty level. Please clarify?
Thank you,
John H.
Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP)
The Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) feature is relatively complex. To get a good idea of WEP's effect on you could enter a fair amount of data into the SSA's WEP calculator available here :
http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/anyPiaWepjs04.htm
This calculator includes an entry for "Non-covered pension amount" where you would put the monthly amount of your non-covered (government) pension.
To get a rougher idea of what the effect may be, you can see the MAXIMUM reduction in your Social Security benefit from the chart available here :
http://www.ssa.gov/retire2/wep-chart.htm
For example, if your years of contribution to Social Security are less than 20 years, the maximum reduction in your monthly Social Security benefit would be approximately $383.50.